Roadway Vulnerability Assessment against Hurricanes Using Satellite Images

Infrastructures such as roadways, power lines, and communications networks play a critical role in our society. However, they are also susceptible to failures, especially those caused by extreme events, quickly affecting large geographical areas. Predicting where and when these failures will occur with high confidence is very difficult because of the stochastic nature of such events. Nevertheless, it is possible to know in advance which areas are more vulnerable and plan accordingly. This paper aims to use remote sensing techniques based on satellite images to detect roadways' vulnerabilities to hurricanes. Each road is assigned a vulnerability score based on the information retrieved from the satellite image and other geographic information system (GIS) data, which can be used to create a vulnerability map of the area. Both vegetation exposure along the roads and the consequences of the closures are considered in the vulnerability assessment. The study area has been selected in Tallahassee, Florida, U.S., where a high-resolution satellite image was acquired in September 2018, 2 weeks before Hurricane Michael. The findings of this work can help management teams and city responders to identify the most vulnerable regions at risk of disruption and organize resources before the event.