Mission Assurance Analysts Impact Haiti Restoration and Recovery Efforts
Navy NewsStand
Story Number: NNS100202-28
Release Date: 2/2/2010 4:52:00 PM
By John J. Joyce, Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Public Affairs
DAHLGREN, Va. (NNS) -- U.S. Navy analysts and engineers are providing a constant real-time analysis of critical infrastructure in Haiti, the Dominican Republic and other Caribbean nations that is proving vital to U.S. Southern Command's (SOUTHCOM) planning and management of Haiti's recovery efforts.
"This is personal for us," said Harry Castelly, a Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC) Dahlgren Chemical Infrastructure analyst and native of Haiti, who contributed to the planning for restoration of critical infrastructure. "My mother lives in Haiti near the epicenter. It was six days before I knew she was okay but I still had to do my job."
The analysts - in collaboration with SOUTHCOM and available around-the-clock since Jan. 12 - are contributing infrastructure analysis that includes the assessment of telecommunications, electric power and transportation in addition to petroleum, chemical and water supplies damaged in the aftermath of the earthquake.
"We were able to provide U.S. Southern Command with a pre-earthquake baseline look of the infrastructures in Haiti and our support to the recovery efforts is ongoing," said Joe Ingram, NSWC Dahlgren Mission Assurance Division's Situational Awareness Technologies acting branch head. "We immediately responded when SOUTHCOM requested help identifying transportation assets - particularly airfields and seaports, in neighboring countries with the potential to assist in the relief and recovery efforts."
This rapid response to assist recovery planning efforts was made possible by TRITON - a scalable web application architecture engineered to integrate and visualize data from many sources on a geographic map. Mission Assurance analysts used the technology to create a more comprehensive picture of the pre and post-earthquake infrastructure situation by integrating new imagery with previous geographic information system (GIS) products.
"We updated the original information developed in support of the Haiti recovery after Hurricane Ike in 2008 in order to aid current humanitarian and disaster relief efforts," said Larry Ground, Defense Critical Infrastructure Program mission analyst. "Our team used up-to-the minute data to create a report and a geographical information system map service on our TRITON Web application."
The report and map service were provided to the assistant secretary of Defense for Homeland Defense and America's Security Affairs, the Department of Homeland Security, and U.S. Northern Command.
The NSWC Dahlgren Mission Assurance Division products provided by Castelly, Ingram, Ground and 14 additional analysts are being shared widely within the GIS communities and agencies responding to the humanitarian effort, including the Domestic Preparedness Branch, National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency.
The ability of NSWC Dahlgren's Mission Assurance experts to respond quickly and remain synchronized with SOUTHCOM staff is a direct result of their participation in Fuerzas Aliadas PANAMAX 2009. In the 12-day military security training exercise involving 20 countries held last September, SOUTHCOM responded to notional disasters in Central American countries.
"We performed extensive research, developing techniques to quickly answer the needs of the U.S. Southern Command staff throughout PANAMAX," said Ground. "Our working relationship with SOUTHCOM was further solidified when Mission Assurance personnel deployed on site and worked side-by-side with their headquarters staff."
"The products are right on target," said Samson Johnson, U.S. SOUTHCOM Defense Critical Infrastructure program analyst. "We consider the Mission Assurance Division an essential collaborative partner."
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