Mapping Economic Impact of Major Hurricanes in 2014-2018: Visualization of VIIRS DNB and LEHD Data.

The true cost of hurricanes is still hard to estimate, as their effects have both long-term and short-term consequences, and recovery might differ through space and time; additionally, the uncertainty inherent to every natural disaster makes the government response more challenging. The overall general tendency for hurricanes in the U.S. seems to be increasing in two different ways: (1) The increase in the number of events (hurricanes) and their intensity in the U.S. and (2) The exponential increase in government expenses for natural disaster relief programs. According to the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the yearly average disaster declaration increased from 43.5 during the G.H. W. Bush administration to 138.6 declarations for Obama´s; equivalent to an increase of over 200 percent in only 28 years.

This research strives to answer the following question: How do hurricanes impact economic development, and how long does it take an affected region to recover

For this research, we combined socio-demographic data from LEHD (Longitudinal Employment-Household Dynamics) and VIIRS Nighttime Lights satellite data to track the impact of Category 3+ hurricanes on the throughout 2014-2018. Analysis and mapping are conducted at the US Census block group level (2010). Changes in Nighttime light intensity compared to a pre-event baseline (right before the hurricanes make landfall), as well as relative monthly changes in light intensity are analyzed in comparison with employment data, which are two geospatial cornerstones for the this study. This analysis will help us to better understand the big picture of economic activity and how it changes before, during, and after a major hurricane in a spatial dimension. Moreover, created geodatabase will allow to track not only economic consequences from hurricanes, but any other natural disasters, thus providing fundamental information for further various economic research.