Storm Surge Unit

Mission

To serve the Nation's growing need for storm surge information by providing accurate real-time surge forecasts during tropical cyclone events, supporting coastal community preparedness and resiliency through storm surge vulnerability mapping, and increasing awareness through outreach and education.

Vision

To reduce tropical cyclone storm surge-related loss of life and property by continually improving the quality of storm surge forecasts, data and decision-support tools and by working with an alliance of federal, state, academic and local partners to support the development of storm surge resistant and resilient coastal communities.

About the Storm Surge Unit

The Storm Surge Unit, part of the Technology and Science Branch, is a small group of highly trained meteorologists and oceanographers specializing in predicting storm surge heights accompanying landfalling tropical cyclones. As an integral part of the National Hurricane Center, the Storm Surge Unit produces operational storm surge forecasts referenced above ground level (AGL) for landfalling hurricanes as well as models storm surge simulations of hypothetical storms for federal, state, and local emergency managers used in evacuation planning and storm preparation. Additionally, the Storm Surge Unit performs post-storm analyses and storm surge model verification and continually conducts education and outreach to alert the public of the dangers of storm surge. The storm surge unit uses the Sea, Lake, and Overland Surges from Hurricanes (SLOSH) computer model to simulate storm surge.

The Storm Surge Unit is staffed 24 hours a day when a tropical cyclone threatens the United States Atlantic and Gulf coasts, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. During this period, the National Hurricane Center's Storm Surge Unit supports the Hurricane Specialist Unit (HSU) and the local Weather Forecast Offices in order to convey storm surge vulnerability estimates and provide operational products and services.

The Storm Surge Unit collaborates closely with the National Weather Service's Meteorological Development Laboratory (MDL) in Silver Spring, MD. The MDL supports the Storm Surge Unit by developing and maintaining the SLOSH modeling system and the Probabilistic Storm Surge model.

This site covers the following topics:

Storm Surge Unit

Mission

Vision

About the Storm Surge Unit

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