GIS and Disaster Planning

In the immediate aftermath of any disaster, there are always questions. The most urgent are: who needs help, where, what resources are available, and how will we get those resources to the people who need them. A great many decisions must be made in a short period of time. Any information that can support those decisions will be welcome. GIS has grown in the last decade into one of the most powerful decision-assistance tools.
The questions of who, where, what and how can all be stored, and when properly maintained and updated, can provide critical information to first-responders, volunteers, and those involved with long-term recovery. Relationships between locations and events can be analyzed and proper remediation can be planned. Areas that have been cleared will not be allocated precious manpower in pointless efforts.
At my workplace, South Florida Water Management District, the first week of June is 'Hurricane Freddy' (Freddy is our cartoon alligator mascot). This annual exercise is a dress rehearsal for the hurricane season, and includes testing the alert roster, assembling the EOC staff, and updating the GIS databases. All conceivable aspects of a potentially devastating storm are considered.
The Deepwater Horizon oil spill event is an excellent example of using GIS to assist the response to a catastrophe. It has the potential to affect millions of people and thousands of acres of sea and land, disrupting the economic and environmental balance of the whole Gulf of Mexico and beyond.
The most obvious use of GIS is to predict the movement of the oil with the known currents of the Gulf, and attempt to provide protection to the most sensitive areas of the coast. Records of what has been done and where will prevent duplication of effort and wasted money and resources. The hazard to health and safety can be tracked, and the specific members of the local population warned of impending danger.