GSA Connects 2022 meeting in Denver, Colorado

Paper No. 266-7
Presentation Time: 2:00 PM-6:00 PM

USAID-USGS EARTHQUAKE DISASTER ASSISTANCE TEAM: COLLABORATING WITH INTERNATIONAL PARTNERS TO REDUCE EARTHQUAKE RISK WORLDWIDE


DAVIS, Lindsay1, SLAUGHTER, Stephen1, MAYBERRY, Gari2, HAYES, Gavin P.1 and FOLLINGSTAD, Venezia1, (1)U.S. Geological Survey, Box 25046, MS 966, Denver, CO 80225, (2)U.S. Geological Survey, Washington, DC 20004

In this poster presentation, we will provide a brief overview of the Earthquake Disaster Assistance Team (EDAT) and EDAT’s ongoing projects. EDAT was co-founded by USGS (U.S. Geological Survey) and the U.S. Agency for International Development’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (USAID/BHA, formerly the USAID Office of U.S. Foreign Disaster Assistance) in 2009. EDAT’s goal is to assist foreign partners, mainly in developing countries, with seismic hazard identification and monitoring. EDAT works in the background to support scientists and officials by assisting and supporting with local geologic hazard research, risk management, and response within their respective countries.

EDAT consists of scientists from the USGS with specialties including paleoseismology and ground rupture, network seismology, geotechnical engineering and ground failure, strong-motion instrumentation, geodesy, seismic hazard assessment, earthquake source characterization, education and outreach, etc. EDAT scientists also work closely with the Landslide Disaster Assistance Team (LDAT) on earthquake generated landslides.

EDAT scientists support local counterparts by sharing knowledge, typically through capacity-building projects and disaster response. EDAT has projects in the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Colombia, Costa Rica, Indonesia, and Nepal on topics including fault zone hazard training, monitoring network improvements, family preparedness, scenario development, and cellphone-based earthquake early warning. EDAT also supports worldwide projects that provide real-time earthquake products and aftershock forecasts. EDAT scientists have responded after several earthquakes, including the 2010 and 2021 Haiti earthquakes, and the 2015 Gorkha earthquake in Nepal.

In addition to EDAT, USAID/BHA also supports the USGS-implemented LDAT and the Volcano Disaster Assistance Program (VDAP). Together, these three bilateral activities provide data and scientific expertise to reduce the risk from geological hazards around the world.