Abstract Submission: Following natural disasters, supplying clean water to critical facilities like hospitals and shelters is essential. Emergency planners and water managers can mitigate water access loss through careful planning and investing in resilient infrastructure. However, identifying high-risk areas and optimal shelter locations is challenging due to complex water network hydraulics, uncertain damage, and dynamic populations. Previous studies have shown that water network resilience is affected by shifting water demand to evacuation shelters, but how and when shelter location choice affects water access is unexplored. This study uses Seaside, OR's water network to investigate performance over 72 hours across 9 different possible shelter locations following probabilistic damage scenarios from a 250-year seismic event. Results indicate that some shelter locations offer more consistent water access than others and that the relative magnitude of demand at the evacuation shelter determines whether its location has influence over water access at the hospital. Ability to meet fire demand at key locations is also shown to be affected by shelter location. This research highlights the advantages of detailed evacuation scenario analysis as a decision-support tool and offers valuable insights into enhancing water network resilience through both network design and evacuation policy.
.jpg "Jason W. Poff (he/him/his) photo")
