Researchers at the University of Central Florida have developed an app that will help Florida Residents determine how vulnerable and disaster ready their property is during Hurricane season.
The New app called HazardAware, is an app that gives users scores and levels of risks your house might be under during a Hurricane, along with options for making it safe.
HazardAware provides hazard information for over 13 million properties in over 196 counties that typically experience the most problems during hurricane season along the gulf coast including Florida, Alabama, Louisiana and Texas.
According to UCF Today:
The easy-to-use tool allows users to plug in an address and instantly receive the property’s HazardReady score. The score shows just how resilient, or disaster-ready, a home is, and projects how much hazards, such as winds and flooding, could cost a homeowner each year.
Christopher Emrich, principal investigator of the research for HazardAware and a Boardman Endowed Associate Professor of Environmental Science and Public Administration at UCF, said he thinks the app will help users make smarter and safer choices on where to buy their houses in Hurricane zoned areas.
“When people buy houses, they generally think about location, pricing, crime, walkability and things like that, but rarely do people think about how much hazards will cost,” Emrich said. “By going to HazardAware, people can compare houses and get more information they can use to make crucial decisions and smart choices about where they live.”
For more information on where you can use the app visit HazardAware’s website.
