Portland Bureau of Emergency Management

ShakeAlert is an Earthquake Early Warning (EEW) system from the U.S. Geological Survey. It uses a network of ground-motion sensors and sophisticated algorithms to detect an earthquake seconds after it begins, calculate its location and magnitude, and estimate the resulting intensity of shaking. Alerts can then be sent to people and systems, allowing them to take automated protective actions. The city was awarded a grant to assess facilities and infrastructure for installation of ShakeAlert. I am the project manager overseeing this project. This has involved researching the EEW technology to understand how it works and potential uses, reaching out to other City bureaus to compile data on facilities to consider, assembling and leading a steering committee, and spearheading the procurement process to find a contractor to perform the assessment.