Unique Features Assessed
Project Manager:
Ryan Wolfgang
The Project
Every year, coastal cities like Virginia Beach, VA, face the risk of major impact and catastrophic damage during hurricane reason, but with the help of RK&K, the City has taken precautions to mitigate potential disasters.
Under our Construction Administration and Inspection Annual Services Contract, RK&K has supported the Public Works Engineering Group with the implementation of their Rapid Damage Assessment Plan. This plan is intended to serve as a coordinated tool for identifying, quantifying, and estimating damage to Virginia Beach’s infrastructure from natural or man-made disasters.
Project Delivery Leader Ryan Wolfgang, PE, CCM, led the coordination efforts in 2023 between RK&K and Virginia Beach execute a 48-hour dry run of this plan. The team included 21 Hampton Roads-based RK&K staff members along with local subconsultants and support from our Richmond and Raleigh offices. Ryan acted as the overall command lead responsible for communicating status updates with the City’s Emergency Operations Center and RK&K’s zone leaders.
The initial rapid damage assessment dry run was intended to simulate a major disaster event as a major natural or man-made disaster would substantially impact the City’s ability to function.
Services included identifying assets for damage inspection, communicating procedure planning, designating internal staff to perform assessments, planning for the condition of readiness leading up to an event, and inspection training.
The City of Virginia Beach is the state’s most populated city and has a total land area of approximately 240 square miles. Utilizing RK&K’s drone team in coordination with the FAA, regional airports, and Naval Air Station (NAS) Oceana, our inspectors, construction managers, and engineers efficiently surveyed 16 miles, focusing on the City’s beachfront areas.
The asset areas were divided into 10 zones, each with an assigned leader to direct the team throughout the course of the inspection. Ryan said the zones were not established by usual demographics, but rather by a particular pattern.
More than 700 unique features were assessed, including bridges, culverts, spillways, dams, signal poles and associated equipment, and stormwater pump stations. Based on the condition of these features, it would be determined whether the City qualifies for a “declaration of disaster” requiring federal assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
RK&K has performed similar tasks in other regions, but Ryan said this initial rapid damage assessment was a first for his Hampton Roads group. However, he said our firm’s one-profit ability to engage staff from any office makes RK&K the perfect team for the job.
Should an actual disaster event result in an evacuation that would displace local staff, this redundancy and pre-assessment team planning ensures that RK&K would be able to respond and support the City appropriately.
RK&K’s drone survey yielded high-definition photo and video footage that will be critical in preparing a Virginia Department of Emergency Management (VDEM) Initial Damage Assessment (IDA) via Crisis Track technology. It will also serve as the foundation for the Request for Public Assistance (RPA) as well as any future state and federal damage assessments.
The initial rapid damage assessment dry run was essential in showcasing RK&K’s ability to deliver timely and responsive services in a post-hurricane or disaster scenario.
RK&K was the first to perform a full-scale, citywide proof of concept.
The team received renewed work orders for 2024 and 2025 to remain on standby, should the City be impacted by a storm requiring this plan to be put into action. And as a new hurricane season ramps up and major cyclones begin to form, RK&K is prepared to answer the call.
“Knowing that we have a team in place and ready to go when the call comes impacts me on both a professional and personal level,” Ryan said. “The quicker we can respond in a safe manner, the quicker the City can reach out to state and federal agencies for assistance and attempt to restore Virginia Beach, along with the lives of our team and their families, back to normal.”
Every year, coastal cities like Virginia Beach, VA, face the risk of major impact and catastrophic damage during hurricane reason, but with the help of RK&K, the City has taken precautions to mitigate potential disasters.
Under our Construction Administration and Inspection Annual Services Contract, RK&K has supported the Public Works Engineering Group with the implementation of their Rapid Damage Assessment Plan. This plan is intended to serve as a coordinated tool for identifying, quantifying, and estimating damage to Virginia Beach’s infrastructure from natural or man-made disasters.
Project Delivery Leader Ryan Wolfgang, PE, CCM, led the coordination efforts in 2023 between RK&K and Virginia Beach execute a 48-hour dry run of this plan. The team included 21 Hampton Roads-based RK&K staff members along with local subconsultants and support from our Richmond and Raleigh offices. Ryan acted as the overall command lead responsible for communicating status updates with the City’s Emergency Operations Center and RK&K’s zone leaders.
The initial rapid damage assessment dry run was intended to simulate a major disaster event as a major natural or man-made disaster would substantially impact the City’s ability to function.
Services included identifying assets for damage inspection, communicating procedure planning, designating internal staff to perform assessments, planning for the condition of readiness leading up to an event, and inspection training.
The City of Virginia Beach is the state’s most populated city and has a total land area of approximately 240 square miles. Utilizing RK&K’s drone team in coordination with the FAA, regional airports, and Naval Air Station (NAS) Oceana, our inspectors, construction managers, and engineers efficiently surveyed 16 miles, focusing on the City’s beachfront areas.
The asset areas were divided into 10 zones, each with an assigned leader to direct the team throughout the course of the inspection. Ryan said the zones were not established by usual demographics, but rather by a particular pattern.
More than 700 unique features were assessed, including bridges, culverts, spillways, dams, signal poles and associated equipment, and stormwater pump stations. Based on the condition of these features, it would be determined whether the City qualifies for a “declaration of disaster” requiring federal assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
RK&K has performed similar tasks in other regions, but Ryan said this initial rapid damage assessment was a first for his Hampton Roads group. However, he said our firm’s one-profit ability to engage staff from any office makes RK&K the perfect team for the job.
Should an actual disaster event result in an evacuation that would displace local staff, this redundancy and pre-assessment team planning ensures that RK&K would be able to respond and support the City appropriately.
RK&K’s drone survey yielded high-definition photo and video footage that will be critical in preparing a Virginia Department of Emergency Management (VDEM) Initial Damage Assessment (IDA) via Crisis Track technology. It will also serve as the foundation for the Request for Public Assistance (RPA) as well as any future state and federal damage assessments.
The initial rapid damage assessment dry run was essential in showcasing RK&K’s ability to deliver timely and responsive services in a post-hurricane or disaster scenario.
RK&K was the first to perform a full-scale, citywide proof of concept.
The team received renewed work orders for 2024 and 2025 to remain on standby, should the City be impacted by a storm requiring this plan to be put into action. And as a new hurricane season ramps up and major cyclones begin to form, RK&K is prepared to answer the call.
“Knowing that we have a team in place and ready to go when the call comes impacts me on both a professional and personal level,” Ryan said. “The quicker we can respond in a safe manner, the quicker the City can reach out to state and federal agencies for assistance and attempt to restore Virginia Beach, along with the lives of our team and their families, back to normal.”
Client
Market
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