Hazard Lookups

In RMS applications, "hazarding" is the process of enriching a location exposure with risk data drawn from an RMS peril model database, a collection of site hazard values that characterize the vulnerability of a location to a catastrophe event.

RMS makes peril models available for a variety of perils including earthquakes, windstorms, fires, and floods.

Step 1: Geocode the location

A location must be "geocoded" before it can be enriched or analyzed using the Location Intelligence APIs. Geocoding is the process of enriching a location exposure with geolocation data that precisely identifies the global coordinates of a site.

The POST geocode/latest service enables you to geocode the address specified in the request body.

{
  "location": {
    "address": {
      "countryCode": "SV",
      "countryScheme": "ISO2A",
      "countryRmsCode": "SV",
      "latitude": 13.691045,
      "longitude": -89.214974,
      "rmsGeoModelResolutionCode": 1,
      "admin1GeoId": 2345301
    }
  }
}

The response returns a 200 status code and geocode data for the requested location. You may use the returned data to look up hazard data for that location.

{
"id": 0,
    "admin1Code": "CA",
    "admin1Name": "CALIFORNIA",
    "admin2Code": "001",
    "admin2Name": "ALAMEDA COUNTY",
    "admin3Code": "",
    "admin3Name": "",
    "admin4Code": "",
    "admin4Name": "",
    "cityName": "NEWARK",
    "countryCode": "US",
    "countryRmsCode": "US",
    "countryName": "United States",
    "countryFips": "US",
    "countryScheme": "ISO2A",
    "rmsGeocodingResolutionCode": 31,
    "rmsGeoModelResolutionCode": 2,
    "latitude": 37.54120000000001,
    "locationCode": "060014443.01",
    "longitude": -122.06061000000001,
    "postalCode": "94560",
    "streetAddress": "7575 GATEWAY BLVD",
    "zone1Code": "A2",
    "admin1GeoId": 99999106,
    "admin2GeoId": 99999206001,
    "admin3GeoId": 0,
    "locationCodeGeoId": 0,
    "zone1GeoId": 999995062,
    "zone2GeoId": 0,
    "cityGeoId": 999993061080,
    "countryGeoId": 840,
    "postalCodeGeoId": 99999494560,
    "geoMatchCode": "S1-21778160011-S1T1P1A1-S100T100P100A100-T1P1A1-00-AB-N-X",
    "geoDataSourceId": 8,
    "parcelId": 0,
    "ugid": "USS3121778167575",
    "dataVersion": "20.0.0.0"
}

To learn more, see Geocode Addresses.

Step 2: Hazard lookup the location

A hazard lookup enables you to enrich a geolocated site with site hazard values that characterize the vulnerability of that location to catastrophe event.

The site hazard data available depends on the peril model. Site hazards include landslide risk, soft soils, and close proximity to the coast.

In this example, you will look up earthquake-specific hazard data relevant to the address you just geocoded. The POST ac_eq_hazard/latest request retrieves earthquake hazard data for a geolocated location. All parameters are specified in the request body.

{
  "location": {
    "address": {
      "countryCode": "SV",
      "countryScheme": "ISO2A",
      "countryRmsCode": "SV",
      "latitude": 13.691045,
      "longitude": -89.214974,
      "rmsGeoModelResolutionCode": 1,
      "admin1GeoId": 2345301
} }
}'

The response returns a 200 status code and earthquake hazard data for the specified location in the response body.

{
    "landslideIndex": 0.0,
    "soilIndex": 2.7927000522613525,
    "liquefactionIndex": 1.2999999523162842,
    "soilDescription": "Stiff Soil",
    "liquefactionDescription": "Very Low to Low",
    "landslideDescription": "Very Low"
}

Next steps

Congratulations! Now that you have identified the frequency and severity of risks associated with a location, you are ready to calculate an RMS RiskScore™ that will enable you to identify your best submissions using RMS RiskScore data products.