Implementors Note: CAP Alert Messages as a GML FeatureCollection

This Implementors Note concerns the use of Geographic Markup Language
(GML) in the context of Common Alerting Protocol (CAP). Following the
"Points of Agreement" is a corresponding XML Schema, "capgml.xsd", that
combines elements from GML version 2 and CAP version 1.0. An example
instance, "capgml.xml" is also provided.

Points of Agreement

1\. CAP alert messages can be usefully selected according to target area
such as a country, state, city, etc. This selection, and other
geographic operations such as mapping of CAP alerts, entail the
application of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) technology. The open
standard for representing GIS data with XML is the Geographic Markup
Language (GML), developed under the auspices of the Open GIS Consortium
(OGC). GML version 3 has now been standardized, although GML version 2
is the most widely deployed at present.

2\. From a GIS perspective, any object that has a geospatial reference
is considered to be a "feature" and that is how CAP alerts are to be
treated in GML. It follows that a set of CAP alert messages comprises a
"featureCollection", also known as a "map layer". Those CAP alert
messages lacking an explicit geospatial reference should be regarded as
having an implicit geospatial reference with an extent equal to the
maximum area of the map layer.

3\. Each feature within a map layer may have associated data attributes.
For example, a map layer named "cities" would have a separately mapped
feature for each city. The "city feature" must have a geographic extent
but may include other data attributes such as "name" and "population".
To model a CAP message as a GIS feature, elements of the CAP message
correspond to attributes of the GIS feature.

4\. For the sake of simplicity in GIS processing, the data attributes of
a feature are typically simple elements rather than structures. However,
a CAP alert message may contain zero to multiple \<info\> elements, each
of which may contain zero to multiple \<area\> elements. This nested
structure of the CAP message should be "flattened", i.e., there should
be a separate GML feature in the GML featureCollection for each
combination of CAP message alert, alert/info, and alert/info/area
elements. Also, certain elements of a CAP message may occur multiple
times

(e.g., "code", "info/category", "info/eventCode", "info/parameter",
\"info/resource\" and "info/area/geocode"). The values of these multiple
occurrence elements should be concatenated into a single string,
separating values with a space and "\|" character.

5\. All CAP alert messages use the same Spatial Reference System (SRS),
known variously as "WGS-84" or "EPSG:4326". This is designated by the
value of attribute "SRSName" as
"http://www.opengis.net/gml/srs/epsg.xml#4326". This value should be set
in the featureCollection top-level extent element, "gml:boundedBy".

6\. Flattening of CAP alert messages into features yields a
featureCollection consisting of one or more CAP features for every CAP
message. The CAP feature is wrapped as a "featureMember", with an
further "alert" sub-element container. Except for flattening described
above and special processing of the polygon and circle elements, CAP
message elements are to be directly copied as "featureMember/alert"
elements.

7\. Each "featureMember/aler" element should have the GML 2 attribute
named "fid" (feature id). A unique feature id for each CAP feature can
be constructed from the CAP identifier, appending "-" plus a count for
cases where more than one CAP feature corresponds to one CAP message.

8\. Each "featureMember/aler" should include a "gml:name" element and a
"gml:description" element. The value of "gml:name" should be set to the
value of the CAP message "event" element. The value of "gml:description"
should be set to the value of the CAP message "areaDesc" element.

9\. CAP alert messages contain three elements for designating the two
dimensional extent: polygon, circle, and geocode. When casting GML from
CAP, it would be good practice to provide a polygon giving the
geographic extent associated with the given geocode.

10\. After the addition of an implicit extent for CAP features that do
not have an explicit extent, each CAP feature should have either a
polygon, a point, or a circle. These elements are to be included as
sub-elements of the single "featureMember/alert" subelement named
"extentOf".

11\. The GML polygon definition requires that the last point in the
series of coordinate points be the same as the first. This adjustment
must be made when casting the lon/lat values given in the CAP
\<polygon\> to the GML gml:coordinates element (nested within the
gml:Polygon / gml:outerBoundaryIs / gml:LinearRing wrapping elements).

12\. The string value of the CAP circle element is to be constructed as
a structure consisting of a center point (gml:coord / gml:X , gml:Y )and
a radius. Although a circle definition is available in GML version 3,
that type of feature must be locally defined when using GML version 2.
Because of this limitation, any CAP circle having a radius of zero
should be cast into GML as a point instead.

XML Schema (capgml.xsd)

\<?xml version = \"1.0\" encoding = \"UTF-8\"?\>

\<xs:schema xmlns =
\"http://www.usgs.gov/hazard_alert/alerts/capgml.xsd\"

targetNamespace = \"http://www.usgs.gov/hazard_alert/alerts/capgml.xsd\"

xmlns:xs = \"http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema\"

xmlns:gml = \"http://www.opengis.net/gml\"

elementFormDefault = \"qualified\"

attributeFormDefault = \"unqualified\"\>

\<xs:import namespace = \"http://www.opengis.net/gml\"

schemaLocation = \"http://schemas.opengis.net/gml/2.1.2/feature.xsd\"/\>

\<!\-- Schema for CAP alert messages cast as GML Features \--\>

\<xs:element name = \"featureCollection\" substitutionGroup =
\"gml:\_FeatureCollection\"\>

\<xs:complexType\>

\<xs:complexContent\>

\<xs:extension base = \"gml:AbstractFeatureCollectionType\"/\>

\</xs:complexContent\>

\</xs:complexType\>

\</xs:element\>

\<xs:element name = \"alert\" substitutionGroup = \"gml:\_Feature\"\>

\<xs:complexType\>

\<xs:complexContent\>

\<xs:extension base = \"gml:AbstractFeatureType\"\>

\<xs:sequence\>

\<xs:element name = \"identifier\" type = \"xs:string\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"sender\" type = \"xs:string\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"sent\" type = \"xs:dateTime\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"status\" type = \"StatusType\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"msgType\" type = \"MsgType\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"password\" type = \"xs:string\" minOccurs =
\"0\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"source\" type = \"xs:string\" minOccurs = \"0\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"scope\" type = \"ScopeType\" minOccurs = \"0\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"restriction\" type = \"xs:string\" minOccurs =
\"0\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"addresses\" type = \"xs:string\" minOccurs =
\"0\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"code\" type = \"xs:string\" minOccurs = \"0\"\
maxOccurs = \"unbounded\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"note\" type = \"xs:string\" minOccurs = \"0\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"references\" type = \"xs:string\" minOccurs =
\"0\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"incidents\" type = \"xs:string\" minOccurs =
\"0\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"language\" type = \"xs:language\" default =
\"en-US\" minOccurs = \"0\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"categories\" type = \"xs:string\" minOccurs =
\"0\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"event\" type = \"xs:string\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"urgency\" type = \"UrgencyType\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"severity\" type = \"SeverityType\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"certainty\" type = \"CertaintyType\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"audience\" type = \"xs:string\" minOccurs =
\"0\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"eventcode\" type = \"xs:string\" minOccurs = \"0\"
maxOccurs = \"unbounded\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"effective\" type = \"xs:dateTime\" minOccurs =
\"0\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"onset\" type = \"xs:dateTime\" minOccurs =
\"0\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"expires\" type = \"xs:dateTime\" minOccurs =
\"0\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"senderName\" type = \"xs:string\" minOccurs =
\"0\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"headline\" type = \"xs:string\" minOccurs =
\"0\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"description\" type = \"xs:string\" minOccurs =
\"0\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"instruction\" type = \"xs:string\" minOccurs =
\"0\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"web\" type = \"xs:anyURI\" minOccurs = \"0\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"contact\" type = \"xs:string\" minOccurs =
\"0\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"parameters\" type = \"xs:string\" minOccurs =
\"0\" maxOccurs = \"unbounded\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"resourceDesc\" type = \"xs:string\" minOccurs =
\"0\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"mimeType\" type = \"xs:string\" minOccurs =
\"0\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"size\" type = \"xs:integer\" minOccurs = \"0\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"uri\" type = \"xs:anyURI\" minOccurs = \"0\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"derefUri\" type = \"xs:string\" minOccurs =
\"0\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"digest\" type = \"xs:string\" minOccurs = \"0\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"areaDesc\" type = \"xs:string\" minOccurs =
\"0\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"extentOf\" type = \"ExtentOfType\" minOccurs =
\"0\" maxOccurs = \"unbounded\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"geocode\" type = \"xs:string\" minOccurs = \"0\"\
maxOccurs = \"unbounded\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"altitude\" type = \"xs:string\" minOccurs =
\"0\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"ceiling\" type = \"xs:string\" minOccurs =
\"0\"/\>

\</xs:sequence\>

\</xs:extension\>

\</xs:complexContent\>

\</xs:complexType\>

\</xs:element\>

\<xs:simpleType name = \"StatusType\"\>

\<xs:restriction base = \"xs:string\"\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Actual\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Exercise\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"System\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Test\"/\>

\</xs:restriction\>

\</xs:simpleType\>

\<xs:simpleType name = \"ScopeType\"\>

\<xs:restriction base = \"xs:string\"\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Public\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Restricted\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Private\"/\>

\</xs:restriction\>

\</xs:simpleType\>

\<xs:simpleType name = \"MsgType\"\>

\<xs:restriction base = \"xs:string\"\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Alert\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Update\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Cancel\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Ack\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Error\"/\>

\</xs:restriction\>

\</xs:simpleType\>

\<xs:simpleType name = \"CategoriesType\"\>

\<xs:restriction base = \"xs:string\"\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Geo\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Met\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Safety\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Security\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Rescue\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Fire\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Health\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Env\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Transport\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Infra\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Other\"/\>

\</xs:restriction\>

\</xs:simpleType\>

\<xs:simpleType name = \"UrgencyType\"\>

\<xs:restriction base = \"xs:string\"\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Immediate\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Expected\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Future\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Past\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Unknown\"/\>

\</xs:restriction\>

\</xs:simpleType\>

\<xs:simpleType name = \"SeverityType\"\>

\<xs:restriction base = \"xs:string\"\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Extreme\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Severe\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Moderate\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Minor\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Unknown\"/\>

\</xs:restriction\>

\</xs:simpleType\>

\<xs:simpleType name = \"CertaintyType\"\>

\<xs:restriction base = \"xs:string\"\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Very Likely\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Likely\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Possible\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Unlikely\"/\>

\<xs:enumeration value = \"Unknown\"/\>

\</xs:restriction\>

\</xs:simpleType\>

\<xs:complexType name = \"ExtentOfType\"\>

\<xs:sequence\>

\<xs:element ref = \"gml:Polygon\" minOccurs = \"0\"/\>

\<xs:element ref = \"gml:Point\" minOccurs = \"0\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"circle\" type = \"CircleType\" minOccurs =
\"0\"/\>

\</xs:sequence\>

\</xs:complexType\>

\<xs:complexType name = \"CircleType\"\>

\<xs:sequence\>

\<xs:element ref = \"gml:coord\"/\>

\<xs:element name = \"radius\" type = \"xs:decimal\"/\>

\</xs:sequence\>

\</xs:complexType\>

\</xs:schema\>

XML Instance (capgml.xml)

\<?xml version=\"1.0\" encoding=\"UTF-8\"?\>

\<capgml:featureCollection xmlns:gml=\"http://www.opengis.net/gml\"

xmlns:capgml=\"http://www.usgs.gov/hazard_alert/alerts/capgml.xsd\"

xmlns:xsi=\"http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance\"

xsi:schemaLocation=\"http://www.usgs.gov/hazard_alert/alerts/capgml.xsd\"\>

\<gml:boundedBy\>

\<gml:Box srsName=\"http://www.opengis.net/gml/srs/epsg.xml#4326\"\>

\<gml:coordinates decimal=\".\" cs=\",\" ts=\" \"\>-180.0,-90.0
180.0,90\</gml:coordinates\>

\</gml:Box\>

\</gml:boundedBy\>

\<gml:featureMember\>

\<capgml:alert fid=\"USGS-earthquakes-20031117-064307\"\>

\<gml:description\>95 km (60 miles) S of Little Sitkin Island, Alaska

105 km (65 miles) SW of Semisopochnoi Island, Alaska

2220 km (1380 miles) WSW of Anchorage, Alaska

3060 km (1900 miles) W of JUNEAU, Alaska\</gml:description\>

\<gml:name\>Message from USGS Earthquakes Program\</gml:name\>

\<capgml:identifier\>USGS-earthquakes-20031117-064307\</capgml:identifier\>

\<capgml:sender\>echristian@usgs.gov\</capgml:sender\>

\<capgml:sent\>2003-11-17T06:43:07Z\</capgml:sent\>

\<capgml:status\>Test\</capgml:status\>

\<capgml:msgType\>Alert\</capgml:msgType\>

\<capgml:scope\>Public\</capgml:scope\>

\<capgml:language\>en-US\</capgml:language\>

\<capgml:categories\>Geo\</capgml:categories\>

\<capgml:event\>Message from USGS Earthquakes Program\</capgml:event\>

\<capgml:urgency\>Past\</capgml:urgency\>

\<capgml:severity\>Severe\</capgml:severity\>

\<capgml:certainty\>Very Likely\</capgml:certainty\>

\<capgml:senderName\>National Earthquake Information Center
(NEIC)\</capgml:senderName\>

\<capgml:headline\>Magnitude 7.8 Rat Islands, Aleutian Islands,
Alaska\</capgml:headline\>

\<capgml:description\>Felt (IV) on Shemya. A local tsunami generated
with recorded wave heights (peak-to-trough) of 50 cm at Shemya and 12 cm
at Adak.\</capgml:description\>

\<capgml:web\>http://neic.usgs.gov/neis/eq_depot/2003/eq_031117/\</capgml:web\>

\<capgml:contact\>Roger Hansen 1-907-474-5533\</capgml:contact\>

\<capgml:parameters\>Magnitude= 7.8 Ml \| Depth= 33.0
km\</capgml:parameters\>

\<capgml:resourceDesc\>Image file\</capgml:resourceDesc\>

\<capgml:uri\>http://neic.usgs.gov/neis/poster/2003/20031117.html\</capgml:uri\>

\<capgml:areaDesc\>95 km (60 miles) S of Little Sitkin Island, Alaska

105 km (65 miles) SW of Semisopochnoi Island, Alaska

2220 km (1380 miles) WSW of Anchorage, Alaska

3060 km (1900 miles) W of JUNEAU, Alaska\</capgml:areaDesc\>

\<capgml:extentOf\>

\<gml:Point srsName=\"http://www.opengis.net/gml/srs/epsg.xml#4326\"\>

\<gml:coord\>

\<gml:X\>51.13\</gml:X\>

\<gml:Y\>-178.74\</gml:Y\>

\</gml:coord\>

\</gml:Point\>

\</capgml:extentOf\>

\</capgml:alert\>

\</gml:featureMember\>

\<gml:featureMember\>

\<capgml:alert fid=\"USGS-Geomagnetic-20050424-111453\"\>

\<gml:description\>Plots of the data from USGS observatories can be seen
on-line at: http://geomag.usgs.gov/frames/plots.htm\</gml:description\>

\<gml:name\>Message from USGS Geomagnetism Program\</gml:name\>

\<gml:boundedBy\>

\<gml:Box\>

\<gml:coordinates\>-180,-90 180,90\</gml:coordinates\>

\</gml:Box\>

\</gml:boundedBy\>

\<capgml:identifier\>USGS-Geomagnetic-20050424-111453\</capgml:identifier\>

\<capgml:sender\>jcaldwell@usgs.gov\</capgml:sender\>

\<capgml:sent\>2005-04-24T07:14:53-04:00\</capgml:sent\>

\<capgml:status\>Test\</capgml:status\>

\<capgml:msgType\>Alert\</capgml:msgType\>

\<capgml:scope\>Public\</capgml:scope\>

\<capgml:language\>en-US\</capgml:language\>

\<capgml:categories\>Geo\</capgml:categories\>

\<capgml:event\>Message from USGS Geomagnetism Program\</capgml:event\>

\<capgml:urgency\>Expected\</capgml:urgency\>

\<capgml:severity\>Moderate\</capgml:severity\>

\<capgml:certainty\>Possible\</capgml:certainty\>

\<capgml:senderName\>USGS Geomagnetism Program, Jill
Caldwell\</capgml:senderName\>

\<capgml:headline\>Geomagnetic Storm Alert\</capgml:headline\>

\<capgml:description\>The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is bracing for
the likely arrival of a major geomagnetic storm and possible auroral
activity over the next few days. Space Weather sources at NOAA/NASA
indicate that a series of major solar flares and a subsequent full-halo
coronal mass ejection (CME) was observed at 9:30 a.m. Eastern Time on
June 6. The location of the flare and direction of the CME make it a
near certainty that the ejected material will reach the Earth within the
next 24 hours. Thus, it should produce geomagnetic activity and a
resulting aurora that may be visible at mid-latitudes, and could
continue for several days. Geomagnetic storms occur when plasma, a hot
ionized gas of charged particles produced by eruptions on the Sun,
impacts the Earth?s magnetic field causing it to fluctuate wildly. These
fluctuations cause currents to flow in conductors on the ground and in
space. Solar eruptions can produce billions of tons of plasma traveling
at speeds in excess of a million miles an hour.\</capgml:description\>

\<capgml:instruction\>While it is geomagnetic storms that give rise to
the beautiful Northern lights, they can also pose a serious threat for
commercial and military satellite operators, power companies,
astronauts, and they can even shorten the life of oil pipelines in
Alaska by increasing pipeline corrosion.\</capgml:instruction\>

\<capgml:web\>\
http://www.usgs.gov/public/press/public_affairs/press_releases/pr1241m.html\
\</capgml:web\>

\<capgml:contact\>Jill Caldwell 1-303-273-8486\</capgml:contact\>

\<capgml:resourceDesc\>Image file\</capgml:resourceDesc\>

\<capgml:uri\>http://geomag.usgs.gov/realtime.html\</capgml:uri\>

\<capgml:areaDesc\>Plots of the data from USGS observatories can be seen
on-line at: http://geomag.usgs.gov/frames/plots.htm\</capgml:areaDesc\>

\</capgml:alert\>

\</gml:featureMember\>

\<gml:featureMember\>

\<capgml:alert fid=\"USGS-Landslides-20041020-072744\"\>

\<gml:description\>Southwestern California (Detailed locations of areas
susceptible to debris flow are given on \'Preliminary Soil-Slip
Susceptibility Maps, Southwestern California\' published as U.S.
Geological Survey Open-File Report 03-017 available on-line at
http://geopubs.wr.usgs.gov/open-file/of03-17/)\</gml:description\>

\<gml:name\>Message from USGS Landslides Program\</gml:name\>

\<capgml:identifier\>USGS-Landslides-20041020-072744\</capgml:identifier\>

\<capgml:sender\>echristian@usgs.gov\</capgml:sender\>

\<capgml:sent\>2004-10-20T02:27:44-05:00\</capgml:sent\>

\<capgml:status\>Test\</capgml:status\>

\<capgml:msgType\>Alert\</capgml:msgType\>

\<capgml:scope\>Public\</capgml:scope\>

\<capgml:language\>en-US\</capgml:language\>

\<capgml:categories\>Geo\</capgml:categories\>

\<capgml:event\>Message from USGS Landslides Program\</capgml:event\>

\<capgml:urgency\>Expected\</capgml:urgency\>

\<capgml:severity\>Moderate\</capgml:severity\>

\<capgml:certainty\>Possible\</capgml:certainty\>

\<capgml:senderName\>USGS Landslides Program, Paula
Gori\</capgml:senderName\>

\<capgml:headline\>Debris-Flow Advisory for Southern
California\</capgml:headline\>

\<capgml:description\>The U.S. Geological Survey is issuing the
following advisory for southern California because of heavy rainfall for
the past two weeks and rainfall forecasted for the weekend in southern
California: Significant debris-flow (mudflow) activity is likely in
areas of the following counties that are susceptible to debris flow and
receive intense rain (more than 2 inches in 6 hours in lowland areas,
more than 4 inches in 6 hours for the mountains) on already wet slopes.
Areas that have been burned in recent wildfires may be even more
vulnerable, so that significantly lesser rainfall amounts over shorter
time periods could produce hazardous debris flows. These counties are:
San Diego, Riverside, Orange, San Bernardino, Ventura, Los Angeles, and
Santa Barbara. Areas of potential danger from debris flow include areas
downslope and downstream from the susceptible areas shown on USGS maps
(see url below) and from the recent burn areas. Fatalities, injuries,
and property damage from debris flows commonly occur in low-lying areas
such as canyon floors and near the mouths of
canyons.\</capgml:description\>

\<capgml:instruction\>Because debris flows can begin suddenly with
little or no warning, it is essential to be prepared. During the drier
periods between storms, residents living in the foothills and mountains
in southern California should watch for fresh cracks or fissures on
hillsides, tilting of trees or utility poles, or other signs of recent
earth movement. They should also watch for changes in the patterns of
storm-water drainage on nearby hillslopes and streams. Obstructed
drainage may increase the potential for landslides. During periods of
heavy rain, residents should monitor local National Weather Service
Flash-Flood advisories, which will contain more detailed information on
specific times and places of concern for debris-flow activity. Residents
should stay awake and alert because many debris-flow fatalities occur
when people are sleeping. Residents should listen for unusual sounds,
such as rushing water, cracking trees, or rolling boulders; be prepared
to move quickly; and be especially alert when driving because road cuts
and embankments are often susceptible to debris flows and rock falls.
Residents should also watch for fallen trees.\</capgml:instruction\>

\<capgml:web\>http://geopubs.wr.usgs.gov/open-file/of03-17/\</capgml:web\>

\<capgml:contact\>Paula Gori 1-703-648-6707\</capgml:contact\>

\<capgml:areaDesc\>Southwestern California (Detailed locations of areas
susceptible to debris flow are given on \'Preliminary Soil-Slip
Susceptibility Maps, Southwestern California\' published as U.S.
Geological Survey Open-File Report 03-017 available on-line at
http://geopubs.wr.usgs.gov/open-file/of03-17/)\</capgml:areaDesc\>

\<capgml:extentOf\>

\<gml:Polygon\>

\<gml:outerBoundaryIs\>

\<gml:LinearRing\>

\<gml:coordinates decimal=\".\" cs=\",\" ts=\" \"\>-120.0,34.5
-116.9,34.5 -116.9,32.5 -120.0,32.5 -120.0,34.5\</gml:coordinates\>

\</gml:LinearRing\>

\</gml:outerBoundaryIs\>

\</gml:Polygon\>

\</capgml:extentOf\>

\</capgml:alert\>

\</gml:featureMember\>

\<gml:featureMember\>

\<capgml:alert fid=\"USGS-Landslides-20050402-130101\"\>

\<gml:description\>mountainous regions of Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee,
Kentucky, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Ohio
and Maryland\</gml:description\>

\<gml:name\>Message from USGS Landslides Program\</gml:name\>

\<capgml:identifier\>USGS-Landslides-20050402-130101\</capgml:identifier\>

\<capgml:sender\>echristian@usgs.gov\</capgml:sender\>

\<capgml:sent\>2005-04-02T08:01:01-05:00\</capgml:sent\>

\<capgml:status\>Test\</capgml:status\>

\<capgml:msgType\>Alert\</capgml:msgType\>

\<capgml:scope\>Public\</capgml:scope\>

\<capgml:language\>en-US\</capgml:language\>

\<capgml:categories\>Geo\</capgml:categories\>

\<capgml:event\>Message from USGS Landslides Program\</capgml:event\>

\<capgml:urgency\>Expected\</capgml:urgency\>

\<capgml:severity\>Moderate\</capgml:severity\>

\<capgml:certainty\>Possible\</capgml:certainty\>

\<capgml:senderName\>USGS Landslides Program, Paula
Gori\</capgml:senderName\>

\<capgml:headline\>USGS Issues Alert of Landslide Dangers from Hurricane
Ivan\</capgml:headline\>

\<capgml:description\>The U.S. Geological Survey today is alerting state
and federal agencies to the increased potential for landslides in the
mountainous regions of Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, Kentucky, South
Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Ohio and Maryland due
to anticipated heavy rainfall from Hurricane Ivan. Given the wet soil
conditions we already have in many of these areas due to the heavy rain
from recent Hurricane Frances, the risk of numerous, fast-moving
landslides is significant. Residents in landslide-prone areas and anyone
in mountainous areas should be aware of the warning signs and be
prepared to move quickly. Intense rains have triggered landslides in the
area before. The slope of the land, the type of geology, ground
saturation, and rainfall intensity and duration all play major roles in
triggering landslides. During the inland passage of Hurricane Frances
through mountainous western North Carolina, many areas received between
10 and 16 inches of rainfall over 24 hours, which triggered at least 20
isolated landslides that blocked highways and damaged or destroyed
houses. Currently, a Quantitative Precipitation Forecast by NOAA/NWS
forecasts up to about 11 inches of rainfall within the future 4-5 day
period (48 hours) of September 17 to 19 through the southern/central
parts of Appalachian Mountains. If rainfall intensity-duration exceeds
this predicted value, then more numerous landslides could occur in
mountainous areas along the projected path of the storm in the States of
Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, Kentucky, South Carolina, North Carolina,
Virginia, West Virginia, Ohio and Maryland. Landslides are powerful.
People living in these areas should be aware of the danger during severe
weather and be ready to act if the situation
warrants.\</capgml:description\>

\<capgml:instruction\>Advice for residents in affected areas: Before the
storm (1) Become familiar with the land around you. Learn whether
landslides have occurred in your area. Slopes where landslides have
occurred in the past are likely to experience them in the future. (2)
Watch the patterns of storm-water drainage on slopes near your home, and
note especially the places where runoff water converges, increasing flow
over soil-covered slopes. Watch the hillsides around your home for any
signs of land movement, such as small landslides or debris flows or
progressively tilting trees. (3) Contact your local authorities to learn
about the emergency-response and evacuation plans for your area and
develop your own emergency plans for your family and business. During
the storm: (1) Stay alert and stay awake. Many landslide fatalities
occur when people are sleeping. Listen to a radio for warnings of
intense rainfall. Be aware that intense short bursts of rain may be
particularly dangerous, especially after longer periods of heavy
rainfall and damp weather. (2) If you are in areas susceptible to
landslides, consider leaving if it is safe to do so. Remember that
driving during an intense storm can itself be hazardous. (3) Listen for
any unusual sounds that might indicate moving debris, such as trees
cracking or boulders knocking together. A trickle of flowing or falling
mud or debris may precede larger flows. If you are near a stream or
channel, be alert for any sudden increase or decrease in water flow and
for a change from clear to muddy water. Such changes may indicate
landslide activity upstream, so be prepared to move quickly. Don\'t
delay. Save yourself, not your belongings. (4) Be especially alert when
driving. Embankments along roadsides are particularly susceptible to
landslides. Watch the road for collapsed pavement, mud, fallen rocks,
and other indications of possible debris flows. Never drive across a
flooded road.\</capgml:instruction\>

\<capgml:web\>http://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/fs-0071-00/\</capgml:web\>

\<capgml:contact\>Paula Gori 1-703-648-6707\</capgml:contact\>

\<capgml:resourceDesc\>Image file\</capgml:resourceDesc\>

\<capgml:uri\>http://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/fs-176-97/HazArea.gif\</capgml:uri\>

\<capgml:areaDesc\>mountainous regions of Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee,
Kentucky, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Ohio
and Maryland\</capgml:areaDesc\>

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\<capgml:alert fid=\"USGS-volcanoes-20050501-172500\"\>

\<gml:description\>Skamania County, Washington, in the Pacific Northwest
region of the United States (96 miles south of Seattle, Washington and
53 miles northeast of Portland, Oregon\</gml:description\>

\<gml:name\>Message from USGS Volcanoes Program\</gml:name\>

\<capgml:identifier\>USGS-volcanoes-20050501-172500\</capgml:identifier\>

\<capgml:sender\>echristian@usgs.gov\</capgml:sender\>

\<capgml:sent\>2005-05-01T10:25:00-07:00\</capgml:sent\>

\<capgml:status\>Test\</capgml:status\>

\<capgml:msgType\>Alert\</capgml:msgType\>

\<capgml:scope\>Public\</capgml:scope\>

\<capgml:language\>en-US\</capgml:language\>

\<capgml:categories\>Geo\</capgml:categories\>

\<capgml:event\>Message from USGS Volcanoes Program\</capgml:event\>

\<capgml:urgency\>Expected\</capgml:urgency\>

\<capgml:severity\>Minor\</capgml:severity\>

\<capgml:certainty\>Possible\</capgml:certainty\>

\<capgml:senderName\>USGS Volcanoes Program, Craig
Weaver\</capgml:senderName\>

\<capgml:headline\>Mount St Helens Volcano Advisory (aviation color code
ORANGE)\</capgml:headline\>

\<capgml:description\>Current status is Volcano Advisory (Alert Level
2); aviation color code ORANGE: Growth of the new lava dome inside the
crater of Mount St. Helens continues, accompanied by low rates of
seismicity, low emissions of steam and volcanic gases, and minor
production of ash. During such eruptions, changes in the level of
activity can occur over days to months. The eruption could intensify
suddenly or with little warning and produce explosions that cause
hazardous conditions within several miles of the crater and farther
downwind. Small lahars could suddenly descend the Toutle River if
triggered by heavy rain or by interaction of hot rocks with snow and
ice. These lahars pose a negligible hazard below the Sediment Retention
Structure (SRS) but could pose a hazard along the river channel
upstream.\</capgml:description\>

\<capgml:instruction\>Wind forecasts from the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), coupled with eruption models, show
that any ash clouds that rise above the crater rim today would drift
principally eastward. Under current eruptive conditions, small,
short-lived explosions may produce ash clouds that exceed 30,000 feet in
altitude. Ash from such events can travel 100 miles or more
downwind.\</capgml:instruction\>

\<capgml:web\>http://vulcan.wr.usgs.gov/Volcanoes/MSH/Eruption04/\</capgml:web\>

\<capgml:contact\>Craig Weaver 1-206-553-0627\</capgml:contact\>

\<capgml:resourceDesc\>Image file\</capgml:resourceDesc\>

\<capgml:uri\>http://www.fs.fed.us/gpnf/volcanocams/msh/\</capgml:uri\>

\<capgml:areaDesc\>Skamania County, Washington, in the Pacific Northwest
region of the United States (96 miles south of Seattle, Washington and
53 miles northeast of Portland, Oregon\</capgml:areaDesc\>

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