Mapping Resilience in Florida: Hurricane with Heat Readiness Index

By: Zarrin Tasneem

Florida is no stranger to severe weather. Between intense heat waves and some of the strongest hurricanes in history, Floridians live with a unique mix of climate risks. But how resilient are different parts of the state to these threats?

To answer that, I built a simple yet powerful Resilience Map, using a data-driven score that blends multiple environmental and social factors.

The goal: to help visualize which communities might be more vulnerable during extreme heat or storm events and which areas seem better prepared.

What Is the Resilience Score?

The Resilience Score is a composite indicator that measures how well a place might withstand or recover from hurricane impacts and extreme heat. It is calculated from four key variables:

Component	Why it matters
Flood risk	Low elevation or storm surge zones flood more during hurricanes.
Heat risk	More extreme heat days can strain health systems and endanger populations.
Tree canopy	Trees provide shade, reduce surface temps, and improve livability during heat.
Access to shelters	Proximity to nearby hurricane shelters or hospitals can save lives.

Each variable is scored on a scale of 0 to 100 (or normalized), then combined using weighted averages:

Where:

• Higher flood_risk or heat_risk lowers the score

• Higher tree_canopy increases the score

• Shorter distance to a shelter increases the score
  

The weights are adjustable. Here is the setup I used:

w_flood = 0.35

w_heat = 0.30

w_canopy = 0.25

w_shelter = 0.10

Data and Geography: What We are Mapping

Using a mix of synthesized values and real geographic coordinates, I visualized select metro regions in Florida such as:

• Miami

• Tampa Bay

• Orlando

• Jacksonville

• Tallahassee

• Pensacola

• Naples / Fort Myers

• Key West
  

Each region was represented by a circular “service area” on the map, not precise boundaries, but useful proxies to convey local resilience visually.

The Interactive Resilience Map

The map is fully interactive. Here's how it works:

• Each region has a color that reflects its Resilience Score:

  • 🟥 Red → Low resilience (high risks, low canopy/shelter access)

  • 🟨 Yellow → Moderate resilience

  • 🟩 Green → High resilience (cooler, safer, greener areas)
    

• Hover over a region to explore detailed metrics:

  • Flood risk level

  • Average heat risk

  • Tree canopy score

  • Distance to nearest hurricane shelter

Results

What This Tells Us

Some interesting insights from the resilience model:

• Tallahassee and Orlando score higher because they have more trees, less flood risk, and aren't as exposed to intense coastal heat.

• Areas like Miami and Key West are very vulnerable despite access to water, both face high heat, high storm exposure, and lower shade cover.

• Tree canopy matters more than we realize — urban greening effectively shows up as a resilience booster.

Final Thoughts

Understanding climate resilience is about more than risk. It is about resources, preparation, and equity. With simple tools like this map, we can start to visualize and explore the kinds of environmental data that will shape future planning and adaptation in vulnerable regions like Florida.

Want help integrating live hurricane or heat data? Drop a comment. I am happy to help!