Meteorologists from around the United States have collaborated on new technology to help predict possible storm surges due to hurricanes.
The maps from the National Hurricane Center have been in the making for the past several years. The goal of the maps is to help save lives when water rises during a hurricane.
When a big storm hits, the problem isn't the wind - it's the water.
"Storm surge has the potential to claim many, thousands of lives," Pinellas County spokesperson Tom Iovino said.
That's why Pinellas County officials are adding the National Hurricane Center's Potential Storm Surge Flooding map to their current evacuation plan. The new map will show how far inland high water could go if a storm hits.
"This is going to be valuable for us in planning because we're going to get a better idea of what areas may be harder hit and that way it will help us with preparing what resources are going to go to what locations," Iovino said.
But local emergency officials won't be the only ones using the maps. Bay News 9's meteorologists will, too.
“The west coast of Florida is extremely vulnerable to storm surge so this is a way of being able to highlight that threat," Chief Meteorologist Mike Clay said. "Most people think they evacuate because of the wind. You don't, you evacuate for the water."
Clay said the maps won't be released until the first storm threatens to make landfall, which means the accuracy of our weather experts will play a big part in the maps.
“If the forecast is wrong, this product will be wrong, so we still have to get the forecast right," Clay said.
Flooding can sometimes be an issue in the Bay area even during tropical storms, so the maps look to be a good addition if and when those storms hit.
Pinellas officials said that even when the flooding maps are released during a hurricane, they still plan to "overevacuate" to keep as many people as possible out of the path of the storm.