Web Sites Launched to Help Find Hurricane VictimsWeb Sites Launched to Help Find Hurricane Victims

The National Institute for Urban Search and Rescue and San Diego State University's Super Computing Center have launched a Web site to help locate victims of Hurricane Katrina.

NIUSR, a non-profit association of trained urban rescuers, said the launch was inspired by Doss Fowler, of Destin, Fla., who contacted them after realizing the shelter his 24-year-old niece had gone to with wheelchair-bound family members was damaged and at least partly submerged in water. He later contacted NIUSR to confirm that she was safe. NIUSR, with AudienceCentral, is registering names of the missing and provide updates when people are found. Using PierSystem, the organization is acting as a conduit center, gathering information from other sites and lists while sharing information with other sites and organizations.

The Super Computing Center provides software, hardware and human resources in multi-disciplinary science and engineering to provide data cyber infrastructure to the National Science Foundation and others.