Preliminary Landslide Hazard Estimate Maps for the 2024 Hurricane Helene Landslide Emergency Response

This data release includes relative landslide hazard estimate maps for the southern Appa­lachian Mountains affected by Hurricane Helene (September 26-27, 2024) and the heavy rainfall that preceded it (September 23-26, 2024). The two modeling approaches used were adapted from existing models and were run in early October 2024 using initial precipitation estimates to produce rapid event-specific landslide hazard estimate maps. These preliminary maps were initially released provisionally to meet the need for timely best science during the emergency response (version 1.0). The outputs were used to provide early situational awareness of what areas may have been more severely impacted by landslides and debris flows. These results were also used in planning reconnaissance. In version 2.0 of the data release, the initial National Weather Service (NWS) gridded precipitation estimates that were used as input to the published preliminary landslide hazard estimates were added, and, for completeness, a final quality-controlled version of total precipitation estimates that was not used in the landslide modeling was also included.