Knowing who is where and in what numbers is essential information for disaster planning in any state, and U.S. Census Bureau officials told a group of about 25 Hawai'i planners yesterday that a new census product provides detailed and up-to-date information about the state's 1,221,885 residents.

Called the American Community Survey, the data updates census-type information once a year, instead of every 10 years. Data on hurricane afflicted states from Louisiana to Texas, collected before and after Katrina, were used by state officials to determine the impact of the disaster and number of displaced people in those areas.

"Hawai'i is unique," said James Christy, U.S. Census regional director from Van Nuys, Calif. "Because it is made up of islands, it has its own set of issues. No one from here is going to be able to evacuate to Houston."

Being familiar with population trends could be helpful in getting the right amount of food and medical supplies to people after a hurricane or other disaster, he said.

The survey now profiles communities of more than 65,000 people, but will become even more sensitive in 2008 when it begins profiling communities with populations of at least 20,000.

The survey does not replace the official census, but does provide updated information about populations.

Representatives of community groups and government offices attended yesterday's seminar, which was requested by Sen. Daniel Akaka and co-hosted by the state Health Department.

The American Community Survey contains information on sex, age, race, relationships among people in a household, average numbers of people within households, whether the homes are rented or owned, income, education, occupation and other data.

Maria Lutz, Hawai'i's director of disaster services for the American Red Cross, said the data on ethnicity helps the Red Cross get the right type of food to the right places during a disaster, and helps aid workers to determine whether translators are likely to be required.

"We've been working with them (the Census Bureau) for years on a national level," she said.

Still, she was able to pick up information yesterday.

"The one thing I learned, which I didn't know," she said, "is that the Census Bureau is tying a lot more of their data with mapping, which is very useful for disaster planning."

Fire Department officials from the different counties also attended.

"If it helps us improve our services to the public, we're going to take a closer look at it," said Capt. Kenison Tejada.

Dr. Chiyome Fukino, director of the state Department of Health, said the updated information will be helpful in disaster preparedness in communities such as Kapolei, which has grown rapidly since the last official census in 2000.

Participants were also encouraged to make suggestions to the Census Bureau about what data they would like to see collected.

For disaster preparation, Fukino said she would like to see more detailed information about which languages are used in different parts of the state, as well as more information about people with disabilities.

The 2003 American Community Survey showed that Hawai'i's population was divided almost equally between males and females. About 24 percent of the population is 18 or younger and 13 percent are 65 or older. The median age was 37.9 years. The average size of households in Hawai'i was 2.91 people, and 24 percent of people older than 5 spoke some language other than English at home.

Results for 2005 will be released in August.

Reach Karen Blakeman at kblakeman@honoluluadvertiser.com.