In the United States, we have traditionally evacuated people threatened by wildland fires. It is just what we do. Little attention has been paid to the civilian deaths that have resulted. Bob Mutch, former smoke-jumper and wildland fire visionary, studied recent fires in California where 16 civilians died while trying to evacuate. He found that, if the victims had stayed home rather than try to flee at the last minute, they would have survived. His report, “Faces”, details the tragic and unnecessary deaths.

The Tasmanian Fire Service is especially motivated to address fire deaths, as it has lost 50, 60, even 70 civilians in some years from its wildland fires. The Tasmanians learned that people die when they evacuate at the last minute while those who stay at home can be protected by their homes. The science has become so much clearer in the last 10 years.

In those rare occasions when evacuation is a good idea (predicted flooding comes to mind), radio, television, Internet, Emergency Broadcast System, weather alert radios, reverse 911 calling, emergency vehicle public address, and door-to-door might all need to be used to notify the target population. Web sites should be designed for immediate uploading and can contain very detailed information. The notification needs to be calm, consistent and informative. Give people the facts of the threat, suggested routes, and expected timing of events. List what people should bring with them and when they might be able to return. Outline what they can expect en route and at the destination.

It is important to identify host areas and develop a thorough plan for caring for evacuees. This step needs to be done years before an evacuation. It takes that long for the host area to plan, set up infrastructure, preposition supplies, delegate people and practice deployment. Designate two geographically separated hosts for each area that might need evacuating.

Why two? Circumstances might block the route between the host and the evacuees and the event that impacts evacuees might also impact one of the host areas. These two host areas should not lie on the same fault line, ocean coast, highway, river or predominant wind path. There should be a route to the host area that minimizes the number of roadside trees and power poles, flood zones, overpasses, underpasses, and bridges but has lots of gas stations and grocery stores. The route should be able to handle the number and types of vehicles that would be using it. Consider using several routes.

High-school gyms are nice hosts for a few hours, but generally do not meet the needs of long-term occupancy. Gyms still can be used as processing centers. The receiving area will need to be staffed and supplied for the number of people sent there and the time required to mitigate the hazard. New Orleans used the Superdome, but they did not send a shelter team and only placed enough food there for two days. It also had no power, water, sanitation, law enforcement or medical service. It was very ugly and extremely irresponsible.

But just think of the resources a host will need: police, doctors, nurses, hordes of logistics personnel, and all the supplies to keep those people operational 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Then they need to stockpile or arrange just-in-time supply of tons of supplies for the evacuees, and provide living and sleeping areas, hospital beds, jail space, and reception and transfer areas capable of 24-hour, all-weather operation.

The agency that is not dealing with the actual threat and has lots of resources at hand should be the one to implement the evacuation plan. The first choice would be law enforcement, but the incident commander needs to be very specific as to the mission and the attitude of those who are interfacing with the public. In the fires of 2000 in southwest Montana, some sheriff's deputies used rather strong methods for persuading some residents to flee. The result was a community that still has less respect for that agency. These bad feelings are not necessary. One person can contact about five homes in an hour. In New Orleans, they had a plan, practiced it and promptly ignored it.

When it is time to make the decision whether or not to evacuate, find the expert in the particular field of the threatening hazard. If there is an armed crazy holding hostages, talk to law enforcement. If it is a hazmat incident, who understands the character of the NBC agent best? If it is a wildland fire, talk to the fire-behavior expert. Expecting a flood? There is at least one person in the jurisdiction who has studied which areas will flood and which escape routes will be blocked first. But in every case, consult with someone who understands the process of evacuation. It is complex and fraught with contraindications.

There are times to run and times to hunker down; the chief needs to understand which is which. It is often better to have a target population shelter in place. In some, very specific circumstances, evacuation may be the best response. Not having a plan for evacuation leaves the department in a very weak position and greatly restricts its ability to bring order out of chaos. Having an up-to-date plan and cooperation from host areas puts the chief ahead of the incident from the very beginning. But remember to stay flexible and not be afraid to innovate.

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Alan Tresemer is a fire chief with Painted Rocks Fire & Rescue Company in southwest Montana, director of the First Responder Institute for Research and Education, and a director of FireSafe Montana.

Evacuation Checklist

• Notification system (multimodal)
• Transportation
• Ability to handle people with all sorts of impediments (mobility, visual, hearing, speech, cognitive)
• Clear egress routes (traffic circulation plan)
• Signs to direct evacuees
• Trailers and handlers for animals of all sizes and temperaments
• Receiving area with sufficient quantities of all basic amenities (food, water, clothing, shelter, medical, pharmacy, fuel, communications, etc.) and the trained people to administer them

Is the Escape Route Ready?

• Can the hazard block escape routes or injure evacuees traveling through it?
• Will you have crews ready to help stranded or injured people?
• Can you quickly create maps and evacuation signs for route control?
• Will there be sufficient law enforcement resources for traffic control?
• Do you have a large stockpile of gasoline and diesel and a fleet of small trailers to move it and put it into individual fuel tanks?
• Do you have enough tow truck companies to clear the stalled vehicles off the routes?
• Have you practiced using school buses and trains to move people?

An evacuation sign marks the route along Highway 264 taken by those escaping Hurricane Isabel west of Englehard, N.C.