Emergency Evacuation Support
'Emergency Evacuation Support' coordinates evacuation plans among allied agencies and manages evacuation and reentry of a population in the vicinity of a disaster or other emergency that poses a risk to public safety. Where appropriate, the affected population is evacuated in shifts, using more than one evacuation route, and including several evacuation destinations to spread demand and thereby expedite the evacuation. All affected jurisdictions (e.g., states and counties) at the evacuation origin, evacuation destination, and along the evacuation route are informed of the plan. The public is provided with real-time evacuation guidance including basic information to assist potential evacuees in determining whether evacuation is necessary. Resource requirements are forecast based on the evacuation plans, and the necessary resources are located, shared between agencies if necessary, and deployed at the right locations at the appropriate times. The evacuation and reentry status are monitored and used to refine the plan and resource allocations during the evacuation and subsequent reentry. It communicates with public health systems to develop evacuation plans and recommended strategies for disasters and evacuation scenarios involving biological or other medical hazards.
- The center shall request resources from transit agencies as needed to support the evacuation.
- The center shall develop and exchange evacuation plans with allied agencies prior to the occurrence of a disaster.
- The center shall provide an interface to the emergency system operator to enter evacuation plans and procedures and present the operator with other agencies’ plans.
- The center shall coordinate evacuation destinations and shelter needs with shelter providers (e.g., the American Red Cross) in the region.
- The center shall provide evacuation information to traffic, transit, maintenance and construction, rail operations, and other emergency management centers as needed.
- The center shall monitor the progress of the reentry process.
- The center shall monitor the progress or status of the evacuation once it begins and exchange tactical plans, prepared during the incident, with allied agencies.
- The center shall provide traveler information systems with evacuation guidance including basic information to assist potential evacuees in determining whether evacuation is necessary and when it is safe to return.
- The center shall request traffic management agencies to implement special traffic control strategies and to control evacuation traffic, including traffic on local streets and arterials as well as the major evacuation routes.
- The center shall manage inter-agency coordination of evacuation operations, from initial planning through the evacuation process and reentry.