using highways for no-notice evacuations - FHWA Operations - U.S. ...

3 Explanation ofNo-Notice IncidentsA little- or no-notice incident is one that occurs unexpectedly or withminimal warning. The lack of warning and the quick response timerequired introduce distinct challenges for evacuating at-risk populations.No-notice incidents do not provide emergency responderssufficient time to prepare for a specific incident. This greatly affectsagencies’ abilities to pre-activate emergency protocols, pre-positionneeded assets, and warn and direct the public. No-notice evacuationsrequire a significantly different approach to planning than advancenoticeevacuations because they will be based on a set of capabilitiesand strategies that will likely be more limited in the time and resourcesavailable for implementation. This section provides a general overviewof the likely scales and consequences of no-notice incidents and alsoprovides examples of such incidents. The unique issues and problemsassociated with no-notice incidents are discussed in Section 4, Considerationsin a No-Notice Context.DEFINITIONNo-notice incidents may be natural or manmade, can be localized orwidespread, and have a variety of primary and secondary consequences.Some examples of no-notice incidents include earthquakes, tsunamis,chemical spills andexplosions, blackouts,and terrorist attacks.It is also possible thatincidents with typicallypredictable patterns canbecome no-notice incidentswhen their behaviordiffers from what isexpected. An example isa wildfire that breaks a fireline and moves toward apopulated area.Due to the nature of nonoticeincidents, rapidassessment and responseto the incident is critical tosuccessful evacuation operations.As Figure 3.1 shows,no-notice evacuationReadinessPhaseAdvanceNoticeIncidentNo-NoticeIncidentIncidentFederal ResponseState ResponseLocal ResponseEvacuation ActivitiesFederal ResponseState ResponseLocal ResponseEvacuation ActivitiesIncidentFigure 3.1. Advance Notice VersusNo-Notice Activities.USING HIGHWAYS FOR NO-NOTICE EVACUATIONS29