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

zones of the at-risk region are evacuated sequentially to minimize trafficcongestion. Many people, due to an acute sense of personal risk,may not wait for their turn to evacuate even if it would be safer ormore effective for them to do so.In addition to self-evacuations, there are some portions of the at-riskpopulation who may refuse to evacuate at all, even after being orderedto do so. 6 A 2007 study, conducted by the Harvard University Schoolof Public Health among residents in high-risk hurricane areas, foundthat 31% of people surveyed may not evacuate even when told to doso. The reasons for not doing so were varied: belief that they wouldbe safe at home; desire to protect their property; uncertainty that theywill be able to travel safely; or a lack of confidence that they will beable to be sheltered elsewhere. Some portion of the at-risk populationmay procrastinate until it is unsafe to evacuate. People may judge thethreat to be less severe than it is, or may be worried that evacuatingposes more of a risk or inconvenience to them than staying in place.As the situation escalates, however, they may decide later to evacuate,even though it has become much more dangerous to do so. Theirdelayed attempts at evacuation may also place the first responders whoassist them in greater danger as well by prolonging their time in the atriskarea. Plans for evacuations that are deemed mandatory by officialswill need to incorporate a means of sweeping the affected area and ofenforcing the evacuation order.First responders and emergency personnel might also be affected behaviorallyby a no-notice incident. Responders’ private considerationsmay interfere with the performance of their duties. They may live inthe affected area and have family members, friends, and property theyfeel compelled to assist and protect. Their sense of personal duty andconcerns about personal matters may interfere with their ability tocarry out their professional responsibilities as part of the overall evacuationeffort.486For study overview information and links to data, seewww.hsph.harvard.edu/news/press-releases/2007-releases/press07242007.html.USING HIGHWAYS FOR NO-NOTICE EVACUATIONS