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

Communications plans need to anticipate the contingencies that willarise during a no-notice evacuation. One way to prepare is to havetested intra- and inter-agency plans and procedures in advance. Plansmust recognize that field staff from transportation agencies and otherentities may be working out of range of their base communicationsnetwork and should provide for an alternate means of communication.Likewise, plans should anticipate that one or more primary communicationssystems may be rendered inoperable during a wide-scaleincident and should identify alternate systems and protocols.Evacuation managers must also be able to communicate with thegeneral public. Planners need to ensure that the agencies can provideclear, consistent messages to the public regarding information such asthe declaration of evacuation, status of precipitating incident, directionsfor evacuation and sheltering, updates on transportation andsheltering options, and re-entry after the evacuation. Much of thiscommunication will rely on traditional methods such as broadcastmedia (television and radio), Web sites, and localized announcementsthrough public address systems.Transportation agencies can contribute to public communication, particularlywith regard to providing updates to evacuees who are travelingwithin the transportation network. Evacuees will both want and needupdated information to guide their actions, but this can be challengingwhile they are in motion. Many agencies can use traveler-orientedinformation systems to provide transportation-specific information.Likely options include both fixed and mobile variable message signson the highways; highway advisory radio broadcasts; and 511 TravelerInformation Systems accessible by phone. To expedite and improvethe use of these systems during a no-notice scenario, transportationagencies should work with evacuation planners to identify likely communicationsneeds and then prepare internal procedures, preformattedmessages, and interagency procedures to ensure that usefuland accurate information is provided to the public.USING HIGHWAYS FOR NO-NOTICE EVACUATIONS79