If DC Had To Evacuate, Would You Know What To Do? Homeland Security Says You Need A Plan

[Purveyor]

WASHINGTON - If there were a natural disaster or a terrorist attack in DC, how would you get out of the city? It’s a good question, and if you don’t already have an evacuation plan in place, DC Homeland Security officials say you should make one.

Just as Metro embarks on its year-long SafeTrack program and repairs that will impact service system-wide, emergency officials say an evacuation crisis could erupt if the city doesn’t adjust its current plans to move people safely out of harm’s way in the event of an emergency. The city feels that the plan they have in place is a good one, but they’re worried that residents and those who work in the city might not be considering the difference that Metro’s construction plan, complete with service interruptions and closures, could have on their plans to get out fast if necessary.

Since SafeTrack launched last Saturday, DC’s Homeland Security and Emergency Management Command Center has been monitoring Metro and area roads. If a natural disaster or terrorist attack occurred in the city, evacuation routes would face a crush of vehicles, since Metro’s maintenance plan is underway.

DC Homeland Security officials said Monday they could evacuate the city if disaster struck. They are prepared to deploy more than 130 traffic control officers onto DC streets, and would use more than 10,000 security cameras to control traffic lights and move people out of the District.

They’re worried, though, that many people don’t even know where evacuation routes are in the city. DC Homeland Security is re-launching a free app that shows these routes, and helps drivers navigate to them. Director Christopher Geldart’s message to residents is this: Everyone needs to dust off their evacuation plans, understanding Metro isn’t a reliable option over the next year.

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http://www.fox5dc.com/news/local-news/155471085-story

[Proud Public Servant]

1. I live on a designated evacuation route

And if DC ever had to evacuate, it would be a parking lot. They all would. Shelter in place, kiss your spouse, pray to your deity; it's a far more practical plan than trying to evacuate, believe me.

[Aerows]

14. And you would likely have a better chance

than those trying to evacuate.

[metroins]

2. By water

Everybody exiting via Rd. 295 would be a parking lot.

If I lived in DC, the exit plan would be a jetski up the Potomac.

I only visit for work, so I don't own a jetski in DC, I guess I'm stuck with the parking lot.

[etherealtruth]

3. I lived in northern Virginia for years .... the roads seemed to be heavily congested 24/ 7

My guess is that if DC had to evacuate most people would be SOL

[Marrah_G]

4. Any evacuation of a major city is a nightmare

[MiniMe]

5. The evacuation of 9/11 was a nightmare

They closed Metro and I had to find a ride from a friend. We sat in traffic for a very long time.

[Warpy]

6. I lived in Maryland

and by the time the news got down to peons like me, all the highways out of town would be choked with "essential" government and media types driving at a crawl and too terrified to let anyone merge.

So the most reasonable response would be to grab a bottle of something very alcoholic, set up a lawn chair, and get drunk while you wait for the apocalypse to begin.

[longship]

7. Between DuPont Circle and Logan Circle, they'll be all trapped.

Downtown DC! Who thought traffic circles were a good idea? (The same designer designed Detroit, my home town; thankfully no traffic circles there.)

[KamaAina]

8. What about the Grand Circus?

[longship]

10. Well, yes. There's that.

But Grand Circus is not a proper traffic circle. Woodward Ave. bisects it.

Are you a Detroiter?

I graduated from Cooley High in the mid 1960's.

[KamaAina]

12. Nope. Geography buff.

And dilettante urban planner, hence interested in the D.

And I have, of course, heard of Cooley High.

[KG]

9. home land 'security', one of the biggest jokes this country tells itself

[longship]

11. I call it hometown security theater.

[Aerows]

13. You'd likely be better off either sheltering in place

or leaving on foot/bicycle/boat/watercraft.

[DCBob]

15. It would be the traffic jam from hell.

Its already horrible.. I cant imagine what it would be like if everyone tried to leave at once. I suppose Metro would be a better option but no doubt it would be overloaded and people cramming into the cars. Likely a stampede would occur. It would be something like after the July 4th fireworks but 10x worse. A boat down the Potomac would likely be the best option to get out of the city. However, I doubt any plan would work well in a crisis like that.

[Texasgal]

16. I think it was Hurricane Rita?

Just after Katrina and people in Houston couldn't get out, they were land locked in traffic that went on forever. If I recall I believe there was a bus of elderly folks that were being evacuated that caught on fire trying to get out.

I may be wrong on the hurricane name, but I remember that the evacuation route was horrible, people stuck overnight on freeways! Every hotel booked all the way to east Texas.

[Igel]

18. They've revised a lot of the evacuation planning.

More counterflow: In the event of an evacuation, the main roads leading in and out of Houston are just main roads leading out. The interstates become one way outbound.

They've also clarified who needs to evacuate: The storm-surge maps are more easily available and the advice is that if you're not in those zones to stay put. The problem was that everybody tried to evacuate when those buried deepest in the megalopolis were the only ones who needed to evacuate.

But all major cities have to have an evacuation plan. New Orleans in Katrina did not have one; they made it up as they went along. Houston had one, but it creaked badly and I think they still didn't plan for those without private vehicles.

[NightWatcher]

17. Rush hour(s) is hard enough. Just climb under your desk