An Evacuation Route That Left Some Feeling Stranded
Judy Ramsook
September 24, 2005
If there is imminent danger such as that of a category 4 or 5 hurricane heading your way, and an evacuation plan for the elderly, sick and disabled is in place, that’s fine.
But what if a couple of days later, almost an entire city of two million people or more are told to evacuate, and say it happens in such a way that almost everyone ends up on the evacuation route at the same time, and the flow of traffic is moving at a snail’s pace.
Such as what happened on one of the Houston evacuation routes about two days ago and even yesterday. People were sitting in their vehicles, for hours wondering when the flow of traffic would increase to such a pace as to make it appear as if they, the evacuees were actually on their way out the zone of an impending storm. And there were other concerns too.
If the evacuees had not taken along sufficient food for the journey, sitting in that vehicle for some time can make one feel rather hungry. But what if there is no convenience store, gas station or fast food restaurant for miles. What’s a person to do.
What if you are afraid to get out of your vehicle to embark on that walk to the the nearest store for fear that the traffic will miraculously start moving? And what about running that air conditioner and remaining bit of gas that your vehicle contains?
It is known that running your vehicle air conditioner uses up much gas, but the temperature outside is way too high to turn it off and you still have miles to go before reaching the nearest gas station. And as you sit there in the driver’s seat pondering these concerns, something else enters your mind as well.
What if one of your loved ones in that car with you, or even yourself has to use the restroom facilities? And as you look before you at the line of cars ahead of you, you think to yourself, this is going to be a longer journey than you expected, but maybe all these discomforts could have been prevented.
If you have more than two million people leaving a city at approximately the same time, maybe there should be more than one evacuation route leading into whatever closest city the evacuees are going to. If that’s not possible, maybe other things can be set in place.
With more than two million cars on the road simultaneously on a plus ninety degree Fahrenheit day when the flow of traffic is slow, people’s cars will eventually run out of gas, just as some did yesterday. So sending out two tanker trucks to fill up those vehicles might seem inefficient. More tanker trucks will be needed. As for food.
Maybe the National Guards or members of the Red Cross can supply those evacuees with that, while also setting up portable restroom facilities along the evacuation route so those evacuees can relieve themselves without thinking of how far the next gas station or fast food restaurant is.
As for the flow of traffic? Maybe members of the National Guards can look into what's holding it up or slowing it down.
For if those evacuees had a shorter time frame to leave their city and the evacuation route they were on, with the conditions they faced yesterday and the day before with the slow flow of traffic, maybe they would have met a more thought provoking fate. It’s a good thing hurricane Rita weakened as it proceeded along its path.
But what if a couple of days later, almost an entire city of two million people or more are told to evacuate, and say it happens in such a way that almost everyone ends up on the evacuation route at the same time, and the flow of traffic is moving at a snail’s pace.
Such as what happened on one of the Houston evacuation routes about two days ago and even yesterday. People were sitting in their vehicles, for hours wondering when the flow of traffic would increase to such a pace as to make it appear as if they, the evacuees were actually on their way out the zone of an impending storm. And there were other concerns too.
If the evacuees had not taken along sufficient food for the journey, sitting in that vehicle for some time can make one feel rather hungry. But what if there is no convenience store, gas station or fast food restaurant for miles. What’s a person to do.
What if you are afraid to get out of your vehicle to embark on that walk to the the nearest store for fear that the traffic will miraculously start moving? And what about running that air conditioner and remaining bit of gas that your vehicle contains?
It is known that running your vehicle air conditioner uses up much gas, but the temperature outside is way too high to turn it off and you still have miles to go before reaching the nearest gas station. And as you sit there in the driver’s seat pondering these concerns, something else enters your mind as well.
What if one of your loved ones in that car with you, or even yourself has to use the restroom facilities? And as you look before you at the line of cars ahead of you, you think to yourself, this is going to be a longer journey than you expected, but maybe all these discomforts could have been prevented.
If you have more than two million people leaving a city at approximately the same time, maybe there should be more than one evacuation route leading into whatever closest city the evacuees are going to. If that’s not possible, maybe other things can be set in place.
With more than two million cars on the road simultaneously on a plus ninety degree Fahrenheit day when the flow of traffic is slow, people’s cars will eventually run out of gas, just as some did yesterday. So sending out two tanker trucks to fill up those vehicles might seem inefficient. More tanker trucks will be needed. As for food.
Maybe the National Guards or members of the Red Cross can supply those evacuees with that, while also setting up portable restroom facilities along the evacuation route so those evacuees can relieve themselves without thinking of how far the next gas station or fast food restaurant is.
As for the flow of traffic? Maybe members of the National Guards can look into what's holding it up or slowing it down.
For if those evacuees had a shorter time frame to leave their city and the evacuation route they were on, with the conditions they faced yesterday and the day before with the slow flow of traffic, maybe they would have met a more thought provoking fate. It’s a good thing hurricane Rita weakened as it proceeded along its path.
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