October 20, 2006—In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, evacuation became a very hot-button issue for emergency planners. More than one year later, however, most of the nation’s largest cities have failed a test of their evacuation procedures.
A report from the American Highway Users Alliance flunked New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Diego, Miami, Philadelphia, Denver, Atlanta and Boston. Those cities were among the 20 that received an “F” on the report.
The report, titled “Emergency Evacuation Report Card 2006; 25 Urban Areas Could Face Greater Challenges than New Orleans Experienced after Hurricane Katrina,” evaluates the 37 largest urban areas in the country.
The report reveals that urban areas rely heavily on private automobiles and publicly provided highways for evacuation, as evidenced by the evacuations in New Orleans and Houston in 2005. As a result, the capacity of roads and highways becomes the most critical element of evacuation planning. While data shows that the vast majority of Americans have access to automobiles, those without automobile access also rely on highways, because buses are the most important mechanism for evacuation for those without cars.
The report gave only 10 urban areas grades of “B” or “C,” while six got a “D.” Only Kansas City, Missouri, got an “A.”
To see the report, visit the Web site of the American Highway Users Alliance.
