Transportation: Street Plan
At the Street Level, transportation is about
Getting injured people and animals to help
Damage assessment
Communication
Obtaining resources when your supplies run out
You and your neighbors want to transport an injured child to the Disaster Hub or an injured dog to the Domestic Animal Care Shelter. If your street is long and homes are spread out, you might need transport to get around to all the houses to do a wellness check or damage assessment.
Your Street Captain wants to send a neighbor to the Disaster Hub to get the latest information or to report on a worsening problem, like a broken water main that is flooding the area. At the Disaster Hub you learn that the Community is distributing water at the local high school. You and your neighbors want to take five-gallon containers there to be filled.
What transportation means will be the most effective for these situations given the types of disasters—earthquakes, floods, tsunamis, wildfire, hurricanes, blizzards, tornados, landslides—your community will likely face? Consider kayaks, canoes, bicycles with or without attachments, snowmobiles, ATVs, and sleds.
Step 1. At your next Ready Your Street meeting, bring up the issue of transportation. On your Gear and Equipment Inventory, list the modes of transportation that you and your neighbors have.
Step 2. Talk to your neighbors about keeping their electric vehicles half charged or their vehicle fuel tanks at least half full at all times. Discuss the importance of keeping emergency supplies in your vehicles.
Step 3. Make a Transportation Plan for your street. How will you get to the Disaster Hub? How will you transport injured people and animals or large supplies like water containers? Make sure that, if you walk, you’re wearing sturdy shoes, eye protection, gloves, and head protection and that you have a written list of your community’s needs.
Step 4. Make an Evacuation Plan for your street. If you are told by officials to evacuate, follow these steps:
Turn off utilities like water and gas.
Check on neighbors to make sure no people and no animals are being left behind.
Keep a go bag ready at all times.
Lock doors and windows.
In the event of wildfire, try not to leave vehicles behind: Electric vehicles can make fires worse, and abandoned vehicles can block safety efforts.
Step 5. Read this information about Field Ambulances.