If DC had to evacuate, would you know what to do? Homeland Security says you need a plan

Fox 5 ^ | June 7, 2016 | Tom Fitzgerald

[HandyDandy]

Wouldn’t you just listen for the signals coming from the Civil Defense sirens? They would tell whether the danger was active or imminent or what have you. You should probably head to your predesignated Fallout Shelter. Wouldn’t you listen in to the emergency broadcast system? I would probably head to my old grammar school and find my old desk and hide under it till the “all clear” was given.

[bus man]

Something like this happened on 9/11, when an unofficial evacuation of DC took place. Incredibly, they shut the Metro down for a time, due to terrorism fears — and in the process, stranded thousands of people trying to flee. Yep, that’s right: the “possibility” of an attack on Metro was deemed more critical than the “certainty” of the need of a functioning subway system to safely evacuate thousands of near-panicked people trying to flee from a known hazard.

My takeaway on this is, don’t depend on any branch of government to help you in a crisis. Plan your own evacuation routes out beforehand, and avoid all interstates and other major highways, as these will very quickly become totally gridlocked. Stick to the back roads and you might have a chance. (The interstates will act as huge, traffic-choked barriers, so if you have to cross over one, pick a back road that has a bridge over the highway but does not have an interchange with it.)