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Wow - I didn't think my ranting would generate so much interesting response!
I have to admit to being a bit frustrated when I wrote my original post. Hey, I was cranky about being at a shelter after being up for 27 hours. But I had volunteered to help others and had to stay. Having been involved in disaster management/services and having trained people for years in disaster preparedness it's maddening that people don't prepare.
To wit people like Ericlp - You think it takes a 100 foot wave to do significant damage here????? people DON"T get that a 10-foot wave that repeatedly swells and causes tidal surge. It's not the first wave that gets you - it's the surge. One mile is not really enough. Ask the people in Banda Achi (Indonesian tsunami). The tsunami in Japan went SIX MILES inland. People scoffed at a 6-foot wave hitting us. Did you see the amount of water that came over the wall on Alii Drive? Did you see all the damage in Kona?
And the person who said that in the 2010 tsunami people in upper HPP were looting HPP? I have a strong dose of doubts on that one. First I am hearing anything of that nature.
Kapohocat- your idea is a good one. I would also STRONGLY encourage folks in your neighborhood to join a CERT team - Community Emergency Response Team. You can get free training from County Civil Defense. The CERT program was created by FEMA - it teaches folks disaster response skills: first aid, light firefighting, etc. That way a community group has the skills to take care of itself and others until help arrives.
And for those complaining that the sirens weren't working or the coverage area is lacking. SIGN UP FOR CITYWATCH! Go to the County web site under Civil Defense and sign up for Citywatch - CD will send you messages (either text, phone, or email) when there is an emergency, such as tsunami watch, earthquake, or other natural disaster. It's FREE. BTW - sirens are REALLY expensive so if your area does not already have one don't expect one to pop up just because we had this event.
Bottom line is that the general public has no clue as to how fragile our infrastructure is in the face of a devastating disaster. So be prepared- make a kit (disaster kit list at ready.gov), volunteer for Red Cross, join a CERT team, and leave when they tell you!
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Re: not hearing sirens...
I've experienced more than one hurricane evac where the cops cruised the streets using their bullhorns, it's pretty effective - we even had one where the 11pm track report was "all clear" and that shifted to "mandatory evac" at about 11:45, just after everyone switched off the news and went to sleep.
In Florida you need more lead time because of the barrier islands, thousands and thousands of houses all funneling out across one or two bridges.
Edit to add kit idea:
After spending 4 hours in a gas line, in the flood zone of a vulnerable dam, I added gasoline to my preparedness kit. 2 cans, use them for the mower in rotation so one is always full. 2 gallons = 40+ miles, beats walking by a longshot.
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Spunky, as chairman of the HPP Neighborhood Watch, I can tell you that during the 2010 evacuation there was a rash of burglaries in evacuated areas of HPP, mostly Kaloli Point. IIRC, there were at least five reported burglaries. By most standards, that doesn't rise to the level of looting, but it would likely feel that way to the victims. Following that, we were indeed afraid that a larger number of people would ignore the next evacuation order, but we haven't seen any hard evidence that it went that way this time. We also have not heard reports of burglaries this time, but we won't get full crime stats until the end of the month.
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This would be as good a time as any to remind EVERYONE that the sirens are tested EVERY month, on the 1st workday of the month, around 11:45am....
The Civil Defense has this brochure:
http://www.co.hawaii.hi.us/cd/CommBrochure.pdf
If you have never paid attention to them, maybe APRILS FOOLS day is the day to make sure that you have a siren you can hear... if not, make sure that you have some other notification system. If you are not around during the monthly tests, make sure that you have an alternative alert system... The county offers many other options, and they are expanding their siren system, but it s up to YOU to make sure that you have proper notification.
Having lived in Tornado Alley, we respected the siren alert system, and had alternatives to just the siren...
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They don't run the sirens at full strength during the tests. I struggle to hear them then, but last year during the tsunami warning they were very loud and very clear.
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quote:
Originally posted by Carey
but it s up to YOU to make sure that you have proper notification.
The title of this post is "Ignoring evacuation orders" and the quote above hi-lights the power of the individual.
My thoughts are mixed on this point!
We have the power to ignore sound advice and to choose our own way but it has consequences beyond our self as has been mentioned in previous postings.
While it is ultimately an individual decision to do anything - right, wrong, or indifferent. Where does the responsibility of the individual end and "societies" (government) starts?
Living here does make me responsible to educate myself and to be pro-active on ALL the dangers that threaten my safety - but what about our MAIN source of revenue (other than property taxes) our VISITORS.
Who is responsible for their safety (natural disasters) in a "vacation" environment?
Do we NOW have to give out brochures to everyone getting off a cruise ship or plane showing them the tsunami evacuation routes and how to set-up their smart-phones to be notified locally? http://www.co.hawaii.hi.us/cd/CommBrochure.pdf
That's - just in case they don't/can't hear the tsunami sirens or don't have any idea what the sirens mean?
Their name just might be "Dorothy" and they just might be from "Kansas" and live on a farm 100 miles from the nearest "tornado siren" and never heard one?
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Our neighborhood watch went door to door explaining what the sirens are about and what needed to be done.
I talked to one vacationing farmer from Canada the following day and he said when they got to the civil defense barricade,they were directed to the Volcano National Park where they spent the rest of the night in a cabin at the military camp.
The local residents were directed to Pahoa where there were 10 cots for hundreds of people.
quote:
Do we NOW have to give out brochures to everyone getting off a cruise ship or plane showing them the tsunami evacuation routes and how to set-up their smart-phones to be notified locally? http://www.co.hawaii.hi.us/cd/CommBrochure.pdf
All they need to have access to is the tsunami inundation zones.
1) There are signs on every route now showing when you exit (and enter?) a tsunami inundation zone.
2) The phone book shows the zones. Most professional lodgings will have something to inform guests to check the phone book.
Even on the news, the anchor people were holding up the phone book and saying check this first. A basic tool that should be in every home, every room booked by visitors.
Visitors who book off the beaten path without local hosts or management do run the risk of not being looked after the same as other guests.
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quote:
Originally posted by KathyH
quote:
Do we NOW have to give out brochures to everyone getting off a cruise ship or plane showing them the tsunami evacuation routes and how to set-up their smart-phones to be notified locally? http://www.co.hawaii.hi.us/cd/CommBrochure.pdf
All they need to have access to is the tsunami inundation zones.
1) There are signs on every route now showing when you exit (and enter?) a tsunami inundation zone.
2) The phone book shows the zones. Most professional lodgings will have something to inform guests to check the phone book.
Even on the news, the anchor people were holding up the phone book and saying check this first. A basic tool that should be in every home, every room booked by visitors.
Visitors who book off the beaten path without local hosts or management do run the risk of not being looked after the same as other guests.
I cant speak for the other vacation rental owners & property managers but we checked in with all our guests at 9:00 PM, let them know what happened (quake, and possible tsuanmi), advised them to listen to the news on TV, and listen for the sirens. Also checked in with them about 10:15 PM, and then checked locations before we headed out to make sure everyone had evacuated.
John Dirgo can probably tell us how they handled it for the Hawaii Holidays which handles quite a few here in Kapoho, Hilo town, and Maui.
Years ago when I worked at Universal, we had training on dealing with not only our portion but also for the visitors on the Tour in case of a disaster (geared to an earthquake event). Business should have a disaster plan. Back in the day @ another company, we had not only a disaster preparedness plan, but a disaster recovery plan so we could within a short time we could get back to business somewhere off site if need be. It would be interesting to to be listen Toyota's disaster recovery plan at the moment.
Right, that's why I made a distinction between having on-islands hosts/management and not. You took care of your people, and I trust that others would do the same. I think most visitors are well taken care of.
I talked to a couple on Oahu (a couple days ago), who were in Kona for the tsunami, and spent either 14 or 19 hours in a parking lot above Kona. It was not fun for them. I guess it pays to stay in a really good hotel if you have to be here during a tsunami. [  ]
Kona Village guests were taken to the Hualalai clubhouse to wait it out, both times. A far cry from those who ended up sleeping in their rental cars.
The folks I talked to were good sports about the discomfort. They've been coming once a year since the 70's and this won't stop them from coming back.
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