Emergency Evacuation Plan

There are three levels of Emergency that determine the level of response required of Riverwalk residents:

• Level I: Monitor Situation - stay informed and aware of potential danger (example: house fire, heavy snowfall)
• Level II: Partial Activation - Emergency is more widespread and residents need to secure their homes and be prepared to leave (example: moderate earthquake, blizzard, moderate flooding)
• Level III: Full Scale Activation - Eminent danger requiring evacuation of all Riverwalk residents (example: major firestorm, massive earthquake, heavy flooding)

This portion of the Emergency Plan deals with a Level III activation in which everyone is required to leave their homes. There are two types of Level III evacuations that can occur in Riverwalk: 1) evacuation orders with time adequate to take care of business, and 2) orders to evacuate immediately.

The scenarios most likely to occur in Riverwalk are flooding or wildfire. With flooding it is important to get to higher ground as quickly as possible so the direction of travel is already established. With wildfire, the direction of travel will be determined by the direction of the wind and approaching fire.

Resources during an emergency

Ashland Fire and Rescue has established the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) to assist them in emergency situations. (Be advised that there are only 27 full time Fire and Rescue personnel in Ashland, so in a full-blown emergency, it could be hours before they can respond to your request for help.) Kevin Calkins and Dennis Funk are both trained CERT volunteers. They will stay with the Riverwalk community until everyone is secure before moving on to the CERT contact point at The Grove. Kevin and Dennis will be in communication with CERT headquarters so most likely they will have the best information and can act as a liaison with emergency personnel.

Preplanning can really help

There is nothing that helps your chance to survive an emergency situation like preplanning.

• Have an emergency kit and first aid kit stocked and ready at all time
  
• Know how to shut off all utilities at the main valves
  
• Have a plan in place in case you or your family is away from the home during an emergency. Have a communication and/or meeting location in the event that you are separated during an evacuation.
  
• Have preparation in place to take care of your pet
• Pre-think your priorities so that when an emergency happens, you can go into action mode quickly

Givens:

• Your own personal safety comes above all else
  
• Things are going to be chaotic
• You cannot rely on the phones to work because of either overload or being knocked out-of-service
  
• Vehicle traffic will either be impossible or not be allowed so that emergency vehicles can pass
  
• There will be a lot of misinformation
  
• People's nerves are going to be on edge
  
• The roads may become rivers of running water during torrential rainstorms
  
• Fire may be moving in high winds faster than you can walk
  
• You may encounter a life-or-death situation
  
• You may have to abandon part or all of this plan for the safety of yourself and your family

Flooding

Type 1 - Plenty of time

• Make sure you take care of your immediate family and pets first. Move on to step 2 only when you feel your family is safe and taken care of.
  
• If there is time, turn off the electricity and gas at the main valves
  
• Make an attempt to notify neighbors on each side of you in case they have not heard the alert.
  
• If for any reason you are not able to evacuate safely, please try to phone or make physical contact with either Dennis Funk (482-1114 - 514 Clinton) or Kevin Calkins (201-0123 - 431 Clinton)
  
• Move youself and your family up to the driveway of Tony and Sherry Trouse, located at the corner of Ann and Clinton (543 Ann Street). We will try and make sure that every home has been notified and that everyone is evacuated to that location. If you have family in the area on high ground, please go to the Trouse driveway first and let someone know you are leaving the area. That way we will not risk looking for you.
  
• Depending upon the emergency, people will be moved from the Trouse driveway to locations established by the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT), most likely The Grove.
  
• Dennis and Kevin, who will be in contact with CERT, will notify you when it is safe to return to your home.

Type 2 - Immediate Evacuation

• Do not panic. Keep a cool head and those around you will be much better off.
  
• Leave everything behind and move your family and pets as quickly as possible to the driveway of Tony and Sherry Trouse (543 Ann Street).
  
• If at all possible, as you leave your home, attempt to notify neighbors on each side of you, but only if it is safe to do so.
  
• If for any reason you are not able to evacuate safely, please try to phone or make physical contact with either Dennis Funk (482-1114 - 514 Clinton) or Kevin Calkins (201-0123 - 431 Clinton)
  
• Check in with someone at the Trouse driveway before leaving the area.
  
• Depending upon the emergency, people will be moved from the Trouse driveway to locations established by the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT), most likely The Grove.
  
• Dennis and Kevin, who will be in contact with CERT, will notify you when it is safe to return to your home.

Wildfire

Type 1 - Plenty of time

• Make sure you take care of your immediate family and pets first. Move on to step 2 only when you feel your family is safe and taken care of.
  
• If there is time, turn off your electrical and gas at the main valves.
  
• Make an attempt to notify neighbors on each side of you in case they have not heard the alert.
  
• If for any reason you are not able to evacuate safely, please try to phone or make physical contact with either Dennis Funk (482-1114 - 514 Clinton) or Kevin Calkins (201-0123 - 431 Clinton)
  
• Move youself and your family away from the direction of the fire. We will try and make sure that every home has been notified and that everyone is evacuated in that direction. Make an attempt to locate other Riverwalk residents depending upon the direction of evacuation.

a. West - Top of Ann street
b. East - Baseball field
c. North - Mountain Meadows
d. South - Railroad tracks

• People will be moved from the temporary locations to safe sites established by the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) depending upon the severity of the fire and the eminent danger to local residents.
  
• Dennis and Kevin, who will be in contact with CERT, will notify you when it is safe to return to your home.

Type 2 - Immediate Evacuation

• Do not panic. Keep a cool head and those around you will be much better off.
  
• Leave everything behind and move your family and pets as quickly as possible in the direction opposite the approaching fire.
  
• If at all possible, as you leave your home, attempt to notify neighbors on each side of you, but only if it is safe to do so.
  
• If for any reason you are not able to evacuate safely, please try to phone or make physical contact with either Dennis Funk (482-1114 - 514 Clinton) or Kevin Calkins (201-0123 - 431 Clinton)
  
• Check in with someone that you recognize as a Riverwalk resident.
  
• Depending upon the emergency, people will be moved to locations established by the Community Emergency Response Team (CERT).
  
• Dennis and Kevin, who will be in contact with CERT, will notify you when it is safe to return to your home.

Other Potential Causes for Emergency Evacuation

• Earthquake
  
• Chemical Spill
  
• Critical Infrastructure Disruption