The Evacuation Centers

Posted by shush

December 10, 2014

In my previous post I wrote these.

Reason 1: The evacuation centers

- do not have enough space to accommodate everyone comfortably
- do not have enough lavatory facilities to accommodate everyone’s needs
- do not provide a sanitary place to stay in for people who have health conditions that puts them in high risk during their stay there
- do not provide enough privacy between different families within a room
- is a potential source of health problems even to healthy people as they are mixed in with those who have viral diseases who could easily spread them to hundreds in a matter of hours
- do not have a steady food source, especially for those who are nursing and are very young children

Here are my suggestions on the possible solutions.

Make a survey of all the towns, cities, municipalities and baranggays that contain the following information:

- population of the place including details such as number of children, sick(ly) people, pregnant women, disabled persons, etc.

- separate the population count by societal status, meaning, those who are well to do, middle income, below poverty level

- for those in the lower income group, you can find data on them in the health centers, especially if they go there for vaccines, senior citizen check-ups, dentals, etc.

- for easier data collection, you could ask the schools to ask the students to submit on a sheet of paper the number of people in their house, their ages, and the health status of each. It won’t take more than an hour for the kids to do this.

- solid structures that have many rooms, lavatories, sinks, indoor and outdoor faucets, whether public or private

- position of the solid structure, whether it is near a flood-prone area or not

- solid structure means a structure whose roof and walls are proven to be sturdy

- can the solid structure be used for free or does it require a fee, if it does, how much is the cost

Since data about the local population has been collected, it would be easier to see and plan how to allocate the people into the available resources.

Also, planning must include having the people prepare the things they would use in the centers. Similar to the things that campers have to bring on a camping trip. That way they wouldn’t have to worry how to keep warm, or how to sleep. They would also be able to bring some food with them for possibly the first day they would stay there. Everyone is being taught this already on a regular basis. After all, they are to be transferred before the storm, giving them the ability to bring the things they need for their stay there versus pulling them out during the storm with only their clothes on.

Then here’s a different suggestion. If there are solid structures within the area that can be used by higher income families, then why not ask them for some help. Ask them if they would be willing to let some higher income families to stay in a room in their place for a very minimal fee, similar to a very very low transient rate, that the higher income families would be able to pay. After all during a storm there is no probability that anyone would be knocking on their door to pay them for a night’s stay. So in a sense, some of the solid structures with lots of spare rooms could be used as a temporary hostel of sorts during storms of those who belong to the higher income group. It wouldn’t hurt to ask if they would be willing to help in this way.

This could give the space the higher income groups are supposed to occupy at the centers to those in the lower income groups. It would also help in relieving the centers of the responsibility of feeding these higher income groups. They could bring their food to these makeshift hostels and cook there until the storm passes and they could return to their residences. This strategy could be pre-planned and information disseminated earlier. This option could also be used for those who are elderly or have health conditions that could endanger them if they stay in the centers.

Food source for those in the centers. That’s something to ponder on. However, I also have a suggestion.

When I visited an evacuation center a few years ago, I noticed that there were rooms that had makeshift convenience stores. Which means, the people in the centers actually had money to spend to buy what they needed. If they are brought to the centers before the storm, then they would also have the ability to prepare some cash to use inside the centers. But there aren’t any stores in the centers on the first night. They only arrive when the people are forced to stay at the centers for a longer time because their areas are still flooded.

What if a portion of the evacuation center is allowed to be rented out to those who want to put up stores or stalls. For example, if a local drugstore, or some other food cart, or water refilling station, would like to rent out a portion of the evacuation center during the storm, then why not give them a stall.

Create committees that would handle these and make all the finances transparent. Even to the point of having a blackboard or whiteboard available at the evacuation center with the figures from the rental collections shown. The people who are at the evacuation center would be able to buy what they need while staying there. Then there would be less people crying their eyes out waiting for relief goods to arrive at their evacuation centers because there are no stores outside the centers that they could buy from during the storm in case sudden medical treatments are needed.

Also, the money that could be collected from the rentals could be used to pay for the town’s minor repairs after the storm, or be donated for the burial fees of those who have lost their loved ones during the storm.

All of these are easy to say but hard to do, I know. But if those who have been in charge of evacuating the people before the storm have succeeded more recently than ever before, then maybe suggestions such as these can be slowly planned, implemented and taught.

How did I think of these? I just thought of having a school fair. In a school fair there are a lot of food stalls and a lot of people who know they are there only for a night or two. If there is a concert at the school fair, the people stay there until past midnight to watch and have fun, with blankets, pillows, jackets, some chairs or small stools, with children and adults of various ages.

Now move that idea of a school fair into an evacuation center. Change some of the aspects of the school fair and look at the similarities in the situation. What’s the similarity? You have a lot of people from varying income brackets in one place needing food, water, some sort of shelter and lavatories to use, some source of emergency supplies, their own space, a little privacy. Many school fairs turn out to be really successful. If that is possible, then maybe planning and implementing a successful disaster management plan is also possible.

TO BE CONTINUED

Coordinated Moves, Keeping Safe, Momhood

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