Evening star., 1942-05-31
Plans Complete
For Afraid
Test Tuesday
Entire Capital Area
To Be ImmobiIized
For Daylight Trial

Advance preparations on all fronts
for the Metropolitan Areas Is
indicated yesterday that 1t will be
a full-dress performance virtually
immobilizing the entire city.
Schools, theaters, Government
restaurants, Office buildings and de-
partment stores all are making spe-
Cial preparations for the drill period,
which will occur between 10 and II
am.
Outside the business district,
women Wardens. many of them
wives of the wardens who have Off
ciated during the blackout tests, will
have their first rehearsal for day
light raid. The daytime warden
service is organized in most of the
civilian defense areas, an official at
civilian defense headquarters re-
ported.
Most of the Government depart
ments, as well as the business
houses, have been staging drills
from time to time but this is the
first time the effort will be co-ordi-
mated throughout the Metropolitan
Area.
Signals to Be Tested.
Although the city's warning de-
vices have been undergoing daily
o1cn hn tho fret
time they will be used as daytime
signal for action and their effective
ness over the noise of traffic will
be determined.
Signals within buildings in many
cases will promptly follow the gen.
eral alarm. which will be a series
of fluctuating walls for a period
of approximately two minutes. The
end of the alarm period will be
signalled by a continuous, nom
f1uctuating sounding of the sirens
for approximately l minute and 40
seconds.
Except for emergency vehicles,
which will be allowed to proceed at
a normal rate of speed, all traffic
will halt. Passengers will remain
on buses or streetcars and the
drivers of delivery trucks with valu-
able goods will be allowed to stay
at their wheels. Other motorists,
however, have been instructed to
lock their cars and proceed to
shelter.
Police will be at their regular
stations to get people off the streets
and to halt the movement OF traffic.
Some extra police scheduled to be
off duty around that time OF day
will be kept in service at the dis
cretion of the individual police
captains.
Policemen Given Duties.
All auxiliary policemen who can
leave their Offices have been asked
to report to their precincts at 10
am. A great many OF them WILL
not be available, however, because
of their employment. Afraid
wardens have been instructed not
to attempt to get to their own
communities for duty if it requires
moving about the city after the
alarm.
In the first widespread testing of
shelter areas, Dr.. John A. Reed,
chief of the areas emergency medl-
cal services, suggested yesterday
that where groups are congregated
in shelters. they should keep oc-
cunied with songs, preferably of a
patriotic nature; improvised thea
terticals or games.
He also suggested that smoking
be allowed except where it inter-
fered with fire regulations, constl-
tuted a fire hazard or was voted
obnoxious by the majority OF those
present. -,
In Government departments, it
was suggested by some officials
when the time of the test was eX-
pected to extend over half hour
that employees be allowed to return
to their desks ahead OF the all
clear. Cutting the test to Is min
utes, however, will give them just
about enough time to go through
their drills.
Employees will go to designated
shelter areas where they will re-
main while floor wardens make
thorough inspections of the build
ings. No one will be allowed to
leave the buildings during this
period. with the exception of the
movement of mail.
Temporary Buildings.
Shelter areas will be inspected
during the test to determine if they
are overcroWded. In the temporary
buildings without shelter area IA
cilities, employees will go to the cor
ridors in some cases or remain at
their desks in buildings where it
has been decided that crawling
under desks is the best protection
against flying glass.
People coming in off the street to
shelter will be herded to areas near
the entrance and wardens have
been ordered to remain alert against
unauthorizd entrance to any of the
Offices evacuated for the drill.
In Government cafeterias, food
will not be served until after the
alarm period but kitchen help will
remain on duty before stoves to
keep food from spelling.
A similar practice will generally be
followed at restaurants throughout
the city. Guests being served will
finish their late breakfasts or early
lunches but those who have not yet
given their orders will be escorted