Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1955-03-06
D. 6. Evocuotion-
Civil Defense Sees Job Feasible If Worninq
Preeedes Raid by Hours; Practice Needed
By Richord FrykIund

Complete evacuation of Wash
ington after warning of atomic at
tack should be no more trouble than
getting every one home in the eve
ming rush-hour traffic
That is what Civil Defense people
say after experimental excavations
in other cities and after study of
Washington's unique problems. The
only catch Is that the evacuation
plan has to be worked out in close
detail, and each person must know
In advance what to do.
Today no such plan exists. A
basic study which could lead to
District evacuation plan was COM
pleted for the Army in December,
but the Army has kept it locked in
safe. District Civil Defense Chief
John E. Fondahl says he probably
will get a copy of the study this
week.
What the eventual detailed plan
will be no one knows, but piecing
together information from national
and local Civil Defense headquarters,
this Is the way an evacuation prob
ably would be handled.
First, there would have to be ad-
vance warning. Washington needs
two hours notice, civil defense off,
Gals say. to clear most of the city.
How much time we can count on is
military secret. But since it is
reasonable to expect that the East
ern seaboard, including the Nations
Capital, is one of the best protected
areas, Col. Fondahl probably can
plan on his two hours.
Official Priorities
When the warning is flashed, key
Government people will get first
priority to leave. But since there
probably are not more than two or
three thousand Government work.
ers who rate priorities, their initial
mad dash would not interfere sig
nlflcantly with the general evacua-
ton.
When the sirens all over the city
go off. the public starts to move.
Presumably each person knows the
route he must take. 1t will be the
fastest. most direct route to the
city limits. Persons with a car
handy will hop in and start driving.
Other persons will walk to pickup
points or hitch ride
Every street will be one way-out.
There will be no cross-street traffic,
no opposing traffic, no stoplights.
just smooth flow of cars heading
out of the District.
No one will be allowed to 60 home
unless his home is along his desig-
mated evacuation route.
Every car will have to be full.
Those without their full compile
ment will have to drive along the
curbs, picking up pedestrians. When
each is full. it will move into the
center lane and take off.
Most persons will know the desig-
mated route from their homes or
Offices, but to help persons in a
strange part of town, evacuation
routes probably will be marked. Per-
haps blue lines and arrows will be
painted on the streets.
How fast could everyone get out
of town? National Civil Defense
people estimate at least 80 per cent
of the District people could be across
the city limits in two hours. Col.
Fondahl puts it another way. He
says everyone within four miles of
Eleventh and F could be out in two
hours Civil Defense officials saw
a minimum of 800 to 1000 cars
can be moved along each traffic
lane each hour. If every car carried
say, five persons, then even a small,
two-lane street could get 10000 per-
sons out in two hours.
About a million persons would
have to be evacuated from the Dis
trict alone during the day. The
Potomac and AnacoStia bridges
could handle about 100000 persons
in two hours. The rest, Of course.