Emergency Preparedness and Individuals with Disabilities
The Department of Transportation is dedicated to ensuring the highest level of emergency preparedness
in the event of a disaster. During an emergency, persons with disabilities may require (1)
additional assistance with evacuation and (2) using transportation to get to a safe place.
As the United States population grows, there is greater demand for better highways, roads,
subways, and air travel. On-going enhancements to the Nation's transportation systems
must be coupled with efforts to ensure that the needs of people with disabilities are
addressed, especially in the event of an emergency. The critical needs of individuals
with disabilities during an emergency include the evacuation of transit systems, getting
to safe shelter in the event of a natural disaster, and full access to transportation
systems when there is a need to evacuate a particular location. This web page contains
basic information on emergency preparedness, transportation accessibility, and evacuation
methods for certain modes of transportation, such as transit and rail systems. It is
designed to be an emergency transportation preparedness resource for individuals with
disabilities, their family members, and care givers. Additionally, this page includes
useful information for transportation providers on addressing the unique needs of people
with disabilities during an emergency.
The Coordinating Council on
Access and Mobility was
established under
Executive Order 13330,
issued by President George
W. Bush on February 24,
2004. The mission of
this council is to enhance
access to transportation to
improve mobility,
employment opportunities,
and access to community
services for persons who
are
transportation-disadvantaged.
The Interagency Coordinating Council was established under
Executive Order 13347 (Emergency Preparedness and Individuals with Disabilities),
issued by President George W. Bush on July 22, 2004. The purpose of the
Executive Order is to ensure that the Federal Government appropriately supports safety
and security for individuals with disabilities in situations involving disasters,
including earthquakes, tornadoes, fires, floods, hurricanes, and acts of terrorism.
The
following information is intended to
provide the disability community with
information about the federal
government’s efforts to work with them
during this crisis.
The Interagency Coordinating Council on People with Disabilities in Emergency Preparedness has formed an Incident Management Team. This team consists of representatives from several federal agencies, and its goal is to provide organized and coordinated ways to respond to the issues that are affecting persons with disabilities during an emergency. This Team will facilitate timely resolution of these issues, coordinate responses, as well as coordinate other efforts underway at the federal, state and local levels.
How to Contact the Incident Management Team: If you want to raise an issue to the team, please send an email to:
disability.preparedness@dhs.gov. Someone will be checking that email account regularly.
The U.S. Department of Transportation established the Emergency Transportation Subcommittee to support the goals
of the Executive Order and the work of the Coordinating Council. The Emergency Transportation Subcommittee
serves as a mechanism to evaluate the status of emergency preparedness as it relates to people with disabilities
and transportation systems. In the midst of an emergency, communication about the incident and the means to remain
safe are critical to avoiding panic, minimizing injuries, and saving lives. The Emergency Transportation Subcommittee
is evaluating existing transportation regulations and their relationship to the needs of individuals with disabilities
during an emergency. In addition, the Subcommittee plans to research, evaluate and provide examples of best practices
and systems for planning and implementing emergency preparedness transportation policies and programs for people with
disabilities, their family members, their employers and service providers.
Other subcommittees of the Coordinating Council include:
New Strategy Paper and Checklist for Communities on Addressing the Needs of Transportation Dependent Populations During an Emergency
The U.S. Department
of Transportation is
pleased to announce the
implementation of a
strategy paper and
checklist for communities
that provide an overview of
the importance of planning
for the transportation of
individuals that require
assistance during an
emergency. These documents
also include specific
strategies that communities
have employed to facilitate
safe and appropriate
transportation, and
challenges that remain to
improving transportation
for these populations in
the event of an emergency
situation. These documents
were developed in
conjunction with the
National Consortium on the
Coordination of Human
Service Transportation.
Evaluation of Gulf Coast Catastrophic Evacuation Plans Report
Under, the Safe, Accountable,
Flexible, Efficient Transportation
Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU)
and the DOT Fiscal Year 2006
appropriations bill, the
Secretaries of Transportation and
Homeland Security, in coordination
with the Gulf Coast States and
contiguous States, jointly reviewed
and assessed Federal and State
evacuation plans. The assessment
included the costs associated with
plan implementation for
catastrophic events impacting the
Gulf Coast Region.
The U.S. DOT Departmental Office of
Civil Rights (DOCR) actively
participated in the Department's
review of Gulf Coast communities’
catastrophic evacuation plans. The
primary purpose of DOCR
participation was to ensure that
the needs of people with
disabilities are considered
throughout the review. As a result
of DOCR involvement, evaluation
criteria for the plan review
incorporated disability specific
considerations. Disability
information is contained throughout
the report findings and
recommendations that were submitted
to Congress as well as the
President. The report contains
substantial information on the
unique needs of individuals with
disabilities during an evacuation.
There are also several
recommendations on how Federal,
State, and local governments can
better address the needs of this
segment of the population during a
catastrophic evacuation.
The report includes an examination
of plans as they relate to people
with disabilities. The findings
indicate that the plans to include
these individuals are
under-developed and much work still
needs to be done. Evacuating the
seriously ill, the location of
individuals who do not reside in
institutions, and the logistics of
evacuation pose major challenges.
According to the report, provisions
to meet transportation and
sheltering requirements of these
various “special needs” groups must
be improved upon in most evacuation
plans. The full report can be
accessed through this link:
www.fhwa.dot.gov/reports/hurricanevacuation
DOT's Internal Guidelines on Emergency Preparedness and Individuals with Disabilities
The Department of Transportation implemented
the
Departmental Guidelines on Emergency Preparedness and Individuals
with Disabilities on August 12, 2003. The guidelines require that each of DOT's Operating
Administrators account for the unique needs of those with disabilities in their emergency
preparedness plans. Additionally, the guidelines call for the full inclusion of people with
disabilities in the development of these plans.
An
emergency is an event that has the
potential to become life threatening
to individuals. The following
are officially recognized categories
of disasters:
The underlying principle in providing safety from fire and smoke in buildings is
that of safe egress - the efficient relocation of building occupants to an area
of safety, usually outside the building.
A tornado appears as a rotating, funnel-shaped
cloud that extends from a thunderstorm to the ground with whirling winds that
can reach up to 300 miles per hour.
A Review of the Practices of
State Departments of
Transportation, Metropolitan
Planning Organizations, and
Transit Agencies in 20
Metropolitan Areas.
The Federal Transit
Administration’s Office of Civil
Rights commissioned this report in
order to promote nondiscrimination
in the emergency preparedness
activities administered by
recipients of FTA financial
assistance. This report reviews
the extent to which transit
providers, metropolitan planning
organizations, and state
departments of transportation in
selected metropolitan areas in the
United States and Puerto Rico are
identifying and addressing the
needs of populations that may be
especially vulnerable in the event
of a natural or man-made disaster.
This report also provides
resources that should assist
officials in these and other
metropolitan regions to better
incorporate attention to
populations with specific mobility
needs into their ongoing emergency
preparedness planning activities.
This report can be found at
http://www.fta.dot.gov/civilrights/civil_rights_6343.html
Transportation Equity Research
Program Research and Demonstration
Projects
The Federal Transit Administration
is administering research and
demonstration projects to assist
transit agencies, Metropolitan
Planning Organizations, and State
Departments of Transportation
address, in the course of planning
and implementing emergency
preparedness activities, the
unique needs of minority,
low-income, and LEP persons and
households without vehicles. More
information on this program can be
found at
http://www.fta.dot.gov/civilrights/title6/civil_rights_5741.html.
Hurricanes Katrina and Rita
revealed how vulnerable carless
residents are in emergency
situations. Evacuation plans in
most major cities across America
fail to adequately take into
account the needs of the elderly,
disabled, and transit dependent
populations. This conference
brought together government
officials, professionals, and
experts to discuss how we can
better prepare for those that are
in most need. Proceedings for the
conference can be found at
http://www.carlessevacuation.org
Connecting Communities Public
Transportation Workshops
These workshops are designed to
coordinate the assets and
specialized resources of transit and
transportation systems with their
local, county, and state response
and emergency management agencies.
Interoperability and maximum
resource utilization in the event of
a natural disaster, terrorist
incident, or other emergency is of
the utmost importance for a
community or region’s effective
response. These workshops also
discuss the emergency transportation
needs of people with disabilities,
older adults, and people with
low-incomes. More information can be
found at
http://www.connectingcommunities.net
Consider, in their emergency preparedness planning, the unique needs of agency employees
with disabilities and individuals with disabilities whom the agency serves.
Encourage, including through the provision of technical assistance, as appropriate,
consideration of the unique needs of employees and individuals with disabilities served by State,
local, and tribal governments and private organizations and individuals in emergency preparedness
planning.
Facilitate cooperation among Federal, State, local, and tribal governments and private organizations
and individuals in the implementation of emergency preparedness plans as they relate to individuals with
disabilities.
Facilities
receiving Federal funds
Any community that receives
Federal funds such
as financial support from the U.S. Department of Transportation must ensure
that its transportation facilities are accessible to People with Disabilities
even in an emergency. This
requirement can be found under the
Americans
with Disabilities Act (ADA),Title 29 and Section 794
,Presidential
Executive Order , and Section 504 of Rehabilitation Act of 1973.
One of the most important roles of local
government is to protect the citizenry from harm, including helping people
prepare for and respond to emergencies. Making local government
programs on emergency
preparedness and response accessible to people with disabilities is a
critical part of this responsibility. Making these programs accessible is also
required by the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA).
"People with special
needs include a wide
variety of individuals
who are identified by a
variety of names –
people with
disabilities such as
individuals who use
wheel chairs, people
who are blind or
visually impaired,
people who are deaf or
severely hard of
hearing, people with
severe emotional
impairments, people
with severe
intellectual
impairments, people
with medically related
needs such as
diabetics, individuals
with seizure disorders,
and many others that
require unique
assistance. Individuals
with disabilities are
defined as persons who
have physical or mental
impairment that limit
major life activities,
have an ongoing or
chronic condition, or
even if they don’t have
such a condition, are
regarded by the
community as being
disabled. And this
doesn’t necessarily
include the
ever-enlarging group of
senior citizens who
have a greater number
of special needs
including Alzheimer’s
and related memory
disorders" -Carl T.
Cameron, Inclusion, Inc. For more
information please
visit
Emergency Planning for
People with
Disabilities and Other
Special Needs,
Inclusion Incorporated
to download Mr.
Cameron's
paper on emergency
planning.
Temporary
Disabilities
People
who experience
a temporary loss of
physical function such
as walking due to a broken knee, or
the inability to move
quickly due to
pregnancy. Those
disabilities could
be caused by an
event which pushes
the boundaries of
an individual's
ability to cope.
First Responders
The term "first responder" refers to those individuals who in the early stages of an incident are responsible
for the protection and preservation of life, property, evidence, and the environment, including emergency
response providers as defined in section 2 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 101), as well as
emergency management, public health, clinical care, public works, and other skilled support personnel
(such as equipment operators) that provide immediate support services during prevention, response, and recovery operations.
This section is a
resource for individuals with
disabilities, their family members,
and their caretakers on planning for
emergencies within transportation
systems. Additionally, people with
disabilities will find information
related to using transportation
systems during emergencies such as
natural disasters or terrorist
attacks.
Transportation Provider Resources
This section contains technical assistance
information for transportation
providers on accounting for the
unique needs of people with
disabilities in their emergency
preparedness plans. Transportation
providers will find information on
the best methods for evacuating
people with disabilities,
maintaining communication, and
providing safe and accessible
transportation during an emergency.
