MAST 8 Evacuation for mobility impaired and those without transportation discussed at MAST meeting, subject of upcoming workshop

At the march meeting of the Mountain Area Safety Taskforce, Reba Coulter, founder of Idyllwild’s Forest Folk Shuttle service, asked about evacuation plans for residents who have mobility challenges or do not have a car. Sgt. Frank James, of the Riverside Sheriff’s Office, spoke of the protocols developed to evacuate summer camps, where many young people may be without transport, with buses from RTA or Hemet Unified School District.

Coulter asked again about residents, and James said that RSO goes door-to-door in the event of evacuation orders, and may carry non ambulatory residents out, or call an ambulance. For those without cars, he said “we hope they will be on the way out, find a neighbor, in the worst case scenario get to the highway and start hiking out, you are going to run across a whole bunch of police officers, they will get you to a safe zone.” CalFire Division Chief Dan Olson underlined that the purpose of the alert system is to give residents time to prepare, including contacting friends, family and neighbors, and that plans should be made well before an emergency for those who have disabilities.

Although fire fighters will evacuate people unable to escape, this takes resources away from firefighting and structure protection. James also noted that RSO notifies occupants of homeless encampments during incidents, and offers transport to designated safe areas, as many homeless do not have cell phones.

The Mountain Communities Fire Safe Council has announced a preparedness workshop, “tailored to our senior community as well as those with access and functional needs,” at Town Hall, on Wednesday, May 21 at 1 p.m. The event is presented by CORE (Community Organized Relied Effort) with MCFSC, Mountain Disaster Preparedness, and Idy Elders. There will be a free shuttle. For more info and to RSVP visit mcfsc.org/elders or call (951) 659-6208.