CITY DISPERSAL

Evening Post, Volume CXXXIII, Issue 42, 19 February 1942, Page 8

CITY DISPERSAL

POST OFFICE TRIAL

EXCELLENT RESULT

Necessarily the whole basis of protection of those who work and do business in the central city area from dangers of air or shell bombardment and of resultant fire must be ordered dispersal. Whatever shelter provision may be made, there must be evacuation of the great majority of buildings in the central section of the city so that people may reach such shelter, and only repeated trials will give the public the understanding of what is required of them, when they are to leave buildings, where to go, and how to go. Written and spoken words and printed instructions will not suffice. This morning the first large-scale single building exercise in the central area was carried out at the General Post Office. It was excellently done, the evacuation of about 800 people being achieved in three and a, half minutes, leaving in the building only wardens and their officers, fire guards, building police, • and some essential duty men. The exercise began at 9.30 a.m. Control officers and building police appeared at all entrances. People about to enter were told politely that an evacuation exercise was being held and were asked to co-operate; business ceased. Staff and public inside the building were instructed by the control officers to remain where they were until directed otherwise. The order to disperse was received by the building warden from the* district warden (who decides which buildings are to be evacuated and in what order, according to danger, or threat of fire). THE DISPERSAL. The exercise then continues thus: On the order to disperse, the building warden sounds three short whistle blasts, which are taken up and repeated throughout the building by control officers on stairways and corridors(where they take post immediately on hearing the siren alarm). On the three-blast dispersal signal staff and public leave the building, keeping to denned routes, which are plainly understood. Traffic in the corridors and on stairways is regulated by the evacuation control officers. Lifts > are not used; they are switched off immediately t)n the siren alarm. All exits are used, the staff "being instructed which doorways and routes to use. Because the maintenance of communications is essential, a skeleton staff will remain in the telegraph, office and a small number of key men in other communications branches. In addition to these essential duty men, there also remain fire guards, stretcher bearers, E.P.S. police stationed at doorways to protect the building, and building messengers. The building warden (with two runners) has under him a deputy building warden (one runner); the officers in charge of branches as branch wardens; evacuation control officers; E.P.S. police; fire guards; and stretcher bearers. THOROUGH REHEARSAL. The rehearsal was a thorough job. Even in the Money Order and Savings Bank branches business was suspended and all money and documents were put away in strong rooms, in particular the ledger cards, /the most important part of the Savings Bank system. It had been anticipated that it would be necessary to, suspend public business for up to 20 minutes, but the exercise ran so well that business was reopened within 15 minutes of the sounding of the alarm and within ten minutes of the beginning of dispersal. For the trial this morning the evacuees simply went across Featherston Street into Grey and Panama Streets in the direction of Lambton Quay. In an actual emergency, and probably in later rehearsals, the evacuees will go further on the dispersal route. It is essential that they know the route, which, for the Post Office staff, is through the Kelburn tramway tunnels or other emergency exits which' may be created near the Kelburn tramway.

Owners and occupiers of other buildings in this central area have been called upon to commence their dispersal trials without delay. Another trial in a large building in the same area is to be held this afternoon.

There is no word yet of the commencement of the necessary public dispersals from the city area.

The Railway and certain other State buildings have already practised staff dispersals.