EVACUATION IN EMERGENCY

Southland Times, Issue 23947, 13 October 1939, Page 6

EVACUATION IN EMERGENCY

Details Of Scheme For City

ACCOMMODATION IN THE COUNTRY INVERCARGILL DIVIDED INTO 16 AREAS Extensive plans for the evacuation cf Invercargill in the event of an emergency and for the accommodation of refugees in country districts are being prepared by < a committee under the Invercargill Emergency Precautions Scheme. Along with other committees covering supply, transport, medical services, law and order, public utilities, communications, works and water, fire, finance and records, and publicity and information, the Evacuation and Accommodation Committee was set up as long ago as April of this year with Mr J. L. Orr as controller. Under 'the emergency precautions scheme laid down by the Government the task of the Evacuation Committee is as follows: During the emergency to arrange accommodation and temporary feeding arrangements for the local population, particularly those who are, due to the disaster, shocked and homeless. In addition, if need arises, to arrange and control the evacuation of part, or the whole of the uninjured population from the stricken area to more congenial surroundings. AREAS AND SUPERVISORS To carry its scheme into effect in any emergency, the committee has divided the city into 16 areas. Each area is under the direct control of a supervisor and deputy-supervisor and has one or more evacuation centres. The areas, with evacuation points and supervisors, are as follows: No. 1 area—North School (Mr J. A. Cushen); Rosedale (Messrs John Tait and J. M. Mackintosh). No. 2 area—North School (Catholic) (Messrs W. Torrance and S. Shepherd). No. 3 area—Surrey Park School (Messrs D. K. Torrance and W. McKenzie). No. 4 area—Motor camp (Messrs R. R. Binney and Russell Hosie). No. 5 area—Te Rangi Bowling Club and Marist School (Marist Brothers and Mr H. Grace). No. 6 area—No. 1 Gardens (Messrs G. Cruickshank and Lloyd Raines). No. 7 area.—lsabella Dryburgh or Park School (Messrs M. M. McDonald and W. F. Webb). No. 8 area—Boys’ High School (Dr G. H. Uttley and Mr A. St. C. Macgregor). No. 9 area—Waihopai School (Messrs A. Thomson and W. Grieve); Rugby Park (Messrs James Stobo and H. E. T. Sutton). No. 10 area—Bain Park (Messrs H. Carnegie and W. D. Anderson). No. 11 area—St. George School (Messrs T. B. Haydon and George McChesney). No. 12 area —South Invercargill Domain (Messrs R. E. Gibbon and James Forrester).

No. 13 area—Biggar Street Reserve No. 2 (Messrs F. Blick and J. Bell). No. 14 area—South School (Messrs C. N. Lawle* : and L. S. Alsweiler).

No. 15 area—Biggar Street Reserve No. 1 (Messrs Richard Hall and A. C. Ford). No. 16 area.—No. 2 Gardens (Messrs W. Aitchison and G. Corbet).

Each supervisor has appointed a staff and his duties will include the following: (a) The exercise of general control of evacuation and accommodation in their respective areas on the lines set out in this scheme and to carry out all instructions received from the Evacuation and Accommodation Committee to which committee the supervisor and his staff are directly responsible, even though such instructions may be at variance with the scheme. DISTRIBUTION OF SUPPLIES (b) The requisitioning for and control and distribution of supplies, including food and clothing and, where possible, keeping a sufficient record of the disposal of these requisites. All supplies must be requisitioned through the Evacuation and Accommodation Committee.

(c) Make contact with the Communications Committee to ensure contact with the Evacuation and Accommodation Committee and the Transport Committee for such purposes as shall be first approved by the Evacuation and Accommodation Committee.

(d) To requisition the services and co-operations of the other committees set up under the emergency precautions organizations, such requisitioning to be done where possible through the Evacuation and Accommodation Committee.

(e) To exercise control of all persons appointed under him with power to cancel any such appointments for sufficient reason. '

For the purpose of facilitating the duties of the Evacuation and Accommodation . Committee and of the different area supervisors and their staffs, a canvass will shortly be made of each area in the city, and householders will be asked to supply information covering the number of adults and children in each house. Information is also sought on such matters as these: Have you a car, a caravan, a car trailer, a tent? How many stretcher beds have you got? How many bicycles? Have you a motorcycle? A motor-cycle side-chair? Questions are asked about the country friends of members of each household, and whether the persons in the house can assist with cooking or look after children or infirm persons.

PARTICULARS TO BE REGISTERED

If the emergency should be of such a nature as to allow the civil population the use of supplies of petrol in the city, it is desired that once the state of emergency is declared all private car owners with their families must report at the evacuation point in their own city area immediately, and their names and addresses and other necesary information will be registered. If they have previously arranged for accommodation in the country full particulars will be recorded and a permit to leave the city and to obtain petrol and other supplies if necessary will be given. They will then come under the control of the Transport Committee. If little petrol is available buses and the railways would be used, and if no petrol is available the general public would be obliged to rely on the services afforded by the railways alone. As it is desirable, where possible, to despatch refugees to the homes of their friends in the country, arrangements are now being made through the Southland. Education Board for the teacher or head teacher of each country school in Southland in all suitable localities to have a canvass made of his school district to ascertain the accommodation available in each school district. Each school teacher will also ascertain what friends, if any, from In-

vercargill each country home is prepared to accommodate. The Invercargill public is therefore requested to get in touch with their country friends immediately with a view to arranging to stay with them during any emergency and have details of the name and address and name and address of the school district of such friends ready for the canvassers when they call.

The Evacuation Committee will endeavour, in any emergency, to have people unable to provide their own transport sent to points of distribution in the country as near as possible to the residence of their friends, but if immediate evacuation is needed, only those who can arrange their own transport can be reasonably certain of reaching the homes of their friends. The others will be evacuated to various distribution centres in the country.

Mr J. L. Orr, controller of the Evacuation and Accommodation Committee under whose authority these preliminary details are published, invites those residents of Invercargill who have friends in the country to communicate with them at once. What action citizens should take in particular emergencies will be published later.