Location Based Solutions in a Rapid Response to Hurricane Gustav. Along the Texas Gulf Coast, mandatory evacuation started in waves this morning. Communities closest to the coast put orders in place at 6 a.m. In Beaumont, the voluntary evacuation became mandatory at noon, but many residents weren’t waiting until the deadline.
Officials at the special needs evacuation site said things were going pretty smoothly, due in large part to the 211 system that lets them keep track of people who need assistance leaving, and a much more organized system for equipment. About 2,000 people have been helped, authorities said.
Beaumont public transit buses are shuttling residents from neighborhood schools to evacuation centers. Once there, they register with city fire and rescue personnel, who give them a yellow identification bracelet. The bracelet is stamped with the state seal, a barcode and a toll-free phone number.
The barcode is linked to a database maintained by the Texas Army National Guard. It’s the same system the guard used to track personnel coming and going from Iraq, said Lt. Sheila Tidrick.
Guard troops scan the bracelets as evacuees board busses headed north. They’ll be scanned again when evacuees reach shelters. If evacuees are separated from their families, they can call the phone number to find them.
Sunday morning, Cpl. Darrell Fountain was scanning passengers as they boarded buses. He said the mood at the evacuation center was calm. “It’s a great system,” said Fountain, who handed out water after Hurricane Rita. “It makes the process much faster, which keeps them from waiting very long to get on a bus.”
The buses also have GPS tracking units and a list of numbers to call in case of an emergency, according to a group of charter bus drivers who showed off their brand new state-issued cell phones while waiting to take evacuees to Tyler. Click here for more: