[TexasTransplant]

*** “Did that protocol change more than a few minds about evacuation?” ***

Don’t know I had to go move my family and then beat feet back to work at Command Center.
I didn’t make it, which I did not do, by the time I got back it was already Pitch Dark at 3:00 PM and Tornadoes everywhere, even though I was in Uniform I was turned back by LE and they told me to follow them as they had the route updates of passable roads... Andrew was a Beast

[Vigilanteman]

Glad you lived to tell about it. I lived in Japan when Andrew hit, 1992, I think it was. We even donated to financial aid the Japanese government was collecting, a nice gesture, I thought because nobody else helps the USA in disasters.

In January of 1995, we were in a major earthquake and it wasn't long thereafter before I saw big burly American construction workers on my commuter train. I found out that the Japanese government issued "construction training visas" (a new category) almost overnight because these guys were needed. They waived the usual visa fee and just told the guys when they arrived at the airport to go to the nearest immigration office and get their visa renewed before the 90 day limit was up.

I found it interesting that Americans got preference in this case!