So you only get 80,000 people out when you needed transport for 100,000.
That's still 80,000 people out of harm's way. You cannot let the possibility of partial failure prevent you from even trying. Unfortunately, that's the mantra of too many governments nowadays.
I was in an evac where our facility had approximately 240 highly skilled (translation, can't walk) patients to evacuate. On school buses. In 90 plus degree heat. They were duct taped to the seats because it was the only way to keep them from hitting the floor.
Our staff attended Fema planning meetings for a year, with all the other LTC facilities in the area. And in the facility, we met, planned and planned and planned. And planned. And then prayed real hard.
NOTHING went as projected. Not one damn thing. We evaced (for a hurricane that didn't even come near) and lost 8 patients in transit...I MEAN IN THE FIRST 4 hours! (not yelling, sorry).
Gee, considering they were on those buses for almost 8 hours, prrior to even leaving, no surprise.
Just about every facility that evaced lost anywhere from one to 3 patients. Then you heard horror stories of people dying on the highway and family sitting with the bodies for hours until someone could come. It was pure 'effin' hell.
I've never been so scared or hopeless or near the end of my sanity as I was then.
Granted, my story is just a tiny snapshot in what goes on. And what is even more ironic, when it was all over, we had these folks from the outside acting outraged about 'why didn't you do this or that!' I had one woman at church rage at me that we used duct tape on them! She said "Couldn't you have gone to the store and bought velcro?" ARGH!
Well duh, we didn't know at the time we needed to do this or that. It's one of the many reasons I now work in a different field of my profession. And why I will never evacuate again.
In the end, we had a lot of CYA from the embarrasseed local FEMA folks trying to act like no one attended meetings etc. Boy did we clean their clocks on that one!
Ack!
Rant over.