Its a day after a category 4 hurricane has devastated the islands. Even portions of Oahu have been hit. Unfortunately, your neighborhood was hit hard as well. The streets are trashed and littered with debris and wreckage. Your alive and so are the others that live with you (if any) and your home is battered but standing. You have about 6 weeks worth of food and fresh water and you've been cleaning up and repairing your home. All in all, you're doing alright.

After three days the State says your neighborhood is getting evacuated to a shelter and you must comply. National Guard troops will be transporting the refugees to the shelters. You won't be allowed to bring your arms and all your food, water, etc. will be confiscated and divided amongst the needy.

What do you do? How? And why?



I would like to hear others replies to this before I give my own. I want to say I would resist but I don't think I could unless many others joined in. I know I would be way better off on my own than in a shelter.

It depends if I thought I had a better chance surviving with the State or not. If I had six weeks of food? No way would I give in to them.

Good question Tons. 

After three days the State says your neighborhood is getting evacuated to a shelter and you must comply. National Guard troops will be transporting the refugees to the shelters. You won't be allowed to bring your arms and all your food, water, etc. will be confiscated and divided amongst the needy.

Heck no, I'm staying.  I would board up all the windows and doors with as many nails and boards as I could find.  Then I'd spray paint across the front door, "Emily, we evacuated ____ date, to  ____ shelter"  Then I'd sit quiet and lay low waiting for the national guard to pass on by.  Hopefully with the boarded windows, doors, and the big sign the troops would get the hint that the house is abandoned and move on to the next house without feeling the need to pry. 

I wouldn't go.
Can they do that legally?

Rusty on the HRS covering the subject, but Ive read it before.  Regardless of legality, they probably can.  I wish a hurricane or at least a tornado would flatten my townhouse (spare the neighbors) so I could get out of the mortgage.

Good question Tons. 

Quote from: tonsofguns on January 23, 2011, 10:17:10 PM

After three days the State says your neighborhood is getting evacuated to a shelter and you must comply. National Guard troops will be transporting the refugees to the shelters. You won't be allowed to bring your arms and all your food, water, etc. will be confiscated and divided amongst the needy.

Heck no, I'm staying.  I would board up all the windows and doors with as many nails and boards as I could find.  Then I'd spray paint across the front door, "Emily, we evacuated ____ date, to  ____ shelter"  Then I'd sit quiet and lay low waiting for the national guard to pass on by.  Hopefully with the boarded windows, doors, and the big sign the troops would get the hint that the house is abandoned and move on to the next house without feeling the need to pry.

During Katrina, they raided the houses -- regardless if they had boards and stuff up. They broke the doors down.

I know for sure that Hawaii now has legislation to prevent the seizure of arms in a natural disaster, yet if you are forced to evacuate I highly doubt you'll be allowed to take 'em with you. As for 'if' they can make you go, I'm sure the .gov has a way of bending the rules in the name of 'the greater good' from time to time.
And I know we've all seen the video of that old woman being forced out of her home during Katrina, even though she was well stocked and safe.

Honestly, I'm interested in the "what would you do?" part of this scenario because quite frankly, I'm stumped. Its a shitty situation at best, and a down right deadly one at worst. I got the idea for this scenario from another post on this site a while back from Old Guy

Case in point.  In a Major emergency, like a Cat 5 Hurricane, Tsunami, or earthquake, how many of you would go to a shelter if your home is
damaged but still livable? 
Would you go before or After the hurricane/tsunami?
 

That's a good one. 

I'll send my mother in law with the National Guard and stay back with my wife and kids.  =)    Just kidding.

I've always heard stories of people refusing during those times and they have been left alone.

I did a quick search of the Hawaii revised statutes and found nothing on "forced" evacuations.  I did come across the statute covering the powers of Civil Defense.

http://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol03_Ch0121-0200D/HRS0128/HRS_0128-0006.htm

Well there we have it. I ain't leaving.

*edit*
The comments in the article are extremely dissapointing. It's almost as if Hawaii has been raising it's people to assume their own welfare is entirely in the hands of the government and other unquestionable authority figures. NaaAaaah. I'm sure that's not the case   

I wonder though.

If enough neighbors voice concern of you possibly looting their place because they are  unprepared and choosing to evacuate, will they dislodge you from your home and detain you with the rest because you are a "security risk" to your neighborhood?
Or they get looted anyway and conjure up that since you're the closest to the property, you must've stolen their stuff, and suffer a misguided life-long grudge?
Or perhaps, since you spent the most time repairing your stuff, that you finish 6 weeks before any of your neighbors can, and when you don't spend 6 more back-breaking weeks helping out the unprepared neighbors fixing up their property, you're suddenly going to turn into that selfish refuse of a neighbor that shouldn't be living amongst the civilized.
Or maybe your neighbors will take note that you were prepared. So when the next time there is a disaster, they will choose to stay home too. Thinking since you have resources, they're entitled to yours during a "state of emergency".
Perhaps I'm dragging this on too long.

No...I think it's good mental exercise to think of all these things.  I wouldn't have thought about being blamed for looting.  Not in my mindset, but I could see the potential for that.  I guess the best prevention would be to be more "neighborly" before the disaster and pitch in to help others do repairs/clean up after the disaster. 

Part of my plan details what I'm going to do in exactly this sort of situation. Mind you, it's only me and the dog so my level of required supplies and creature comforts are significantly lower than those of someone with a family.

Worst case scenario: They give no warning and show up and tell me that I have to get on the bus now. I grab what I can (I have my prep stuff organized into levels which build onto each other) and go with them. The last place that I want to be in a situation like that is in jail, or worse-a holding facility inside of a refugee camp. This holds especially true for people with families; your #1 responsibility is to take care of your family and you can't do that from inside of a prison cell. Comply as best you can and hopefully you already have BOBs for each family member so they have the bear necessities.

Scenario listed above: The second the NG leaves the neighborhood to go round up the next load of sheeple, I load up my truck with my supplies and drive to my SHTF BOL. Whatever is left in my house after I'm gone they can have...I don't need it.

- Alex