Evacuation Centers for Cities in Hurricane Areas

Low lying cities along the east and southern coastline could modify, and build more, tall parking garages to serve as evacuation buildings for hurricanes and for flooding.


The evacuation buildings would essentially be normal tall, eight stories perhaps, parking garages that have strong shutters that are lowered along the outside just before the wind picks up. The top of these parking garage/evacuation centers would be covered.

People could drive in, find a parking spot starting at the top first, then set up a tent and wait it out. The bottom level, ground level, would not be used if there was a flood danger.

When they are not being used in an emergency the evacuation buildings would be used as a regular parking garages. People in certain areas could have designated parking garages/evacuation centers as their evacuation site.

This would save lives and it would also save a lot of vehicles.

It would indeed be helpful for us to plan for the inevitable.

Super Universe said:

Low lying cities along the east and southern coastline could modify, and build more, tall parking garages to serve as evacuation buildings for hurricanes and for flooding.

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That's the start of a good idea, but there are several complications that would need to be worked through.

1. Parking garages lack restrooms.
2. Parking garages aren't particularly comfortable.
3. Once shuttered, parking garages would lack ventilation ... and they would be filled with vehicles which can create carbon monoxide.
4. At some point, the parking garage may lose power. Dark parking garages can be rather creepy.
5. If the power fails, certain people (particularly those most likely to have a medical emergency) would have trouble getting up/down the stairs.

Despite the apparent problems, I like the general idea of dual-purpose infrastructure for natural disasters. (Houston uses recreation areas as flood retention ponds. Without that, Harvey's flooding could have been much worse.) Adding restrooms to parking garages is probably feasible, even if the restrooms stay locked and unused 99.9% of the time. (The owners of parking garages would need to be compensated, and there would need to be some form of inspection & maintenance, but those are just extra details to be managed.)

Karl R said:

That's the start of a good idea, but there are several complications that would need to be worked through.

1. Parking garages lack restrooms.
2. Parking garages aren't particularly comfortable.
3. Once shuttered, parking garages would lack ventilation ... and they would be filled with vehicles which can create carbon monoxide.
4. At some point, the parking garage may lose power. Dark parking garages can be rather creepy.
5. If the power fails, certain people (particularly those most likely to have a medical emergency) would have trouble getting up/down the stairs.

Despite the apparent problems, I like the general idea of dual-purpose infrastructure for natural disasters. (Houston uses recreation areas as flood retention ponds. Without that, Harvey's flooding could have been much worse.) Adding restrooms to parking garages is probably feasible, even if the restrooms stay locked and unused 99.9% of the time. (The owners of parking garages would need to be compensated, and there would need to be some form of inspection & maintenance, but those are just extra details to be managed.)

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There are no restrooms in a parking garage? The existing parking garages would be modified. If they are less than 6 stories they would be raised to at least that high and probably be 8 stories. They would need a strong cement/steel roof that could serve as a helicopter landing pad. Hurricane proof shutters would be mounted to the outside that would be lowered just before the hurricane hits. Restrooms could be put on every floor.

Parking garages aren't comfortable? This would be an emergency shelter for people in the lowest lying areas. Those who want comfort can rent a room at the Hilton.

Once shuttered the parking garages would lack ventilation? All you have to do is leave open a few shutters that are not facing the wind.

At some point the parking garage may lose power? It would definately lose power, so? How creepy is a home that has lost power and is flooded at night time? It's an emergency evacuation shelter to save lives, save animals, and save vehicles. It's not the Ritz Carlton.

People like you can still go to the Ritz Carlton, others who happen to live in flood prone areas can evacuate to the parking garage and take a tent and sleeping bag.

If power fails people would have trouble getting up/down the stairs? As if it's easier to get around when the whole city is flooded with four feet of water?

The owners of the parking garages would not be compensated. The modifications would be paid for by either the federal government or the cities themselves and the city would essentially take over operation of the parking garage/shelter during the emergency.

There are always some firemen and policemen who stay behind, you could designate one per shelter as a shelter manager.

sunrise123 said:

It would indeed be helpful for us to plan for the inevitable.

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Isn't giving advice to take precautions against inevitable danger blaming the victim?

Revoltingest said:

Isn't giving advice to take precautions against inevitable danger blaming the victim?

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You are so reported for microaggression.
Tom

columbus said:

You are so reported for microaggression.
Tom

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I don't think it's that. Instead I assume a bit of snark. I think he likes to carry around a "pointed stick" and poke at people to see if they've graduated from defending against bananas and to defending against "pointed sticks" (Monty Python in case any are ignorant).

Basketball stadiums have parking lots for about 20,000 vehicles. Baseball stadiums have parking lots for 50,000 cars and football stadiums have parking lots for probably 60,000 vehicles.

If we built a two story parking garage on just one half of every basketball, baseball, and football stadium parking lot in the cities of Houston, New Orleans, and Miami that would provide about 60,000 hurricane emergency evacuation parking/camping spots in each city.

Add in the other raised parking garages that already exist in a large city, a typical garage has about 300 spots per level, and you probably have another 10,000 to 20,000 hurricane and flood safe evacuation spots.