Part 5—Create an Evacuation Map for Seaside Schools

Step 1 – Locate Possible Evacuation Routes for Seaside Schools

Now that you have investigated tsunami run-up potential and located the town of Seaside, Oregon, you will use your skills to plan an evacuation route for two schools located in the town of Seaside. All schools in coastal Oregon must have evacuation plans in place. What would you recommend to the school administrators in this town? How would you plan for your own family?

1. If necessary, re-launch AEJEE and open the project file that you saved in Part 4. The map loads with the layers and selections, shown below.
   
   
   
   
2. Turn on the Seaside Schools layer.
3. Turn on and make active the Oregon Highways layer.
4. Edit the properties of the Highways layer by accessing the
   drop-down Properties menu for that layer; make it black lines that are size 2.
5. Locate the nearest highway to Seaside, then use the Identify tool to learn its name. In the event of a 15-meter tsunami, which direction should you travel on this highway—if the highway is even open after an earthquake?
   Show me which highway
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   1. Click on the highway nearest to Seaside with the Identify tool.
      
      
   2. An Identify Results window will open. In it you will see the nearest highway is named "Oregon Coast" and is highway "009". To evacuate you would want to travel South and then East on the "Sunset" highway.
      
      
6. Turn on the Seaside Topographic map and Seaside Aerial photograph. Zoom in to these layers.
   
   
   These two layers show other features such as smaller roads, trails and schools. Locate old "Central School" on the topographic map. Turn off the topographic map layer when you are done with it.
   
7. Next, make the Seaside Schools layer active. Use the Identify tool to locate and identify the Broadway Middle School and Seaside High School (both are in near central Seaside). You can also change the legend of the layer to color the dots by "name".
   Show me the aerial
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   Seaside schools are shown on top of this aerial in pink and orange. Click on the image for a larger view.
   
   
   Show me how to edit the layer's properties
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   To change the legend of the layer, right click on the layer's name in the Layers List open the Properties window. Choose the following settings:

   • Draw features using: Unique Symbols
   • Field for values: "Name"
   • Color Scheme: "Random"
   • Under the Symbol header, click on the colors to open the color editor and choose a new color from the swatches.

   
   
   
8. Add the Tsunami Inundation Area layer to visualize the area that you would need to evacuate in the event of a tsunami.

Step 2 – Map Evacuation Routes and Create an Evacuation Plan to Share

To conclude this activity you will use the maps, aerial image, and other layers, as well as your GIS skills, to create an evacuation route map for the students in these two schools. Assume that you will be evacuating on foot. Where will you take the students in the event of a tsunami predicted to be 15 meters in height? Write up a plan to share with your classmates or local authorities.

When designing your plan, consider the following:

• What obstacles will find in your route (i.e. are there rivers to cross)?
• How far can you walk in 20 minutes?
• Where will you gather the students?

Make notes in a word-processing document or on a separate piece of paper. If possible, include a screen shot or jpeg image of your map. When you have completed your investigation, compare your map for Seaside to an actual evacuation map for nearby Cannon Beach, linked here. Cannon Beach Evacuation Map (Acrobat (PDF) 1.5MB Nov13 10)(in PDF)