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DisasterMan
training offers mass transit management a means of minimizing losses in
human life, equipment and revenue.
This is a classic case of technology transfer of military operations
research expertise to a similar type problem in the civilian public sector.
Military operations research analysts might study the capabilities of an
enemy to damage the fl eet while civilian OR analysts examine the risks
of potential disasters such as fl oods, computer failures and use of drugs
by operating personnel. Military OR teams often use war games both as a
method of training operational personnel at institutions such as the Naval
War College, Newport, Rhode Island and as a means of studying a new
problem by illuminating the issues of operational readiness preparation
and damage control.
This paper is divided into three sections: A brief statement of the
problem; A discussion of the major elements to be considered in the
solution of the problem; A presentation of an example of an approach to
solve a typical mass transit system's planning problem in preparation for
emergencies.
The Problem of Planning for Emergencies for Mass Transit Systems
The goal of mass transit systems is to provide reliable transportation
to passengers. Natural disasters, equipment failure, and human error can
occur unexpectedly with grave impact. Are transit systems adequately
prepared and properly trained to cope with these emergencies? And just as
importantly, are the other agencies which would respond to an emergency
aware of the scope of the emergency and are they fully coordinated?
The San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) and the local
community agencies were not ready on January 17, 1979. A subway train
enroute from Oakland to San Francisco caught fi re. Almost everything
that could go wrong, did go wrong. The Oakland Fire Department sent
equipment to the wrong location. The tunnel's ventilation system, which
was supposed to clear smoke from the fi re area, was improperly operated,
making the smoke worse, not better. The subway cars had been built
with seats made of polyurethane, a highly fl ammable plastic that emits
toxic fumes when ignited. Firefi ghters had to contend with dense black
smoke. The communications system was found to be inadequate. The BART
dispatcher sent two trains loaded with passengers into the tube while the
fi re was still raging. Fortunately, a BART supervisor who just happened to
be on board the train, was able to take control of all the passengers and