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Russell C. Coile
lead them to the front car of the seven car train where they were rescued. It
took fi refi ghters seven hours to control the fi re. The California Public utilities
Commission forced BART to close the tube for eleven weeks resulting in
a loss of $5 million in revenue. BART has since replaced the fl ammable
seats in all trains, posted placards in subway cars telling passengers
what to do in emergencies just as airlines do in prefl ight safety briefi ngs,
conducted evacuation drills from the tube, drafted written agreements with
the San Francisco and Oakland fi re departments establishing exact lines
of communications and command in emergencies, etc.
Major Elements To Be Considered
Casualties
Washington, D.C. metro offi cials have, of course, greatly strengthened
their planning for fi re emergencies after being alerted by the San Francisco
fi re. However, there are many different types of potential disasters which
can result from casualties. A mass transit system must be prepared for
emergencies which can occur as a result of: Nature; Machinery; People.
Natural Casualties
Scientists have failed thus far to fully understand various types of
natural phenomena although we have been recording data for hundreds of
years. We have a long way to go in understanding and therefore predicting
such things as earthquakes, volcano eruptions, hurricanes, tornadoes, and
fl oods, and we still even have diffi culties in forecasting rain and snow. The
problem for mass transit authorities lies in being prepared to cope with the
effects of these natural disasters. Table 1 lists representative events in this
category.
Table 1 Natural Force Which Could Lead to Disaster
Earthquake; Hurricane; Flood; Rain; Sleet; Hail; Snow; Freezing; Heat
Wave; Wind; Thunderstorm; Dust; Lightning; Tornado; Settling.
Machinery Casualties
Reliability and maintenance problems plague all elements of American
society from the housewife with a malfunctioning toaster, to her husband
with his car and Metro with its transit system. Mass transit authorities must
train their personnel to be prepared for major casualties such as power