UNITED WAY OF GREATER
ATTLEBORO/TAUNTON, INC., MASS 2-1-1, AND
MEMA OFFERS TIPS TO BE PREPARED AS
HURRICANE IRENE APPROACHES
FRAMINGHAM, MA – As Hurricane Irene approaches, the Massachusetts Emergency
Management Agency (MEMA) recommends a number of steps people can take now to
help minimize potential damage from the damaging winds and torrential rains.
"Early planning and preparation can be the key to your safety," states MEMA Director
Kurt Schwartz. "It is important to use your time wisely and not wait until the last
minute."
Here are some examples of steps you should be taking:
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Trim back trees and shrubbery around your home. Remove diseased or damaged
tree limbs that could be blown down, causing damage, during a storm.
Clear clogged rain gutters. Hurricanes/tropical storms often bring torrential rain.
Providing clear drainage will help prevent misdirected flooding.
Bring in outdoor items to bring inside such as lawn furniture, trash barrels,
hanging plants, toys and awnings that can be broken or picked up by strong winds
and used as a missile.
Make sure storage sheds, children's playhouses or other outbuildings are securely
anchored, either to a permanent foundation or with straps and ground anchors.
Elevate articles in your basement that could be damaged from even minor
flooding.
Make temporary plywood covers to protect windows and sliding doors. Drill
holes for screws or lag bolts in each cover and around each window. Note: Taping
of windows does not prevent them from breaking.
Keep your vehicles fully fuelled.
Have a certain amount of cash available. If power is lost, ATMs may not be
working.
Make a record of your personal property. Keep an itemized list of your furniture,
clothing and valuables to assist adjusters in case of a claim. Back it up with
photographs or video.
Protect your insurance policies and other important documents in a secure place
like a safe deposit box or a watertight box. Many people back up important
documents online.
Learn where gas pilots and water mains are located and how to safely shut off all
utilities.
Lock doors and windows to ensure that they are closed tight to help protect
against strong winds and rain.
Have a Kit
Every home and business should have a stocked basic emergency supply kit that could be
used for any emergency, in the event you are isolated for three to five days without
power. Each kit will be unique to each family, but should include a portable radio,
flashlight, extra batteries, a supply of non-perishable foods, along with bottled water, a
first aid kit, extra prescription medication, and extra food and supplies for infants and
pets.
Make a Plan
Develop a Family Emergency Communications Plan in case family members are
separated from one another during the storm. This plan should also address reunification
after the immediate crisis passes. Ask an out-of-state relative or friend to serve as the
Family Emergency Communications Plan contact person. During and immediately after a
disaster occurs, it is often easier to access a long distance telephone number than a local
one. Also, calling outside a disaster area is usually easier than calling into the same area.
Be Informed
You should contact your local Emergency Management Director to familiarize yourself
with your Community's Emergency Plans, particularly potential evacuation routes and
shelter locations before an emergency situation occurs.
The Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) is the state agency
responsible for coordinating federal, state, local, voluntary and private resources during
emergencies and disasters in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. MEMA provides
leadership to: develop plans for effective response to all hazards, disasters or threats; train
emergency personnel to protect the public; provide information to the citizenry; and assist
individuals, families, businesses and communities to mitigate against, prepare for, and
respond to and recover from emergencies, both natural and man made. For additional
information about MEMA and Hurricane Preparedness, go to www.mass.gov/mema.
Follow MEMA updates on Facebook and Twitter.
CAPE COD EMERGENCY TRAFFIC PLAN 2011
FRAMINGHAM, MA - The Cape Cod Emergency Traffic Plan (CCETP) has been
developed to facilitate the egress of a high volume of traffic from Cape Cod in the event
of a hurricane or other potential high hazards, particularly during peak tourist season. The
plan's main goals are to ensure the safety of the community in the event of destructive
weather or other hazards requiring the orderly but rapid movement of motorists off Cape
Cod and the Islands of Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard; and prepare for the temporary
sheltering of displaced persons resulting from the evacuation of potential flood areas and
motorists unable to exit the Cape due to the closure of the Bourne and Sagamore Bridges.
"Like any plan, the Cape Cod Emergency Traffic Plan will only work with the full
cooperation of the Public," stated Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency
Director Kurt Schwartz. "To ensure the continued safety of individuals and their families,
it is imperative that citizens carefully follow the life-saving instructions of their local and
state officials, in a timely, responsible manner."
It is important to emphasize that this is not an evacuation plan. Although there are a
number of locations on the Cape that would evacuate from low-lying, flood prone areas
to higher ground, many of these individuals would access local shelters and not
necessarily leave the Cape. During the summer season however, (particularly the holiday
weekends) most tourists will probably attempt to leave the Cape if a serious hurricane is
predicted. The Plan is a tool that can be used to assist expediting traffic flow regardless of
the hazard and should be looked upon in all-hazard scenarios.
On Labor Day weekend of 1996, Hurricane Edouard precipitated the declaration of a
State of Emergency. Within hours, in the absence of any proactive traffic mitigation
effort, traffic was backed up on Rte 6W from the Sagamore Bridge to the Orleans Rotary,
a six to eight hour backup stretching for nearly 40 miles. It is this exodus of a potentially
huge amount of vehicles in a few short hours that the CCETP has been designed to
eliminate.
Phase I of the CCETP is based upon the need to eliminate the causes of congestion and
keep traffic flowing in the area of the Bourne and Sagamore Bridges and the main
arteries leading up to them, Routes 6 & 28. This will be accomplished primarily by the
application of four traffic pattern alterations that:
1. Prohibit off-Cape access to Routes 6 & 28 at the base of both bridges;
2. Control access to certain exits for the Scenic Highway, Sandwich Road and along
Route 6 to limit traffic attempting to merge into the main stream of off-Cape
traffic;
3. Create flexibility in the opening and closing of exits by the Massachusetts State
Police (MSP) in order to expedite off-Cape traffic flow across the Sagamore and
Bourne Bridges;
4. Detour traffic to alternate roadways in order to reduce congestion. Off-Cape
Traffic heading west on Route 6W to Route 3 can proceed over the Sagamore
Bridge flyover and continue on Route 3N at exit 1B.
Off-Cape Traffic heading west on Route 6W traveling to the Bourne Bridge to access
routes 25/195/495 will have multiple options:
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Traffic can detour off Route 6W at Exit 2 in Sandwich, travel South on Route
130, enter the MA Military Reservation (MMR) at the Convoy Gate and follow
the detour through Otis AFB and Camp Edwards to Route 28N at the Otis Rotary.
Traffic then travels north to the Bourne Bridge and Routes 25/195/495; or
Traffic can choose to disregard the detour on Rte 6W at Exit 2 above, and follow
Route 6W to Route 3N where they can detour at Exit 7 in Plymouth and take
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Route 44W to the Route 44 rotary in Middleboro and access Route 495. Traffic
can travel Route 495 North to access Routes 24, 95 and other points north; or
Route 495 South to access Routes 25, 195 or other points south.
As an option, the MSP will monitor traffic flow and may open or close detours as
necessary. This includes the option of opening the Route 6 exit ramp (Scenic
Highway) between exits 1A and 1B after the Sagamore Bridge. That exit will
open or close as directed by the MSP in order to minimize congestion.
Local traffic traveling on Route 6W can utilize Exit 1A after the Sagamore Bridge for
local traffic only. There will be no access to Rte 28/25 via Scenic Highway.
Off-Cape Traffic heading north on Route 28 to Routes 25/195/495 can travel over the
Bourne Bridge and continue to those routes. The Cape-side Bourne Bridge Rotary will be
blocked to prevent cross-rotary traffic. The Plan allows only north-south access to and
from the Bridge via Route 28, and local traffic only via Trowbridge and Sandwich Roads.
Off-Cape traffic heading north on Route 28 which needs to get to the Sagamore Bridge to
go North of Route 3 should either access Route 151 in Falmouth to Rte. 28 to Rte. 130 to
Route 6 or traffic can cross the Bourne Bridge, follow Route 25N, to Route 495N and
take detour at Exit 5 (Route 18/44) and follow Route 44E to Route 3 north or south.
Local traffic traveling on Route 28N can use Waterhouse Rd. to access shelters at Bourne
Middle School and Upper Cape Cod Regional Technical High School.
Local traffic traveling on Route 28N can cross the Bourne Bridge and use Exit 2 on Rte.
25W to access local shelters and local destinations in Buzzards Bay and Wareham. Exit 3
(Rte. 6) on Rte. 25W will be closed and the Scenic Highway will not be accessible from
the Mainland-side Bourne Rotary in Buzzards Bay, in order to eliminate cross rotary
traffic.
Phase II of the CCETP provides for temporary shelters on the MA Military Reservation
at Camp Edwards to provide motorists with a safe haven when the Bourne and Sagamore
Bridges have been closed. Phase II is activated when the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
advises that wind gusts are at 70 mph in the vicinity of the bridges.
1. Both bridges must now be closed to all traffic.
2. Rte 6W will be closed at Exit 2 in Sandwich, and Rte 28N will be closed at the
Otis Rotary.
3. All traffic between those points and the bridges will be allowed to cross. The
bridges will be closed when this residual traffic has passed.
4. Any motorists still on the road will then have the option of going to designated
emergency parking areas in the MMR and being shuttled to shelter on the MMR,
or seeking their own shelter elsewhere, until the storm passes.
5. Once the storm has passed and it is deemed safe by officials, the Bridges will be
reopened and motorists will be notified that it is safe to travel.
The CCETP has been developed by the MA State Police and MA Emergency
Management Agency in cooperation with numerous agencies: Mass DOT, MA Army
National Guard, MA Air National Guard, U.S. Coast Guard, MA Military Reservation,
US Army Corps of Engineers, American Red Cross, State of MA Animal Response
Team, Cape Cod Medical Reserve Corps, Barnstable County Incident Management
Team, Barnstable County Regional Emergency Planning Committee, Barnstable County
Sheriff's Office, Bourne and Sandwich Police Departments, Local Emergency Managers
and Public Safety Officials from across the Cape, the Steamship Authority, the National
Weather Service, the Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce, Cape Cod CERT, WQRC, and
many others.
A copy of the Cape Cod Emergency Traffic Plan Public Version is available on the
MEMA website at www.mass.gov/mema.
Mass 2-1-1 Call Center & Information Referral Line:
 Is an easy to remember telephone number that connects callers to information about critical
health and human services available in their community.
 Serves as a resource for finding government benefits and services, non-profit organizations,
support groups, volunteer opportunities, donation programs, and other local resources.
 Is a confidential call.
 Maintains the integrity of the 9-1-1 system saving that vital community resource for life and
death emergencies.
 Is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
 Is an easy way to find or give help in your community.
 2-1-1 responds immediately during times of crisis, to field calls regarding the crisis and to
direct callers to services most appropriate for their needs.
 If you are unable to reach 2-1-1 due to your telephone or cell phone carrier, a toll-free
number is available: 1-877-211-MASS (6277)