Chapter 6. Phase 5: Re-Entry

6.1 Introduction

During this phase, an assessment will be made of the safety of the area for evacuee return, the evacuation order will be lifted, and evacuees will be allowed to return, indicating the start of the re-entry phase. This phase is unpredictable in many ways. It will be difficult to estimate the number of evacuees that will be returning at any given time. There is also a possibility that the transportation infrastructure sustained major damage in the incident and may not be fully capable of handling re-entry traffic. At this point, all agencies should be aware that re-entry operations could very well be just as extensive and/or complex as the evacuation operations were. Agencies should continue to operate under the ICS to coordinate re-entry efforts across jurisdictions.

This chapter briefly outlines the agencies involved in the re-entry phase, their roles and responsibilities, resources and equipment used during this phase, and the sharing and coordination of information during this phase.

June 26, 2006
Publication #FHWA-HOP-08-020