Work

Proposing a special evacuation mode after a large-scale earthquake in an aged society

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: This study presents a regional evacuation and shelter assessment method tailored to the needs of an aged society in the aftermath of a large-scale earthquake. Building upon previous research, the model incorporates factors such as shelter safety and capacity, evacuation time and distance, accessibility, the proportion of individuals with access and functional needs, housing structures, and varying walking speeds across different household types. Using Taiwan's national earthquake scenario, two evacuation modes were compared: (1) the standard evacuation mode, where each household evacuates to the nearest available shelter, and (2) the special evacuation mode, which prioritizes shelters that can be reached more quickly, thus accommodating households with individuals having access and functional needs. Our case study demonstrated that the special evacuation mode outperformed the standard evacuation mode in several aspects, including reduced overcrowding along evacuation routes and in shelters due to diversion, and fewer individuals with access and functional needs needing to travel long distances to reach shelter.

Source: KSCE Journal of Civil Engineering

DOI: 10.1016/j.kscej.2025.100418

Authors: Chih-Hao Hsu, Hsiang-Chieh Lee, Kai-Min Liao, Carol C. Wu

Institution: National Science and Technology Center for Disaster Reduction

Language: English

Topic: Evacuation and Crowd Dynamics

Subfield: Ocean Engineering

Field: Engineering

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDGs: Sustainable cities and communities, Good health and well-being, Reduced inequalities

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $1,800