The MEND Guide: Comprehensive guide for planning mass evacuations in natural disasters

The aim of this guide is to serve as a reference providing key background considerations and a template to assist planning bodies at national, regional, municipal, and other levels – both urban and rural – in the development and/or refinement of evacuation plans in accordance with emergency management principles.

The guide affirms that evacuation processes should follow a protocol. Firstly, evacuation begins with preparing for the possible need to evacuate populations at high risk from imminent or actual disaster. After the pre-event measures have been established, information should be provided to the population regularly and throughout at all phases, from early warning about approaching or developing weather-related hazards, to regularly updating evacuees regarding developments in affected areas.

Afterwards, a decision must be made regarding whether to advise for evacuation. If a decision has been affirmatively confirmed, states should disseminate a warning message and evacuation advisory or order. 
Evacuation should subsequently occur, and emergency shelter in the form of an evacuation centre, private accommodation, or spontaneous site should be established. Finally, a transitional shelter should be arranged in the event of prolonged displacement, with the end goal of ensuring transition back to original location.