2022 Lahar Evacuation Exercise Information
On Friday, Apr. 29, along with neighboring school districts, Orting School District (OSD) will partake in the annual lahar evacuation exercise, the largest volcano evacuation drill in the country.
The purpose of the exercise is to educate and prepare students in the case of a lahar event from Mount Rainier. The East Pierce Interlocal Coalition Management Team (EPIC) coordinates and designed this exercise to test and improve the ability to evacuate students and staff.
With an expected start time of 10 a.m., OSD Students and Staff will exit their school and practice walking the designated emergency evacuation routes from the valley floor out of the lahar hazard area. For OSD, the exercise stopping point will be the Washington Soldiers’ Home and Colony in Orting, approximately two miles one-way.
Once completed, Orting Primary School (OPS) and Ptarmigan Ridge Elementary (PTR) Students and Staff will take a bus back to their campus, and Orting Middle (OMS) and Orting High School (OHS) will walk back to theirs. All students and staff should return no later than noon.
Students who are not physically able to participate in the exercise will take a round-trip bus ride from their school to the Washington Soldiers’ Home and Colony.
- How does an event of a lahar affect Orting?
- Which school districts will also participate in this exercise?
- How many people will participate in the event?
- Along with EPIC, which other public agencies help organize the exercise?
- How will OSD keep students safe and prepared?
- Besides students and staff, can anyone else participate in the exercise?
- How can families prepare students for the exercise?