I think they're dumbasses....

Simple if people fail to obey an evacuation order, you make it law that they have to pay for their rescue. They are still free to do what they like, but they don't get free rescue. Also people doing dangerous sports should have to carry insurance, just like you do for driving a car.

Darwin award winners. Yes, with the exceptions you cite.

I've noticed on some mountain rescues, they have started asking the rescued to pay up if the rescue was easily preventable.

I don't understand the mindset. It may be connected to the false American macho pioneer stereotype. But also they have had a number of hurricanes that were said to be aimed at Florida and changed paths. Better science has actually served in effect as the boy who cried wolf. If I were there, and not involved in disaster relief already, I would be getting out

Then there is McFucknuts with the SHARPIE and VOILA'...nobody trusts the Media. It is a wonder ANYONE evacuated.

This question brings to mind this story. [oregonlive.com]

Funny how time distorts memory. More then Twenty years ago when I 1st ran across this story I remember the narrator explaining how Harry accepted staying by the lake would be fatal.
But this version paints his refusal to move in a completely different color. [cbsnews.com]

I don't know. I wonder if any/how many of the 300 now missing had the mindset that if the hurricane takes all they have, might as well take me.

Some people just think they are tougher than they actually are.

Darwin Awards, anybody?

For an huge imminent disaster guaranteed to hit a particular area, yes, people should evacuate if instructed to by the authorities, however that line is fuzzy if it's unknown exactly where or how hard the destruction will occur.

I live right above the ocean and some years ago we had a valid tsunami warning. Everyone in my condo building evacuated to higher ground per recommendation by the authorities.

My building is 30 feet above sea level and I'm on the 2nd floor. I heard news that many of the oceanfront hotels were simply moving all their lower floor guests to upper floors. So, I decided to stay. Figuring I was well above any predicted sea level rise or tidal wave.

I knew that once people evacuated to higher ground, the police were not going to allow them back down, and I could always leave on my own later if I chose to once more information was known. I stayed put in my condo, with the TV news on, plus access to internet via my computer.

I watched as the TV news reported the wave hitting other islands before mine and seemed to be fairly small, doing only minimal damage, mostly to boats in the harbors, etc., so I felt I made the correct decision to stay.

My neighbors weren't allow back down the hill to our condos until 12:30am... So, while I had spent those hours in the comfort of my own home, with hot food and beverages, they were huddled in their cars in the dark with no food or drink, and only the car radio for news. That ended up being a good and well thought out decision for me -- plus I knew I could leave at any time and be out of harm's way by driving just a mile up the hill.

In a hurricane, I would likely still stay in my own condo, within the safest room I have protecting myself. I've thought about this many times, and am fully prepared. I've seen photos of the destruction of my condo during the last hugely destructive hurricane and I feel I would be safest inside my own condo with my supplies.

Living on a small island, there is nowhere I could go where I could be sure to be out of harm's way, so I might as well stay put in my own place. I can only speak for my own set of circumstances... Those who live someplace where they could easily drive to a safer location have a different situation.

I'd say it's a personal decision, within the comfort level of each individual and set of circumstances, but if an easy evacuation is offered and refused, then yes, that choice should not be rewarded by others putting themselves in harms way to rescue someone, but what is a caring person supposed to do, they would try as the can to save them. That's human. We should all try to make the best choices for ourselves and live (or die) with those choices.

Perhaps we are asking the wrong question. The correct question is why we allow residences to be built on barrier islands and on or very close to the coasts. This is about more than humans surviving storms, it is also about ecology.

First. I live on the East Coast of Florida in the central part of the state. If you look at a topological map of this area you will not that it is almost completely flat, most of Florida is flat. I will discuss this topic from my perspective as I have direct knowledge of this area but the concepts are the same. Because the land is flat a storm surge of only a few feet is devastating, nothing to impede the flow of water. Residences should not be located east of US1. On that map you will note that there is water between the barrier island(s) that are on the Atlantic and mainland Florida that is known as the Intracoastal Waterway as a whole with other names such as the Banana and Indian Rivers. Those barrier islands are hit first when storms come from the east. Land lowers the intensity of storms, warm ocean water feeds them.

My house sits higher than the street and I am west of US1. No danger of flooding. My garage door and most windows are not like the rest of the country. The garage door is reinforced to withstand winds up to around 150mph/240kph. Toss a rock at my impact glass windows and I will have to change my underwear but that glass will be intact.

Land and ecosystems on the coasts are fragile, especially sand dunes. We should be protecting those areas, not living there.

You can't fix stupid.

It’s unfortunate. Never anything I had to personally worry about, I have and had friends and family who live on canals, creeks, and even one with a bay front house on the Great South Bay on the south shore of Long Island. And some of them at various times, depending on the location, the areas risk for flooding among other factors, in some cases stayed, and evacuated at other times when advised to. Hurricane Gloria, for example in 1985 hit LI as a category 1 storm during low tide with sustained winds of 85 MPH. one relative with a house near Jones Beach evacuated because the areas risk was high for flooding, and the water covered the kneecaps on the first floor of the house. So it was a wise idea. At the same time a friend who is further east, with a water front house, near Moriches Bay, has a house that’s on higher ground with a much lower risk of flooding and never had any such problems there since the 1938 Long Island Express cat. 3 hurricane that formed the Moriches Inlet, decided to ride it out. He had no such problems with the water causing damage to the house and there were only a few downed telephone poles in the area and many shingles blown off roofs. His boat wasn’t damaged either nor were his floating docks. So yes while you should evacuate if ordered……voluntarily evacuation is different and you should make the consideration based on your particular areas history.