Embassy Evacuations: State Department Should Take Steps to Improve Emergency Preparedness
Abstract
From October 2012 to September 2016, State evacuated overseas post staff and family members from 23 overseas posts in response to various threats, such as terrorism, civil unrest, and natural disasters. Overseas posts undergoing evacuations generally experience authorized departure or ordered departure of specific post staff or family members, potentially leading to suspended operations. GAO was asked to review State policies and procedures for evacuating overseas posts. This report examines (1) the processes State has established to prepare posts for crises and to conduct evacuations and (2) State's implementation of preparedness processes for crises and evacuations. GAO reviewed State guidance and documents related to crisis and evacuation preparedness, including a sample of EAPs and State databases on EAP updates and post drills. GAO also interviewed U.S. officials in Washington, D.C., and in six countries selected because of posts' experiences with evacuations. This is the public version of a sensitive report that GAO issued in June 2017. Information that State deemed sensitive has been omitted.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jul 01, 2017
- Accession Number
- AD1150685
Entities
People
- Michael J. Courts
Organizations
- United States Government Accountability Office