Movement order is who goes where in the column: the strongest and most experienced at the front and rear, children and elders in the middle, each person able to see the one ahead and the one behind. A 12-person column with 2 m between people is 22 m long, takes about 50 seconds to clear a 20 m gap at 3 km/h, and moves at the pace of its slowest member.
Part of Escape Route Planning
Movement order is the agreed arrangement of people within a moving group, and the rules for pace, spacing, signals and stops, that keep a column together and protected from front to rear.
The Order Is Set Before The Alarm
The parent article’s order, once the group has gathered at the initial rally point and chosen a route, is: strongest and most experienced at the front and the rear; children and elderly in the middle; every person able to see the person ahead and behind; commands whispered person to person, not shouted; no lights after dark unless absolutely necessary; a headcount, assessment of pursuit and a 10-minute rest at each intermediate point.
Those are the rules for travel on a route. Leaving the building comes first, and there the order is different: whoever is nearest the exit goes out first, and whoever has a child or elder to help goes to them first.
What You Need
- A written order, posted and rehearsed: front, middle, rear, and who has whom.
- A buddy for every child and every person who needs help; the parent article says the buddy is responsible, no exceptions.
- A pace set by the slowest member.
- A way to hold on in the dark: a hand on the shoulder in front, or a cord with loops or knots every metre or two that people hold.
- Signals: silent hand signs and one or two whistle codes; see Signal Systems.
Method: Out Of The Building, Then Along The Route
Step 1: In the building, children and helpers first, by the nearest clear exit. Low and fast if there is smoke, because breathable air is lowest down. This is a general fire-safety rule I am recalling and not one from the corpus.
Step 2: At the muster point, form the column in the written order.
Step 3: Set the spacing as close as lets everyone see the person ahead on the darkest night; test it.
Step 4: Move at the slowest pace. The front person watches the ground and the way; the rear watches behind and counts.
Step 5: Pass messages by touch and whisper; halt signals pass back along the line.
Step 6: At each stop, count, check the rear and rest.
Worked Example: How Long Is The Column, And How Long Is It Exposed
12 people with 2 m between them (an example spacing) have 11 gaps: 11 × 2 m = 22 m of column, ignoring the people themselves (about 0.5 m each adds about 6 m).
- Time for the column to pass a point at 3 km/h (0.833 m/s): 22 ÷ 0.833 = 26 s.
- Time for the whole column to cross a gap of 20 m, such as a road or an open field, from the first person stepping out to the last stepping in: (20 + 22) ÷ 0.833 = 42 ÷ 0.833 = 50 s.
- At 1 m spacing, the column is 11 m and the same crossing takes (20 + 11) ÷ 0.833 = 37 s.
Closer spacing shortens the exposure but risks bunching and falls; the right spacing is the closest that lets people avoid trampling each other and see the way. At 3 km/h each person covers 0.833 m/s.
Common Mistakes
- A fast front. The column stretches and the back gets lost. The front sets the pace of the slowest.
- Children at the rear. The rear is the likeliest place to lose someone.
- No contact in the dark. Use a hand on the shoulder or a cord.
- Whispering orders nobody can hear. Use agreed hand signals.
Safety
Night movement without light injures children and elders first
Falls, wading and branches in the face hurt the people who cannot see well and cannot recover. Keep the pace slow, put a person with a light shaded to the ground at the front for hazards if the threat allows, and hold hands in rough ground. Darkness does not allow running. Tell everyone to stop at once, not to run, if someone falls.
What’s Next
- Learn next: Accountability and Headcount — counting a column in the dark
- Combine with: Night Observation — seeing and being seen after dark