I doubt it makes a whole lot of difference what I think but history suggests orders to report to work in an emergency results in a relatively low level of compliance, often for quite some time.

Some of it is just logistical in nature. People do not sit at home waiting for a chance to get called to work. They are out doing their normal activities. If you are out somewhere with your kids, you can't just ditch them and head to work. And really, no one expects that you do that.

There is also the issue of whether you can even get there or not. An earthquake may make roads impassable. A flood may cut you off, or make it imperative that for your own safety you head in another direction.

In other cases, emergency personnel just decide "the heck with it", and go with the idea that their own safety and that of their family is more important then their job. And history suggests that the consequences for not showing up for duty in such a case are very limited, especially early on.

The reality is that for the most part the people that are actually on duty when some kind of fast presenting situation such as an earthquake or tornado presents itself are the guys that are going to have to deal with it. I would not expect to get much in the way of help for four to eight hours.