Evacuating with baggage
In the earlier part of this thread there was a lot of condemnation of PAX taking their handbags off the plane during evacuation and some folks saying they should be banned from flying again.
It looks to me from the pictures that they were carrying handbags not luggage. Presumably this baggage was stowed under seat in front and ready to grab without opening overhead stowage.
How would you survive if evacuated from an aircraft at a location thousands of miles from home, with no cash, no wallet, no credit cards, no passport, no driver license, no car keys, no house keys, no flight tickets, no hotel confirmation, no essential medication, no inhaler, etc? You would be just an anonymous bum that no-one can help.
How many days might it take for the authorities to inspect, verify and deliver your bag to you, or worse, it just gets burnt up in a post evacuation fire?
Most folks put all that survival paperwork and essential stuff in a grab-bag for just such an emergency. It won’t all go in your pocket, and it will be a high personal priority to take it with you.
The balance of risk and reward suggests that it is far preferable to deplane with a grab bag than be left at the mercy of circumstances. Most people know this, and despite what it might say in the flight “safety” briefing, most people will ignore it and take a grab bag. They know it makes sense.