Disaster | Prepper=Survivor

What to Do During a Mass Evacuation

Prepper Disaster, Evacuation January 17, 2013January 9, 2013 0 Comment

What to Do During a Mass Evacuation

A survey conducted by the West Virginia University shows that 40 percent of the people surveyed would leave/evacuate during a crisis but do not have a destination in mind. A large percentage of the same respondents also ranked high, the probability of a terrorist attack in their area. The same survey indicates low levels of confidence in the government’s preparedness/planning as far as handling a mass evacuation from any given area. The take away from this study is that you, as an individual must prepare, educate, practice and not rely on anyone but yourself during an evacuation. In some cases, the evacuation routes in and of themselves itself can become a disaster area. Planning is crucial.

Certain natural disasters can be forecasted ahead of time to some extent, and in particular hurricanes, tropical storms and certain types of flooding. Terrorist attacks cannot be predicted or forecasted. Analysts and experts can only assume an attack could happen and evacuation orders would not be issued unless there was a definitive time and place of an attack, and logic dictates if they had that much information the attack could be prevented. Therefore, any attack would be a surprise and any mass evacuations plans would be improvised at best.

Planning Ahead

You have to know in which direction to travel and this is easily determined if the disaster is a natural one, you simply head inland during a hurricane using predetermined routes. During a flood, you evacuate to higher ground, before you are trapped. Therefore, the question is which way you should travel when it is not a natural disaster. Suppose for a minute that a nuclear device was detonated in a city close to you or someone released chemical or biological contaminates in the area. It is not likely the government would have the answers before you had to evacuate to protect yourself, in other words you cannot wait on instructions from the authorities. You have to be ahead of the situation and you must move fast so you are not caught up the traffic and pedestrian snarl. Information is essential.

First, you must have an idea of where you are heading. Rural areas are ideal regardless of the disaster. Terrorist groups and others that seek to create chaos will target symbolic structures/monuments and heavily populated areas. Thus, ground zero as it were, will be centered in or near cities. Take the time to know the surrounding area and not just in one direction map out a radius. It is crucial you do not waste time deciding direction of travel if you have to vacate the area.

Ideally, you can evacuate in a vehicle, but be prepared to go it on foot if needed. You may find that several miles from your home that the roads are blocked, destroyed or otherwise impassable. Therefore, have your essentials packed and ensure each member of the family or group has their own pack with essentials so they can survive if they become separated. Avoid bridges and interstates because that is where the majority of people will be. You can maneuver along secondary roads, and it may be easier to bypass obstructions by going around them. You cannot go around blockage on a bridge or certain other major highways.

Do not stop for anyone unless you know him or her to be law enforcement. During a major disaster Martial Law is likely to be enacted, which means federal troops can be deployed to enforce local laws, make arrests or detain individuals and quarantine areas as they see fit. Avoid troops unless your life is in danger because many times they will simply detain people and sort it out later. Keep in mind if there are demonstrations or riots they will not know if you are part of the problem or not. They will be acting for and with consent of the federal government and in particular the Commander in Chief.

Staying informed of local, national and worldwide events can give you a heads up if something does happen. Even if a nuclear device, chemical or biological weapons strikes a city hundreds of miles, away, your community will be affected and you should under these circumstances move from your area. Move away from the affected area to a predetermined rural safe zone. Many times armies will “soften” a target by a surprise attack of this nature and then move ground troops into other areas before the citizens and the government can gain some semblance of order.

Maxpedition Falcon-II Backpack

Emergency Shelter Tent

Emergency Blankets

MTM Survivor Dry Box

Coleman Stove

Coleman Heater

Emergency Drinking Water

Water Purification Tablets

Fresh Bath Body Wipes

Fenix Flashlight

Dust Masks

Champion Power Generator

Common Survival and Preparation Mistakes

Prepper Best, Disaster, Lessons January 12, 2013December 28, 2012Mistakes, Preparation, Survival 0 Comment

Common Survival and Preparation Mistakes

Over packing, it sounds counterproductive because logic dictates you can never have too much, but you can have too much when it comes to preparing for survival. It is all about priorities. In some peoples’ minds, they assume they need what is currently in their home to survive away from home, which is impossible of course. If forced to evacuate you may only have what you can carry in a backpack or if you are fortunate, enough to be able to escape in a vehicle you have more options but the big screen television is not one of the options. There are things essential to your survival and there are the things you only think are essential.

Wilderness Survival Kits

People typically over pack and thus begin to leave their survival kit behind because it becomes burdensome.

Some may be confused and rightly so about what a survival kit is. Some believe you must have enough food and water in one to survive forever and will pack and pack until they cannot even shoulder the bag. A survival kit is designed to provide you the tools and materials to collect and purify water, hunt and fish for food and to build a shelter. It is not designed for you to carry all of the food and water you may need and it provides the tools to build a shelter were ever you might be stranded. Your kit is designed to take over if you become lost or stranded and the supplies you packed for the time you expected to be hiking or camping are depleted.

Stockpiling Supplies At Home

The wrong type of foods and containers.

There are situations where you may have to evacuate your home. You will need supplies for the trip and for when you arrive at a destination. People tend to believe they will always have their home to live in during a crisis and do not prepare for the possibility of leaving. To prepare for any situation you would need foods that can be packed and carried on your back. Some preppers have safe areas they plan to escape to using vehicles, but vehicles break down and safe houses or areas can be destroyed or even taken over by others. Keep in mind all foods must be such that they can literally be eaten from the can or package. You may not have time or the resources to start a fire and prepare foods such as dehydrated ones.
Prepare, for sheltering in place and prepare for the possibility of sheltering in the wilderness because your current location has become hostile. Home canning is ideal for long term survival but glass jars are not ideal for carrying in a backpack and dehydrated foods require water and preparations so have a variety of foods to suit whatever action you must take. Do not make any assumptions, you must plan and prepare for all possibilities.

Some may brag about how well prepared they are and encourage others to do the same

It is important that everyone prepare so everyone can survive and not be a burden to others but some will not prepare for whatever reason. The ones that did not prepare will be looking for those that did, some will ask for help and others out of desperation may try to take what they need. Do not advertise you are prepared because you will become a target once disaster strikes.

Putting all of your supplies in one place.

Having all of your supplies in one place is not ideal. You may be robbed and lose all of your supplies, you may have a fire or the disaster itself may damage your home. Cache supplies even if it is in the backyard in the ground or in a secure shed. Bury them in various locations so if you do have to evacuate you can supply or resupply as you move out. Cache provisions along the evacuation routes, making sure you have alternative routes mapped out with supplies cached along those as well.