Thinking about survival

[Rabblevox]

Probably, like a lot of folk, I've been thinking about surviving a natural disaster. Most of us will never face anything like what Japan experienced, but there are lessons to be learned.

(caveat: I am no expert, though I was an Eagle Scout and a Petty Officer in the Coast Guard)

The first thing that springs to mind, is that most of the folk at epicenter were fucked. If you are facing a 30-foot wave moving at 30 mph, you are going to die. No amount of training, preperation, or gear is going to save you.

My first tip is to be at peace with your family, friends, and diety. You should quite literally be ready to die in the next 10 seconds, with nothing left unsaid or un-done

My second thought is that Tokyo, with the most advanced earthquake detection system in the world. got about 90 seconds warning. Let's assume we get a 90 second warning. What do you do with that minute and a half?

My second tip is to practice situational awareness all the time. Know where high ground is, know alternate routes to get home if the roads and bridges are out. Know where the water and gas lines are. Know where hospitals and medical clinincs are. Know the local emergency preparedness plan

My third thought is that many. many people got hit away from home. Having a weeks worth of food and water in your apartment does little good if you can't get there or your apartment is down.

My third tip is to ALWAYS carry some minimal supplies: A water filtration "pen", a dust-filter mask, a "space blanket", a half-dozen "energy bars", a good knife, and an LED flashlight will all fit into a side-pocket on a napsack, or into a purse or briefcase.

So there's my 2 cents. Other thoughts/ideas?

[FSogol]

1. Also an Eagle Scout. Recently I've been teaching emergency preparedness merit badge for the scouts.

Since it is unlikely that the average person can carry around the items on your list, I recommend making a kit of those types of supplies and leaving it in your home, your car, and your office. The kits all differ slight, at home I have a backpacking water filter, but keep a bottle of water purification tablets at the office and in the Jeep.

For women, keep a pair of walking shoes in your car and office. You'd be surprised how many times I have been helping out somewhere (ice storms, flooding, subway breakdowns) where the women are in trouble because of high heels.

[kath]

5. I can't figure why so many women wear high heels anyway - instruments of torture!

Why would you deliberately HOBBLE yourself, and put up with such pain and discomfort?
I refuse.
Men don't submit themselves to such bullshit.

[grasswire]

2. good advice, scout

Be prepared.

I have finally convinced my family members to carry a small flashlight in their bathroom stuff when they travel out of town. One of them got stuck in a hostel in a city when the power was off for hours. Now they at least will do this.

Some members of my family think nothing of traveling internationally with no money or supplies -- they might have a couple of stops such as Chicago then Poland or Germany then on to somewhere else, then a train ride to destination. That sets my hair on fire. What if??? What if you get stuck for days due to a natural disaster?

When my 18-year-old family member decided to backpack alone across Eastern Europe two years ago I had a helluva time convincing any measures of caution. Gah! He had watched many episodes of Man v. Wild.

Thanks for your tips.

[Rabblevox]

3. my fourth tip is "Know Your Neighbors"

By neighbors I mean not just physical neighbors, but also co-workers, classmates, and community members. A huge part of the aftermath of any disaster is people helping each other. Know the people you encounter daily, know what skills, resources, and needs they have. Ask yourself how much you'd sacrifice or risk to help them. Ask yourself how much they would sacrifice to help you.

Your neighbor might be the person who keeps you alive, or vise-versa, it's good to have friends and neighbors.

[truebrit71]

4. Silly question, where can I get one of those pens...

...and I didn't think about the masks either..thanks!

[FSogol]

6. REI

http://www.rei.com/search?cat=4500030

[loudsue]

7. Me, too truebrit. Never heard of a pen like that.

Kickin' for the answer....

[Rabblevox]

11. most any outdoor supply store, or Amazon will have them...

They start at about $10 bucks, and go up to about $250 but even a cheapie definitely beats nothing. And it's small, and...cheap.
I've got this one, but there are lots of different models.

http://www.amazon.com/Aquamira-Frontier-Emergency-Filter-System/dp/B000OR115W/ref=zg_bs_3402151_2

It's only rated for 20 gallons, and it is brutally slow, but it's cheap and not much bigger than a sharpie. A very handy thing to have, IMO.

[Edweird]

8. In no particular order: Cash, canned/non perishable food, water, guns, ammo, more cash,

generator(s), fuel, important documents (birth certificate, passport, vehicle titles and registrations, land titles, etc) stored in watertight containers, medicine, pet food, some more cash, GPS.
This is what has worked for me.

[Arkansas Granny]

9. I'm not an Eagle Scout, but I am an experienced camper. I keep my

camp gear in the same closet I use for my "fraidy-hole" where I sit out tornadoes. If my house is struck, and I make it through the storm, I have a tent, bedding, flashlight, jug of water, etc. at hand.

[MedicalAdmin]

10. As part of situational awareness ...

know the dangers that are most likely to be a problem in your area. For example I live just upstream from a damn on the mississippi and our house is about 6 to 8 feet above flood stage. Because of the dam the water level is regulated but in an emergency ...? High ground is that-a-way and I likely wouldn't have much warning...

So my default position is to kiss my ass goodbye followed closely by trying to ride things out on my roof. And yes, despite my wifes misgivings I do keep an ax in the house so I can chop my way out if necessary.

[Kennah]

12. I was a Boy Scout, but never made Eagle

I did a lot of tailgate camping, hiking, and some backpacking. I really enjoyed land navigating, particularly "dead reckonin", but it was much more enjoyable with a similarly warped individual, like my brother. Did some with the wife, but she wasn't all that amused by backpacking or navigating a hike by following my nose.

A few random thoughts on stuff to bring along.

If you take any medications that you rely upon, bring a lot. If you can, bring all you have.

Fire starters
http://www.rei.com/search?query=fire+starters

Toilet paper

Diapers and baby wipes, if applicable

A deck of cards

A compass

Maps

A couple of flashlights and extra batteries

A poncho or rain jacket

[Rabblevox]

13. I beg to differ...

Fire Starters, why? a Bic in a ziploc bag is cheaper, smaller, and more reliable.

Toilet paper: really? For something you carry always? Bulky, non-essential, ruined by moisture.

Wipes are a good idea

Deck of cards: por que? you bored with the whole survival thing already?

Compass and maps...why? we're talking about "oh shit" hits your town, not being lost in the woods. If you need a compass or map to find your dwelling or high ground anywhere in the local area I pity you.

Flashlight and poncho...check

[Kennah]

14. Some clarification

Multiple fire starters are a good idea. Matches, bic lighter, but a magnesium bar is pretty low tech and close to inexhaustible for practical purposes.

Toilet paper. I'm not talking a 24 pack, but a roll or two in a ziploc bag to last 7-10 days.

A deck of cards to keep folks occupied and have some relaxation and escape isn't a bad thing.

Maps for driving, not so much for land navigation. Interstates and US highways could be closed or jammed.

A compass is small, and if trees are blocking roads, or if you need to maybe hike up a hill and through the woods and there's no trails to guide one ...

Obviously not everyone's situation is the same, so everyone's list is going to vary.

[FSogol]

17. I used to stick a box of diaper wipes in my glove box, but whenever I went to use them,

they'd be dried out. I think they are worthless except for their intended purpose. ;-)

[Kennah]

19. For the glove box, I have one of those small "travel packs" of wipes

However, because we have little ones, the full packs of wipes we keep in the minivan get used up long before they dry out.

[skirt6]

15. For the family

Since we have children, we have "go-bags" for emergency situations. Basically backpacks with things like an extra change of clothes, small toys, our contact information (in case we are separated), a couple water bottles, some small snacks (like granola bars), and a small flashlight. Something else we keep in the adult "go-bags" are a couple packs of Fritos (excellent fire-starter) with a couple lighters in a sealed zip bag. We keep copies of important documents in a small, portable, fireproof/waterproof lock box that can be placed easily into my go-bag. We also keep updated photographs of everyone in case we get separated for any reason. There is an excellent website I found that gave a good starting point about preparing for various disasters: http://72hours.org/ Although some of the suggestions aren't always possible (like packing around a gallon of water/person/day) it does offer some suggestions I wouldn't have thought of otherwise.

[brooklynite]

16. Talk to your local CERT team about preparing a "GO Bag" and evacuation plan

http://www.citizencorps.gov/cert/

[pitohui]

18. having survived katrina and some other disasters i have a different take on this

your first tip, to always be at peace w. everyone and yr deity, well, sorry, life is just not worth living if you have to live like that

*my* tip would be to remember the guy who said, "live everyday as if it might be your last, and one day you'll be right!" -- in other words, if you want to live your life always with a fake smile of peace on your face, instead of accepting that you're real and human and you'll have ups and downs...who cares if the hurricane or the tsunami takes you away? you're dead already

yes, it's nice to always say, "i love you" when your spouse heads out in the morning, but let's be honest, since you always say it, he doesn't hear it anyway -- there's very little difference between always being at peace and being a complete phoney

my second tip, situational awareness, good in theory but there's a diagnosis for the person who is situationally aware at all times -- general anxiety, and it ain't pretty, sometimes you HAVE to dial down the situational awareness and party, take a chance, get lost, be spontaneous

my third tip, you will learn for yourself how impractical is to carry all that crap around, when i've had to evacuate, i carry the stuff that can't be replaced (like photos) and have a full tank of gas in the car -- a bunch of 4 for $1 canned food crap will not be taking up the precious limited space in your vehicle when you're running for your life, your pet or your neighbor will be sitting in that spot -- pluS if you always have a good knife on your person, sooner or later you're either going to run afoul of the police or the TSA

i realize that your advice is well intentioned, but advice about how to survive disasters is pretty much crap, unless it's from somebody who has been through a disaster and even then it's crap

i can tell you how fast you find out that nobody can go thru a life with a panic backpack on their person, it just feeds your fear to even try it for a few weeks, but only experience will prove there's a damn good reason everybody doesn't run around with a panic kit...we have limited time, money, and energy, and as another poster pointed out, the damn baby wipes are already dried out and worthless by the time ya need 'em

do your best and all that, but at the end of the day, it's better to stop fantasizing that we "survive" by individual action, we didn't get a society of 7 billion people thru individual action and we won't "survive" without acknowledging that sometimes stuff happens and sometimes people need help

all those fine plans about running to high ground come crashing down when the tree smashes through your house and breaks your ankle

the best laid plans of mice and men go astray! basic planning is OK but beyond that you're just BEGGING fate to laugh at you

i used to have that classic year's supply of food, after katrina, having learned you can't even get to your food when you need it, not a store of that size and in those quantities, i save my money...in event of another hurricane, my cash is better spent on getting away and then buying food as i need it or maybe buying a better breed of politicians who will actually get some decent staff at FEMA