As one of the voices on this website, SecretsofSurvival.com, what would I do in the event of a major catastrophe, such as the earthquake that struck Haiti
recently, and has effectively leveled this nation's infrastructure and ability to support it's people?
Here are some notes I put together. Please feel free to add suggestions and ideas to this post...
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Regarding survival, I think it might be wise for people not to stay in the cities, where they would be facing disease and un-sanitary living conditions that would pollute water and food sources. My first instinct would be to grab essential gear, if any is handy, and just flee for the hills, or the ocean shoreline (depending of course on where a person has suffered a disaster).
Of course, I've never been in this kind of situation, and I'm just kind of going on what my instincts are.
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What if you're nowhere near any survival gear? Then figure out a way to make gear, out of things like blankets, canvas, rope, scissors (or a knife), string, car upholstery, tarp, duct tape (if you're lucky enough to find any), clothing, etc. Don't spend too much time being creative, however. Try to keep things simple.
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I think that some people would be hesitant to flee a city, after a major disaster, perhaps because the prospect of finding food and water out in the "hills" seems daunting to them.
They may also hold to the hope that food and water and a restoration of order is just going to drop down out of the skies, when other nations lend a helping hand. Well, the U.S. is trying to do that in Haiti, but it doesn't seem to be on a scale large enough to really make a big difference, at this point. At the same time, if other nations are hit by disaster, then they may have no help to send.
Your area may very well be on it's own.
So, in the early days of this disaster, people are likely going to go without food and water, and some of these people are going to lose their lives.
When I tell people to consider heading immediately for the hills (and get away from major cities), it's in the hopes of finding resources out in the wilderness, homes, cabins, and small towns along the way. Of course, this is no guarantee. You might very well die along the way, especially if you have an injury, or an un-willingness to eat things like bugs (consider doing a search on Google for bugs that are edible in North America). I know from my childhood growing up around trails and woods, that it's not hard to find things like bugs, and worms. Start digging around stumps and logs, start following the shorelines of ponds and streams. You're guaranteed to find bugs and worms. But which ones are edible? That I don't know. So as I advise above, you might want to do some research on this, and the web is likely filled with useful, informative articles on these topics.
In the early days of a disaster, finding "food" isn't as important as finding "drinkable" water.
Being unable to procure a source of drinkable water (for example, people living in desert areas like the American southwest might have more problems than people living in the Pacific Northwest) can lead to an early death also, which could have otherwise been avoided, had sources of bottled water been kept on hand, in the event of disaster.
I want to take a moment to stress that I've never been in this kind of situation before.
I'm advising these things on instinct right now. The things I share here may not work for you. Finding water and food and survival gear may not be your only obstacle -- things like a military force may stand in the way.
So might mountains, desert, rockslides, or rivers.
Heading for the Hills
In the event of a large scale disaster, I think that people should just go for the "hills", on a gamble that everything will be ok, and they will find resources, even if it's just bugs to eat and drinking water out of streams. Just get out of Dodge, and get away from large groups of people.
For example, look at what is happening in Haiti right now, in the days following the 7.0 earthquake that occurred in the early days of January, 2010.
I would think it best to head for smaller towns and communities on the gamble that one of these towns will invite you in out of compassion, especially if you can offer that town some kind of skill, or show them a willingness to work for them.
The kind of work I'm talking about is clearing out debris and re-building homes, digging trenches, going on excursions to get supplies from damaged stores and leveled homes a distance away, building make-shift "plumbing" systems out of items that are salvaged from wrecked homes and buildings, as well as hardware stores, etc.
Bartering labor for citizenship
If you find a town or community after "heading for the hills", and you want to become a part of survival and recovery efforts, your introduction could be something to the effect of: "I'm not a carpenter, and I don't know how to wire electrical systems... but I'm a hard worker, and willing to work long hours with a shovel if needed to help re-build and clean up, and help you keep your town secure, should any looters come this way."
My advise would be to demonstrate an eager willingness to help, and also demonstrate a positive attitude. Most likely this would show you to be an asset to the town or community, and not a liability. These are not the days to seem like a bitter, angry complainer. That's probably a quick way to get yourself kicked out of a town of people, even if it's your own town.
At this point I think I'm writing more along the lines of survival after major, major disaster, affecting millions of people in widespread geographical region.
Believing that the world is entering the end times, as prophecied in the Bible, I think it more likely that this is what people in different parts of the world are going to face.
Much more could be written here, I'm sure, but at this time having never been in this situation, I think the best advise would be to figure out how to work together with other people, in a way that is proactive, caring, and helpful. At the same time, knowing how to coach other people to become "proactive, caring and helpful" will be a valuable tool, as people working together in the right frame of mind, sharing a common goal, could make the difference between a successful survival and recovery efffort, vs. a painful and miserable slow death.
Good luck, and God bless,
Here are some notes I put together. Please feel free to add suggestions and ideas to this post...
-----
Regarding survival, I think it might be wise for people not to stay in the cities, where they would be facing disease and un-sanitary living conditions that would pollute water and food sources. My first instinct would be to grab essential gear, if any is handy, and just flee for the hills, or the ocean shoreline (depending of course on where a person has suffered a disaster).
Of course, I've never been in this kind of situation, and I'm just kind of going on what my instincts are.
-----
What if you're nowhere near any survival gear? Then figure out a way to make gear, out of things like blankets, canvas, rope, scissors (or a knife), string, car upholstery, tarp, duct tape (if you're lucky enough to find any), clothing, etc. Don't spend too much time being creative, however. Try to keep things simple.
-----
I think that some people would be hesitant to flee a city, after a major disaster, perhaps because the prospect of finding food and water out in the "hills" seems daunting to them.
They may also hold to the hope that food and water and a restoration of order is just going to drop down out of the skies, when other nations lend a helping hand. Well, the U.S. is trying to do that in Haiti, but it doesn't seem to be on a scale large enough to really make a big difference, at this point. At the same time, if other nations are hit by disaster, then they may have no help to send.
Your area may very well be on it's own.
So, in the early days of this disaster, people are likely going to go without food and water, and some of these people are going to lose their lives.
When I tell people to consider heading immediately for the hills (and get away from major cities), it's in the hopes of finding resources out in the wilderness, homes, cabins, and small towns along the way. Of course, this is no guarantee. You might very well die along the way, especially if you have an injury, or an un-willingness to eat things like bugs (consider doing a search on Google for bugs that are edible in North America). I know from my childhood growing up around trails and woods, that it's not hard to find things like bugs, and worms. Start digging around stumps and logs, start following the shorelines of ponds and streams. You're guaranteed to find bugs and worms. But which ones are edible? That I don't know. So as I advise above, you might want to do some research on this, and the web is likely filled with useful, informative articles on these topics.
In the early days of a disaster, finding "food" isn't as important as finding "drinkable" water.
Being unable to procure a source of drinkable water (for example, people living in desert areas like the American southwest might have more problems than people living in the Pacific Northwest) can lead to an early death also, which could have otherwise been avoided, had sources of bottled water been kept on hand, in the event of disaster.
I want to take a moment to stress that I've never been in this kind of situation before.
I'm advising these things on instinct right now. The things I share here may not work for you. Finding water and food and survival gear may not be your only obstacle -- things like a military force may stand in the way.
So might mountains, desert, rockslides, or rivers.
Heading for the Hills
In the event of a large scale disaster, I think that people should just go for the "hills", on a gamble that everything will be ok, and they will find resources, even if it's just bugs to eat and drinking water out of streams. Just get out of Dodge, and get away from large groups of people.
For example, look at what is happening in Haiti right now, in the days following the 7.0 earthquake that occurred in the early days of January, 2010.
I would think it best to head for smaller towns and communities on the gamble that one of these towns will invite you in out of compassion, especially if you can offer that town some kind of skill, or show them a willingness to work for them.
The kind of work I'm talking about is clearing out debris and re-building homes, digging trenches, going on excursions to get supplies from damaged stores and leveled homes a distance away, building make-shift "plumbing" systems out of items that are salvaged from wrecked homes and buildings, as well as hardware stores, etc.
Bartering labor for citizenship
If you find a town or community after "heading for the hills", and you want to become a part of survival and recovery efforts, your introduction could be something to the effect of: "I'm not a carpenter, and I don't know how to wire electrical systems... but I'm a hard worker, and willing to work long hours with a shovel if needed to help re-build and clean up, and help you keep your town secure, should any looters come this way."
My advise would be to demonstrate an eager willingness to help, and also demonstrate a positive attitude. Most likely this would show you to be an asset to the town or community, and not a liability. These are not the days to seem like a bitter, angry complainer. That's probably a quick way to get yourself kicked out of a town of people, even if it's your own town.
At this point I think I'm writing more along the lines of survival after major, major disaster, affecting millions of people in widespread geographical region.
Believing that the world is entering the end times, as prophecied in the Bible, I think it more likely that this is what people in different parts of the world are going to face.
Much more could be written here, I'm sure, but at this time having never been in this situation, I think the best advise would be to figure out how to work together with other people, in a way that is proactive, caring, and helpful. At the same time, knowing how to coach other people to become "proactive, caring and helpful" will be a valuable tool, as people working together in the right frame of mind, sharing a common goal, could make the difference between a successful survival and recovery efffort, vs. a painful and miserable slow death.
Good luck, and God bless,
