TR:

I really liked the Gamma seals, but my wife has a problem with something not being "food grade plastic" (she's a chemist with Hershey foods). I was going to get the 5 gallon containers like you, then found out about these. I'm thinking about sealing rice in maybe 2 cup packages with a food sealer, then putting them in the containers.

We're doing the review right now!

Great Post.
 

TR, You have given us a great list to start with Also you have motivated us to begin the thought process to prepare. Thank You, tom kelly

We never did get around to discussing commo in any depth. My personal plan has always been set up to the PACE standard and is pretty well developed but I've kept my eyes/ears open for possible improvements. FRS/GMRS radios have been part of that plan for years, accepting the tradeoffs inherent in the system as the price of doing business.

I may have stumbled across a new and (to my eyes) better alternative. While thumbing through my July American Rifleman I discovered a product review (pg 28) for TriSquare eXRS Two-Way Radios ( www.trisquare.us ). I spent the next hour doing research and reading various articles and reviews. End result - I bought two sets from Amazon and will probably be moving the FRS radios one step lower on the plan. I'll be doing my own testing over the next few weeks and should have a better feel for capabilities when I'm finished. I'm enthusiastic about the potential. The two systems are not compatible so I'm keeping the FRS radios just because they're more widely used. (I'll be able to communicate with or loan sets to "allies" while keeping the superior technology for "core assets". :D) If the eXRSs pan out, I intend to use them exclusively for personal comms - the benefits of the technology and the features of the new radio lead me to speculate that it'll become the new standard in the near future. It's worth doing your own research.

I didn’t get to this thread until just now, TR excuse my input on subjects already covered I will bring it back up to speed at the end of the post. I am adding solutions that have been missed and adding to the current subject. This is not intended as an end all, just in-addition to everyone else's contributions.

Most importantly: Firearms! If you have a large collection and are going to bug out you are obligated to render safe those firearms. If you can’t take them with you, take the firing pins. Do your neighbors a favor and think about the people that can’t bug out and are attacked by some looter that found YOUR firearms.

Shelter:

Man Packable – Bivy 2.0 – will last for awhile or at least long enough for you and family to get to your long term AO. They are actually comfortable and quiet (no crinkling). We have one in all of our BOBs. http://www.adventuremedicalkits.com/...itNO=0140-0223 throw in a poncho and you’re good to go (or a hammock if you have trees/poles/beams nearby)

Vehicle Borne – Maneuverability is a must in any disaster situation. A roof mounted tent is a great way to go. http://www.autohomeus.com/rooftop/ Especially in areas of floods, critters etc. Additionally they provide another obstacle for any would-be attackers to overcome. On a long enough vehicle you can get two of the OverZone models mounted (one opening to the side and one off the back) or several of the OverCamps. I don’t have a large family so I prefer the Maggiolina (it takes a minute to set up or take down and the bedding stays inside) also it has rack space on top. These have been in expedition use for decades. Quite pricey though.

Or if you don’t have a roof rack but do have a hitch check this cool MINI gear hauler/popup tent http://www.sylvansport.com/it.html Be sure to check out the slideshow, it does a lot more than you think it does. About $5-8K but useful for more than camping.

Heat and Cooking

Fuel – If you don’t have tons of money then your long term solution should never depend on fuel. The only solution that should depend on fuel is getting to your long term solution. Do you have enough fuel to get there without a gas station? With adequate clothing and sleeping gear you should not need fuel for heating. In a bad situation in a cold environment you should be moving around improving your situation instead of just sitting there. Sleeping arrangements should not be separate. Body warmth should be shared. The Inuit are a good case study. This is the most logical way. If you have room for cans and bottles of fuel then you didn’t pack right (other than for your vehicle on the way to your long term solution).

Quote:

In Phoenix, there was a gas line break that drove gas prices sky high. After a day the govt stepped in and moderated prices to prevent jacking and riots. Most of the time gas stations had none unless it was trucked in. People got by though without the gas. Now that I think about it, the prices were the same as they are now.

Generators and trying to store fuel that will only last a short time is highly expensive that can be better budgeted somewhere else.

However, if you have the money, throw in an underground propane tank as TR mentioned. It will help with cooking and hygiene water.

Mylar – we have a few 100’ rolls of this sitting around the house and at our long term solution. Lining the walls and ceilings of a room will trap in more heat than you’d think. I lined the sleeping compartment of a travel trailer with this to save money on heating. It’s a godsend. You can buy a roll from Home Depot or even a hydroponics gardening store.

Man Packable – Littlbug http://littlbug.com/littlbug_stove_junior.html You seriously don’t need a large amount of fuel for your cooking or heating if you use it effectively. This stove will run on twigs and leaves and still bring water to a boil and hold it for a good length of time. You can also make one yourself from a tomato sauce or coffee can. PM me if you want some instructions on that.

Vehicle Borne – If you’re on the move, bring aluminum foil (with the tabs on the sides ;D ) and cook on your engine while driving!

Power – I carry a HUGE collection of eBooks on every subject on all my family’s laptops and PDA’s (medical, repair, etc). The laptops/PDAs and a radio/cell are the only reason I would need power. Do you really need a light on at night during a city/region wide emergency? Do you want that attention “Hey they have lights! They must have a generator!”

Man Packable – a good Brunton Solar Roll is good for PDAs/Cell phones. I suggest getting used to a PDA Phone, you can carry a ton of information and access many services from one. As well as document events with the Camera, Video, Audio and note taking capabilities.

Vehicle Borne – If you don’t have one yet, go buy a good inverter. Install/Have it installed now before you need it.

Building Mounted - Why use a generator to provide power when you need it? Use some daisy chained marine batteries and an inverter when you need power. You can setup a nice system hidden IN YOUR STAIRS (or a thick wall) that is hooked to a trickle charger so it stays charged 24/7. When the power goes out you just plug into the inverter. Some enterprising individuals with the know how can rig it so the entire house defaults to this system when the power goes out (don’t forget about the feedback into the city lines when setting this up to an entire house!). Buy a small generator and charge it during the day time (sound carries farther at night). Remember you shouldn’t be running your house off this, only necessities. Couple this with a small solar array and you're off the grid.

This post continues into my next post.

Continued from post #501

Potable Water – When you HEAR that something afoul could/is happen(ing), plug up your sinks and bathtub and fill them with water immediately. It is a good idea to get your drain stops working 100% before needing to do this. That way you will have FRESH water in home if you need to stay there. Water pressure will stay moderate for a very short time after a city pump stops. I don’t plan on hanging around my house. My land has a 6000 gal water tank which lasts a long time in the right hands.

Pasteurization - doesn’t require a fuel source, just enough sunlight to keep the water above a certain temperature for a certain period of time. You can build a system yourself (similar to a solar oven) or buy a rack that’ll produce daily amounts for you and your family. Hell, you could mount it on your rooftop tent.

Man Packable - http://www.solarsolutions.info/aquapak/aquapak.html $20, 5 liters a day or more

Or the SteriPen with Solar Case is a much better long term solution to the MSR Miox, it doesn’t require salt tabs and has it’s own rugged recharging station. $139 from REI

Vehicle Borne – SunRay 30 http://www.safewatersystems.com/Gene...s/SunRay30.htm You can make safe water at 7.5 liters per day

Building Mounted – SunRay 1000 – 1,000 liters a day http://www.safewatersystems.com/Gene...SunRay1000.htm

TR asked if people that are prepping homes for disaster have considered that they will absolutely have to leave. One reason why I have included Man-Portable, Vehicle-Borne and House Mounted solutions. For the most part your Home Solutions should fit into your vehicles, and cross loaded in case you have to ditch one. At the very least each family member should always carry their Go Bag (BOB) with them in their vehicle and have a route plan handy. Most of my home to vehicle solutions are packed into trunks with wheels. Each trunk is outfitted with rope and D-rings so I can stack or tractor them. Have a packing list on each trunk, it doesn’t take much time and saves you a lot of time in the long run. Include expiration dates of items in the trunk on the packing list. Set a reminder on your calendar to check/replace your Go Boxes periodically.

Food - An easy way to stock up on food is to skip an MRE and just save it (some of you can stand to lose the weight anyways). Everyone knows at least one private that has left the field/deployment with a ruck/duffel/trunk full of MRE’s. Some sell them, some eat them, some save them.

Milk – dry or powdered. Use NIDO from Nestle. Harder to find in the US but it tastes delicious!

Evaporated milk: to make 2% add one full can to the evaporated. For skim add an additional ½ to a full can.

Emergency Survival Food Tabs: for the Go Bag

There are companies that offer 1 year supply of survival food. The problem with these are that the food is in #10 sized cans. Once you open a can, you have to eat it. Which means green beans for two weeks, then red beans for two weeks etc. If you have the money and space go for freeze dried foods. Store lots of salt for salting meats.

Snares have limitless ammo!

Dehydrating food and seal/storing it is a good option for those without access to MRE’s or the funds for 1 year’s supply of food.

Start a garden and buy some vegetarian cookbooks. This is great if you live in the city, plus it will lower your monthly food costs.

Expiration Dates – are only there because of the lawyers. Last week I consumed a full can of evaporated milk that was 18 months past it’s expiration date. Your canned goods will store for a decade or more if kept out of the heat <75 degrees. Tell your neighbors you’re taking a collection of expired canned goods for an ongoing expirement (pun intended). Do this every few months. They will gladly check their pantries and hand them over. Store them and reap the benefits.

Seeds – your long term solution should also have a generous supply of seeds for a wide variety of fruits, vegetables and herbs. Along with this supply should also be a book on gardening. You will forget and you will need a reference. Eggplants have a lot of nutritional value and can be prepared in many ways.

Rice and bouillon – store lots of rice in sealed containers. Mixed with bouillon they save stave off hunger and nourish. Also great for trading.

Tobacco – for those of you that chew or smoke do you have an extended supply on hand, rotate stock? If you don’t, chew staves off hunger. Tobacco is also great for trading. Carry a few packs of smokes and offer them in cigarette increments. This will be handy a day or two into a situation and after the first few months (in the interim the bandits will have a good supply)

Sanitation –

Carbon – from burned wood, etc has a bonding quality that coats everything it comes in contact with. Very useful for poisoning or extreme conditions were soap is not available.

Soap – Dr Bronner’s Soap is an excellent all around soap. I’ve used it for many years and have even heard that some hippies brush their teeth with it. You can buy very large bottles of it at great prices. It’s very runny and a few drops goes a long way.

Composting toilets for the long term solution are great but expensive. The market demand isn’t great enough yet for cheaper solutions but they are there.

Chemical toilets in the 5 gal bucket are a must. Have one in your house and on your check list before bugging out in the vehicle.

Toilet Paper – I didn’t see anyone mention this…It takes A LOT of space and is worth it’s weight in gold in the field. An alternative is a sheet sponge (available in your super market in packs of 3) Get the sponge wet and wipe away. You can designate a bucket for cleaning these. You don’t need much water to clean them if you boil or have bleach/chlorine on hand. Wash your hands after using.

Conservation – if you don’t like the idea of wiping with the same thing day after day then conserve your TP by changing your posture. Instead of sitting American style, squat. A FULL squat where your cheeks touch the backs of your calves/feet. The alignment of your intestines, anus and cheeks is optimal and you will notice that your ‘wipes’ will come out cleaner than normal.

PSM – thanks for the Emergency Ration Bar recipe!
TR – Excellent starter post and comprehensive post #497 Great starting point for anyone that needs a good bearing.

Final Contribution: Have a check list of your home/vehicle/BOB along with expiration dates. Set a reminder on your computer to remind you to check your kit at regular intervals.

Not entirely correct.

The MIOX does not require salt tablets and will work with any NaCl source, to include MRE salt packets, table salt, rock salt, or dried sea salt.

If you are going to have plenty of salt along for processing meat or cooking, then you have plenty for water purification, and the 123 batteries become the limiting factor.

I would go with the Li Ion rechargable 123s, AAs, AAAs, 9v., etc., with some alkaline or lithium batteries as backups.

Good list otherwise, some new items to look at.

TR

Creeping Complacency
 

Food for Thought.

Sent: Wednesday, July 09, 2008 7:55 AM
To: DailyBrief; Emergency Management; HazMat
Subject: [EM] "Creeping Complacency"

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) reminded last week that July marks the 5th annual National Preparedness Month. This comes amidst new warnings about very real intelligence that Al Qaeda and allied jihadists are re-doubling their efforts to attack the US, and indications that the Middle East is a powder keg that could blow at any time. Either of these events would result in unprecedented hardships for Americans.

Yet, a new CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll disturbingly shows American's fears of a terrorist attack occurring anytime soon has reached its lowest point since 9/11.

But, as HSToday.us has reported, complacency has become a national crisis according to worried authorities, and at a time in history when the most unimaginable of crises not only are possible, but highly likely
- be they natural or manmade.

Disaster readiness authorities are alarmed by this growing complacency, especially readiness for catastrophic medical crises brought on by hurricanes like Katrina, earthquakes, a pandemic or some other serious pathogenic outbreak or a radiological or biological terrorist attack.

A Harris poll conducted in June 2007 found only 14 percent of respondents said they are "very prepared" for an emergency involving power and water outages, medical help, and fuel shortages, and only 44 percent are somewhat prepared for a homeland disaster - of any kind.

"While majorities of Americans say they are prepared, this does not seem to be the case," the Harris Poll said, adding, "when asked if they had done certain action items, majorities say they have not."

Sixty-one percent, for instance, had not "made a specific plan for how you and your family would leave your home if you had to evacuate in case of an emergency situation," and 68 percent had not "put together a disaster supplies kit with water, food, medicine, and other supplies."

This "creeping complacency," as security authorities call it, has been spreading with alarming speed and virulency across the nation.
Authorities like former White House counterterrorism czar Richard Clarke and former Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson have been warning about it for years.

It remains a cause for consternation on the part of top officials, including DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff, who said recently that the problem is among the most vexing during his tenure at DHS. Federal Emergency Management Agency Director David Paulison, who has repeatedly expressed frustration over the level of civilian preparedness, also recently said the problem of preparedness readiness has become a "pet peeve" of his.

It's no wonder DHS officials are concerned about complacency. Its preparedness campaign launched in 2003 in partnership with the non-profit public service Advertising Council to educate and empower Americans to prepare for and respond to emergencies, has involved more than $700 million in donated media support and has been touted as one of the most successful campaigns in the Ad Council's more than 65-year history.

Maybe so, but complacency remains a growing problem. Almost as soon as we were attacked on 9/11, complacency began to spread.

As the ruble of the downed World Trade Center Towers continued to smolder, former Marine Colonel William Parish (who was commanding officer of the Marine Corps Security Force Battalion in 1996 when terrorists drove a truck filled with explosives into the Khobar Towers complex in Saudi Arabia) warned only a month after 9/11 that "after a terrorist attack, complacency can set in very quickly. People go into denial - we all want to think that an attack is a one-of-a-kind event.
But the truth is that there are probably terrorists cells, 'sleepers,'
at work right now, planning for an attack scheduled to take place years down the road, figuring out how to fund it, how to implement it."

Indeed. Yet, despite all the warnings about the uncompromising religious motivation of Islamist jihadists - and even homegrown terrorists - to take their time in planning the next spectacular attack, the citizenry apparently is choosing to ignore it, whether out of misunderstanding the warnings because they don't understand what's actually behind all the concern, or whether because of some psychologically rooted wiring that accounts for waning lack of trepidation.

But that doesn't make the complacency any less problematic or disturbing.

The problem of preparedness complacency was highlighted again recently at the Pacific Health Summit meeting in Seattle by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Dr. Julie Gerberding, who warned attendees that "public health enemy No. 1 is the challenge of complacency and our inability to maintain a focus on threats when they are around the corner or potentially in our backyard."

"People have very short attention spans and when something is in the news for a while, it becomes old news and then it's no news," she said, stressing that "we have to be very strategic to make sure that the leaders and governments fill in for the tendency toward complacency."

Meanwhile, Americans' fear of terrorism is at record low. The new CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll shows a scant 35 percent of Americans believes a terrorist attack is going to occur on American soil anytime soon.

This time last summer, 41 percent of those who responded to the same poll said they believed a terrorist attack on the homeland was forthcoming.

Apparently, with each passing year America isn't attacked, fewer and fewer Americans believe it will be assailed. Concurrently, more and more also don't see the need to prepare for any type of crisis - even residents of areas that are vulnerable to catastrophic disasters, like those living in the Gulf Coast states or in or near floodplains and lands susceptible to wildfires.

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Gustav
 

Well, the weather people are saying that Gustav might hit the Gulf Coast states. Anyone down there getting ready for this???

I'm getting ready for higher gas prices.

In South Central Pa, the gas prices were just going down to around 3.45 $ a gallon and still dropping.

If it does infact hit the Gulf Coast that'll be history.

After much deliberation, pro and con comparisons and logic I decided to move to the MIOX for the reasons TR mentioned including the fact that it is more durable and doesn't have a 'lamp' to break.

Thanks Reaper!

Re: Steri-pen and MIOX
Rei has customer reviews that I found interesting to read.

I'm not sure where this next part would go on the list, but for those with the space and inclination to build it, a purely solar powered ice maker.

http://www.free-energy-info.co.uk/P13.pdf

The MIOX is a cool gadget, even my 5 and 7 year old could use it. The Steripens use UV which from what my wife has said have better use as a secondary source for purification/sanitizing. I'll take her word on that.

Since reading this article I have picked up, the MIOX, 2 ILBE's with Day packs, 3 Sleeping bags, Stored up on some MRE's to get us were going, 2 Tents, a Magnesium/striker and 550 Cord which by chance I have found quite useful around the house on 5 or 6 occassions.

Next on the priority list is a first aid kit and small survival kits.

Aside from the purchases I broke the kids into camping outdoors in the backyard and they are now raring to hits the woods for the real deal! And lastly I took the wife to the range and she did damn good keeping her rounds in the target area even at 100 yds.

It is a good start I think.

In addition to the Mg block, I'd recommend a bagful of Bic lighters, and a bunch of cottonballs saturated with petroleum jelly (the cheap alternative to commercial tinder wads).

For the price and utility, the Adventure Medical Kits Pocket Survival Pak is a handy little survival kit. Add water purification tablets and some matches and you have a kit with all the basics (supplemented by what you carry in your pockets, such as a good knife, a lighter, an LED light and a bandana) that's small and light enough to make it likely you'll carry it with you.

Wrapping the ball in aluminum foil also allows you to cut an "X" in the ball, pull out a little cotton, and use it as a small candle. Also, individually wrapped like that, it gives you another source for lip balm.

Pat

I added two rolled up Breast Milk bags to my AMK in addition to the water tabs. They're tough, roll up small and you can buy a pack of 20 or 40 for less than $8. Sizes are all about the same 6-8 oz. Gerber is supposedly the toughest of the brands if you can find them. Now I don't have to worry about carrying what to carry water in. That and a space bag, knife, Doug Ritter photon and a lighter are my minimal carry.

I believe in a modular system that builds on the smaller kits as you go up (more economical for those with less money). When going on a trail or bike ride I add the above carry to a molle ACU pouch with a AMK ultralight .5 FAK, suscreen, bandana, rolled up platypus 1L platypus water bottle, 20 ft 550 cord, petzl e+lite headlamp, and hand sanitizer.

I usually have a full water bottle/camelback. If I'm expecting a longer outing I'll add on another molle canteen pouch with canteen, cup, cup-stove, more water tabs, magnesium fire starter and a 35MM film canister packed full of the cotton swabs soaked in vaseline.

As distance or expected time increases I add onto the kit with other items (poncho, liner, MIOX, food, leatherman, etc)

PSM I like your idea of the foil with an X. I'm going to have to try that now. Usually I scrape the magnesium into the vaseline-cotton swab and light from there. Perfect in windy conditions as the vaseline traps the magnesium shavings.

On the EDC subject. I've been doing some experimenting. The Ritter Photon I ordered came with two mounts that are very handy: a neck cord with a clasp that the photon easily attaches to, and a magnetic hat clip that it attaches to just as easily. The clip has little magnets that make it easy for attaching to a bunk, vehicle or metal object increasing the useful factor. However don't try to squeeze the clip so much to get it onto a kevlar as the metal in the spring might break.

I also shelled out $10 for the Gerber Artifact tool. Which is really handy if you travel and don't like checking a bag and don't want to go without a tool. The blade is an exacto blade and can be switched out or removed without any tools. It is surprisngly sturdy and has all the tools one would need on a daily basis. A leatherman it is not however I have only reached for my leatherman once in the last three weeks since I got the artifact. I usually keep the photon clipped to the artifact and those to my meager set of keys.