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Table of Contents
If you have the right gear, and you can read a book (this
one), you have everything you need to be prepared for
those first five minutes. That’s what this book will give
you.
I’ve packed this little guide with a ton of “do this now”
checklists that tell you EXACTLY what you should be
doing during the first five minutes of any disaster. You
don’t have to train like a prepper to survive each threat.
You don’t have to go live in a faraway mountain survival
retreat. You don’t have to let it affect your life much at all,
really. You just need this guide, the checklists I’m going
Terrorist Lockdown in charge, chaos. They lock down the area in an attempt
to reduce variables and assert control. That control is
What It Is — During a lockdown, the authorities take total area-wide. It is no guarantee of safety for your individual
control of the streets. Citizens must remain indoors family.
wherever they happen to be. They can’t go out for milk or
bread and the stores wouldn’t be open if they did. The If you are not prepared for a terrorist lockdown, you face
populace in a lockdown is at the mercy of whatever the three main threats:
authorities dictate.
1. The terrorist suspects could come to your home if
The entire city of Boston was locked down when the it is not secured.
authorities sought one of the two Boston Marathon 2. You could catch a stray bullet or be fired on
bombers. The suspect was believed to be heavily armed mistakenly by the authorities
and very dangerous. Citizens were ordered to stay in 3. You could be caught without enough supplies and
their homes while militarized police with assault weapons your family could go hungry or thirsty while the
and armored vehicles patrolled the city searching for the lockdown is under way.
fugitive. There were reports of police pointing their
What To Do In The First Five Minutes
weapons at civilians watching from windows. This was
one of the most powerful examples of a terrorist • Lock your doors and secure your home, drawing
lockdown ever to occur in the United States. all shades and window blinds.
• Stay away from the windows and do not silhouette
If you think it can’t happen to you, think again. Terrorist
attacks are not a question of if, but a question of when. yourself in them.
There have been major attacks in the United States • Secure family members in the center of the house,
before, and there will be another attack in your lifetime where the most number of walls exists to absorb
(and possibly several). Our enemies have made it very bullets (which will pass through at least one
clear that they intend to visit as much destruction on us exterior and interior wall.
as they can, by whatever means necessary. If a terrorist • Stay quiet so you can listen for the sounds of
attack occurs in your city, a lockdown is likely to occur, intrusion. Monitor the radio and the news to stay
even if suspects are not at large, as the authorities up on the latest developments until the lockdown
attempt to reestablish order. Free movement is, for those passes.
• Check your property when the lockdown ends.
(The Boston Bomber who caused the lockdown in
that city was found hiding in a man’s boat in his
back yard by the owner himself, after the lockdown
was lifted.)
What It Is — An electromagnetic pulse is caused by the • If you have advance warning that an EMP is
detonation of a nuclear device at high altitude over the coming, such as from a solar flare, unplug all your
target area. An EMP can also be caused by a solar electronic devices (cell phones; tablets, etc.), and
storm. The electromagnetic pulse generated by such an shield the ones you can by putting them inside a
attack or event can destroy electrical power infrastructure microwave oven, which is a good, quick substitute
and electronic devices, knocking out the power for Faraday Cage.
hundreds of miles. • Make sure family and friends are located centrally
where you can protect them. While you can, make
An EMP attack is not like one of those television shows arrangements to bring them home, because civil
or novels where all electricity everywhere stops working. unrest is very unlikely.
Some electronic devices will be destroyed, but others will • Lock your doors and secure your home. Be
not. Power will be out in some areas but may remain on watchful for looters.
in others. Some experts say vehicles won’t be affected, • Keep an eye out for fires. EMP may cause certain
while others say they could be. Small electronic devices support infrastructure to collapse, causing small
not switched on and not connected to the power grid may fires to develop that go unchecked and become
not be affected. bigger fires. During a widespread power grid
outage, the danger of runaway fire is very real.
It’s very likely that widespread power outages that take a
• If you have a functioning portable AM/FM radio,
long time to repair will result from an EMP. Many of the
listen to the news and stay abreast of what is
modern devices we take for granted, including Internet
happening.
access, will be unavailable. The wireless phone network
will almost certainly be rendered inoperable. Suggested Supplies & Preps — Consider stockpiling
the following items to be better prepared for an EMP
If you’re not prepared for an EMP attack, you could find
attack:
yourself without access to electrical power or electrical
devices in a world that is falling apart around you. The • Batteries, flashlights, candles, and other power-
sudden loss of modern life as we know it is sure to outage items
generate riots, looting, and other societal problems.
• Faraday bags that insulate electronics from EMP
• Backup electronic devices stored in Faraday bags
• Firearms and ammo (for self-defense against
looting)
• Cooking supplies that do not require electrical
power, including food, and storable water
What It Is — A volcanic eruption is one in which a large • If you have advance notice that an eruption is
volume of ash is ejected into the atmosphere from an happening, get out of the area if you can do so
active volcano. There may also be flows of lava in the safely.
nearby area, but in survival terms, it’s the ash that is the • Take shelter from the blast. Close the windows of
major threat. your home.
• Your car is not sufficient shelter. Get indoors if you
In May of 1980, Mount St. Helens in Washington State can.
erupted, creating a column of ash that was fifteen miles • If you see the ash cloud descending, tie a cloth or
high and which came down across eleven different US bandanna over your mouth and nose, and protect
states. Fifty-seven people were killed and billions of your eyes if you can.
dollars of damage was done as the choking ash coated
the countryside. Suggested Supplies & Preps — Consider stockpiling
the following items to be better prepared for a volcanic
No doubt the residents living near Mount St. Helens eruption:
never thought they would be subjected to a volcanic
eruption, but these can and do happen. There are maybe • Emergency food and water
169 active volcanoes in the United States alone, although • Candles, flashlights, and batteries
many of these are in Alaska (where there are eruptions • Tarps
almost every year). And those geysers in Yellowstone? • Emergency AM/FM radio
They may indicate future eruptions. A volcanic blast • A shovel or entrenching tool
could produce falling rocks the size of automobiles and • Goggles and face masks/respirators
hundreds of cubic miles of ash and pumice that will rain
down on the countryside, laying waste to it, choking and What’s Coming — When Mount St. Helens erupted, the
clogging anyone caught underneath it. area directly affected by the blast was devastated. Be
prepared for a long recover effort followed by
If you’re not prepared for a volcanic eruption, you could considerable disaster-relief efforts to restore life to
find yourself choking and blind in a cloud of volcanic “normal” in those areas saturated by the ash.
ash... or entombed in a vehicle that is coated in the stuff.
Blackout/Power Outage enforcement and emergency services struggle to keep up
with demand.
What It Is — A widespread blackout or power outage is
just that: It is a loss of electrical power as the electrical What To Do In The First Five Minutes
grid fails over a large area.
• Secure your home and make sure you and your
Our power grid is held together with duct tape and hope. family are safe. If some family members are not
There have already been terrorist attacks on electrical yet with you, make whatever arrangements you
substations in the United States. These have not made can to see them safely home.
nearly the news they should have. But as we saw during • Lock your doors, hunker down, and prepare to
the Northeast Blackout of 2003, it doesn’t have to be a wait out the blackout. Stay home and off the
terrorist attack that knocks out electrical power to huge streets. Monitor conditions outside as best you
portions of the United States. can, but don’t expose yourself.
• Duct-tape your freezer and refrigerator shut in an
In 2003, power was out for two days to a lot of the attempt to keep them as insulated as possible
affected area, and it took nearly a week to get while reminding you not to open them. Your
everybody’s power back on. The blackout has been freezer can keep food from spoiling for several
blamed on a software issue at a control room in Ohio, hours during a blackout as long as you aren’t
which triggered a “race condition” that overwhelmed the opening it and exposing it to warmer air.
power grid. A manageable local blackout instead became • Fill your bathtub and other receptacles with clean
a massive, cascade failure of the grid across multiple drinking water. In an extended blackout, there will
states. be no power to run water treatment, which means
water may become unsafe to drink. You need as
If you are not prepared for a power outage, you and your
much drinking water on hand as possible if the
family could find yourself in the dark without support
blackout persists.
services and without adequate food or water. Worse,
• Formulate a plan for what you will do for food,
widespread civil unrest could develop during a sustained
water, and light if the blackout persists.
blackout, support services could become unavailable,
and looting and wilding crimes could run rampant as law
Suggested Supplies & Preps — Consider stockpiling
the following items to be better prepared for a blackout or
power outage:
What It Is — A riot or flash mob is any group • Get away from the mob. Move in the opposite
demonstration, protest, or act of violence that takes place direction. If you cannot immediately get out of the
as a mass of people. A riot represents the worst-case crowd, play along, chanting the same way the mob
scenario for social order. When a group of people is chanting so they will think you are one of them.
become violent, they engage in behavior they might • If you’re caught in the mob, move at a 45 degree
never consider engaging in individually. angle to get out of the crowd, always working
toward the edge of the crowd (never the middle).
During rioting in England, one of the minor actors in the Avoid storefronts and never try to move directly
“Harry Potter” series was caught on video breaking the against the flow of the crowd.
law as part of the mob. From all accounts, he simply got • Never move toward the police, who don’t know
carried away. He’s a good example of how some people you’re not one of the rioters. You could get hit with
will lose their minds during a mass demonstration or riot, a rubber bullet or worse.
becoming criminals from within the safety of a crowd’s • Avoid the urge to preemptively shield your face
anonymity. from tear gas unless it’s present. Masked
protestors draw police attention quickly and are
Any political protest or gathering has the potential to turn
seen as willing agitators.
violent. Riots also break out during emergencies when
• Use buildings and other structures to shelter in.
the normal rule of law breaks down and emergency
Consider dumpsters or other obstacles to separate
services/law enforcement personnel are overwhelmed
yourself from the mob.
with calls.
Suggested Supplies & Preps — Consider stockpiling
If you get caught up in a riot, you could be injured by the
the following items to be better prepared for a riot or mob:
rioters. You could also be injured by the police or military
responding to the riot, who have no way of knowing, • Emergency food and water (so you don’t have to
when you’re in the crowd, that you’re not just another go out while a riot or civil unrest is ongoing)
rioter. If you let yourself get drawn into the mob’s • Emergency AM/FM radio (to monitor the news)
violence, you risk getting arrested during or after the riot,
• Gas mask (for tear gas)
too, which can have long-term legal consequences.
• A nondescript hoodie (for concealing your identity)
• Get immediately to shelter, preferably a storm What’s Coming — Tornadoes are usually over quickly,
shelter or basement. but the swath of destruction they leave can devastate
• If you are in your car, get off the street and get to entire towns. Houses can be picked up and shattered.
shelter. A car is absolutely no defense against a The tornado will leave some structures untouched and
tornado. completely level others. Rebuilding, and returning to
normal, may take some time, during which you’ll have to
live with reduced services.
Severe Thunderstorm (Lightning, Hail, Wind) also be braced with plastic sheeting or plywood, if
you have it handy.
What It Is — Severe thunderstorms are weather events • Be aware of the risk of electrocution from lightning
that include high winds, driving rain, lightning, and hail. In strikes. Avoid using landlines, taking baths, or
some cases, the hail can do significant damage to going outside while the lightning storm occurs.
structures and vehicles. Severe thunderstorms may also
be warning signs of developing tornados. Suggested Supplies & Preps — Consider stockpiling
the following items to be better prepared for a tornado:
If you’re not prepared for a thunderstorm, you could be
forced to endure a sustained power outage. You might • Emergency food and water
also be at risk of electrocution from lightning strikes, or • Candles, flashlights, and batteries
even property and personal injury from large hail. We • Tarps
tend to think of thunderstorms as no big deal, but they • Emergency AM/FM radio
are actually quite deadly when conditions are just right. • Duct tape
• Plastic sheets
What To Do In The First Five Minutes
• Plywood sheets (and hammer/nails)
• Get to shelter and monitor weather conditions • A solar or heat-driven charger for electronics
closely. A tornado could develop in the wake of
What’s Coming — Storms of this type usually pass
the thunderstorm and you’ll need to know about
quickly, assuming a tornado does not develop. Hail
that as soon as possible.
damage to your car or home could take some time to
• If you are in your car, the rubber of the tires may repair and rebuild.
insulate you from lightning strikes, although the
car itself is vulnerable to hail damage. It may due
as shelter if you cannot get anywhere else.
• Secure your family members and your pets inside
your home.
• Stay away from windows. If possible, tape the
windows with an “x” of duct tape to help make
them less susceptible to shattering. Windows can
Pandemic Disease Outbreak simply keeping patients as comfortable as possible while
waiting for them to die.
What It Is — A pandemic is any disease outbreak that is
prevalent over an entire geographic area, such as a What To Do In The First Five Minutes
state, a nation, or the world. Pandemics don’t have to be
• Go home and STAY THERE. The single best way
deadly to cripple society, but typically they carry at least
to avoid a pandemic is to avoid other people. This
the threat of widespread death.
is called “social distancing” and it works.
The recent Ebola scare was a great example of the • Whatever you do, do NOT go to the hospital. The
potential of pandemic to destabilize society. None of the primary vector for transmission of any pandemic is
Americans who contracted Ebola on US soil died from it, the medical professionals treating it.
but we were so terrified of the threat of Ebola there were • Tell yourself that for the duration of the pandemic,
Americans clamoring for martial law, rounding up you’re going to have to stay extra clean at all
affected citizens in camps, and closing the borders. Were times. Good hygiene is a must to prevent
we scared? Yeah, we were scared... and it could happen unnecessary infections.
again. Ebola had never come to US soil until recently. • If you have time to get to the store in the first few
Now, the speed with which human beings can travel all minutes of awareness of an outbreak, obtain as
over the world guarantees that a pandemic will spread many medical supplies as you can. They’ll be sold
globally... and very quickly. out if you go back for them later.
• If you have to go outside at all, wear a mask.
If you’re not prepared for pandemic, the worst could
happen: You, or your family, could get sick. It’s as simple Suggested Supplies & Preps — Consider stockpiling
as that. Preparing to cope with a pandemic means the following items to be better prepared for a pandemic
preparing to avoid getting sick. If you contract the illness, disease outbreak:
chances are it’s already too late for you. Even if the
disease won’t necessarily kill you, medical services and • Emergency food and water
infrastructure will be so overloaded that you won’t be able • Medical and First Aid supplies
to get the care you need. Our government knows that • Emergency AM/FM radio
during a widespread, potentially deadly pandemic, • Surgical mask/N95 respirator
“palliative care” will be the word of the day. That means • Antibiotics and other medications
What’s Coming — The longer a pandemic persists, the
worse things will get. We’ve not yet seen a pandemic as
bad as the 1918 flu pandemic, but we could. Be prepared
for things to get worse before the infection finally burns
itself out. For extreme cases, it may be to your advantage
to use plastic sheeting and duct tape, together with a
filtered air evacuation system, to build a long-term
“pandemic safety room.”
Financial Collapse out of a job or, worse, your employer may simply not be
able to pay you, or anyone, anymore. A financial collapse
What It Is — A financial collapse is the complete failure represents nothing short of a complete “reboot” of our
of the monetary system we take for granted. It represents nation. Such reboots are notoriously chaotic and violent.
a fall-off in faith in the fiat currency our government
prints. If you are not prepared for financial collapse, you may be
stricken with poverty and left to starve and die. You might
We are printing money at such a rate, in fact, that a also fall victim to the predator class of your former
financial collapse is inevitable. Right now, the money in neighbors, a class created by the collapse.
your wallet and in your electronic bank account is not
backed by anything of value. It is backed by faith -- faith What To Do In The First Five Minutes
in the United States government. That is the nature of fiat
• Don’t go to the bank and withdraw all your money.
currency, and our government continues to print money
If the banking system is collapsing, it’s worthless
(backed by nothing) at an alarming rate. We’ve already
anyway. A run on the banks simply hastens the
teetered on the brink of collapse a few times, only for the
collapse.
government to delay the inevitable by raising our debt
ceiling, printing more money (in the form of “quantitative • Secure your home and family members. A
easing”), and bailing out those private industries that are collapse may trigger civil unrest and you want to
“too big to fail.” Government interference in the home make sure everyone is safe and accounted for.
loan industry already led to a cascade failure of our • Monitor the news closely to stay abreast of the
financial system once. It’s going to happen again, and it’s state of the nation.
going to be worse. And then there’s the national debt. • Take a mental inventory of those items you
Sooner or later, it’s going to occur to us that we can’t possess that are of value and could be used for
afford to pay off the astronomical sum that is our national trade/barter.
debt, and when we default, our currency will become • Watch for looters and other external threats.
worthless on the world stage. Remember that emergency services will not be
available to help you in a collapse, as they will be
When financial collapse occurs, the rule of law we take overwhelmed.
for granted will break down. Your ability to buy and sell
goods and services may vanish overnight. You may be
Suggested Supplies & Preps — Consider stockpiling
the following items to be better prepared for a financial
collapse:
What It Is — A fire is a structural conflagration that could • Get down low and crawl on the floor if you are
destroy your home... with you in it. Wildfires are fires that caught in a house fire. Toxic gas and smoke rises.
affect the surrounding area, too, endangering multiple • Leave the house immediately and do not try to
dwellings. reenter.
• Test doors and doorknobs for heat before opening
The danger of fire is not just flame. Fires produce toxic them.
gas that can overwhelm you and kill you even if you • If you see smoke seeping in from under the door,
aren’t actively being burned. Many of the would-be select an alternate route.
heroes who rush into burning buildings to rescue pets, • Stop, drop, and roll if your clothes catch fire.
family members, or whomever end up dying, not because • The moment you are clear of the house, call 911.
they were burned, but because they were overcome with
the toxic fumes. A fire is not like in the movies, either. In Suggested Supplies & Preps — Consider stockpiling
real house fire, you won’t be able to see a thing from the following items to be better prepared for a fire:
inside the dwelling. The smoke will make everything
black and impenetrable. • Emergency food and water
• Fire extinguisher
Homes are destroyed by fire every day in the United • Emergency AM/FM radio
States and around the world. The threat of fire is very • Goggles and face masks/respirators
real. If you are not prepared for the reality of a fire, either
within your home or external to it, you run the risk of Install smoke and carbon monoxide detectors throughout
losing all your possessions in addition to your life. No the house. Test them annually. Consider also setting a
responsible parent should fail to consider the possibility fire evacuation plan and practicing it with your family
of a fire, as many of the victims of serious house fires are ahead of time.
children who don’t make it out in time.
What’s Coming — If your home survives the fire, things
will get back to normal pretty quickly. If it doesn’t, it will
take months, if not years, for your family to achieve some
sense of the “normal” after all their possessions are
destroyed. Follow the instructions of your insurance
company and remind yourself that possessions can
always be replaced, but people can’t. You may wish to
get counseling for the trauma of the fire.
Flood • Stay home unless your home is flooded and
untenable. Do not drive unless absolutely
What It Is — A flood is any ingress of large amounts of necessary (it may be physically impossible to drive
water that swamps a local area, destroying infrastructure anyway).
and endangering lives. The danger of a flood is that the • Avoid flooded areas and leave the area if possible
waters rise so high that homes and other structures are when the flood warnings start.
swamped or submerged completely. • If you are in your car and water starts to rise
around it, abandon your vehicle immediately and
Massive flooding during Hurricane Katrina devastated
flee.
New Orleans as well as parts of Mississippi and other
• Never ignore or circumvent flood barricades.
areas. The resulting chaos and breakdown in social order
Disaster almost always results.
produced damage that affects the area to this very day.
• If you evacuate your home, shut off water, gas,
There are many other examples of floods destroying
and electrical services before locking up the home
property and endangering lives, too. In 2012, the worst
as securely as possible.
hurricane of the season, Superstorm Sandy, flooded
subway lines and cut off electrical power. Parts of New Suggested Supplies & Preps — Consider stockpiling
Jersey were also flooded. the following items to be better prepared for a flood:
If you’re not prepared for a flood, you or your family could • Emergency food and water
be hurt or killed in the immediate surge and rise of water. • Water treatment supplies (this is especially
You could also be left to suffer through an extended important)
power outage in an area whose law enforcement and
• Candles, flashlights, and batteries
emergency services are overburdened and
• Emergency AM/FM radio/NOAA Weather Radio
overwhelmed.
• A solar or heat-driven charger for electronics
What To Do In The First Five Minutes
What’s Coming — Depending on how bad the flooding
• Monitor weather radio and your surroundings to is, it could take weeks or even months for the damage to
gauge how fast the water is rising and the threat it be repaired. Do not attempt to return until the authorities
presents to you. say it is safe to do so. If flooding has affected your home,
check for signs of damage, especially damage that could
cause a wall or roof to collapse. Be aware that all manner
of sewage, litter, and other invaders, including living
creatures, might be borne on floodwaters and left behind
in and around your home after a flood.
Food Shortage (Supply Interruption) What To Do In The First Five Minutes
What It Is — A food shortage is a disruption in the food • Take an inventory of the stored food, perishables,
supply caused by a disruption of the supply lines and other food items you have on hand.
themselves, or by a rise in food prices that makes buying • Set up a schedule of rationing your available food
food impossible for ordinary citizens. The danger of a supplies to stretch them for as long as is feasible.
food shortage is obvious: deprivation, vitamin deficiency, • Monitor the news for clues as to the duration of the
and ultimately starvation. disruption in the food supply lines
• Be prepared to secure and defend your food
For some time now, food prices have been rising. We’re stores from looters and thieves.
poised to see massive jumps in the price of food, and the
demand for food is only growing stronger throughout the Suggested Supplies & Preps — Consider stockpiling
world. Some in the agricultural world wonder if we aren’t the following items to be better prepared for a food
close to reaching peak food production with our current shortage:
technology. Even if there’s plenty of food out there, civil
unrest, a strike, a natural disaster, or some other issue • Emergency food and water (long-term storage
could disrupt supply lines. The average grocery store will food is essential)
run out of food in just days if it is not resupplied by trucks • The means to boil and treat drinking water
bearing new goods for its shelves. That means that the • Hunting and supplies for securing small game
average American, who tends to live more or less hand • Gardening supplies/seeds for growing food
to mouth when it comes to groceries, is just a long
weekend away from going hungry if the supply lines are What’s Coming — A food shortage that lasts for a very
disrupted. long time will force you to find other ways to get food.
You can scavenge and forage for it, of course, but you’ll
If you are not prepared for a food shortage, you and your come up with less and less success over time. You must
family will go hungry. It’s as simple as that. be prepared to grow your own food and hunt for your own
small game if you intend to survive a long-term food
shortage.
Chemical Spill (Train Or Nearby Plant) What To Do In The First Five Minutes
What It Is — A chemical spill or release involves the • Evacuate immediately if this is feasible, especially
discharge of hazardous chemicals into the air or onto the if the authorities say you should. Flee the area if
ground of the local environment. Depending on the you are near the discharge point. Avoid that area
chemical released, the danger to human life can be at all costs.
extreme. • If you are fleeing the chemical spill, alert those you
encounter that they should flee as well.
In 1984, a pesticide plant in Bhopal, India, discharged a • Pay attention for local emergency management
toxic cloud of methyl isocyanate gas and other chemicals alerts. Monitor local news for updates regarding
into the air. nearly eight thousand people died over the the spill.
course of two weeks. Half a million people suffered • Assess the nature of the chemical spill based on
permanently disabling injuries. The healthcare system the available information and proceed accordingly.
was immediately overloaded. Mass funerals and
cremations occurred. The chemical spill also killed Suggested Supplies & Preps — Consider stockpiling
thousands of animals, including goats and buffalos, the following items to be better prepared for a chemical
which had to be collected an buried. Food and medical spill:
supplies became scarce. Fishing was banned, which
made the shortages worse. • Emergency food and water
• Plastic sheeting, duct tape
This is an extreme case, one of the worst on record. • HEPA filter and vacuum air exchange system
Chemical spills, however, can endanger anyone, • Goggles/face mask/N95 respirator
anywhere. All it takes is a single tanker truck hauling
something toxic to overturn and discharge the gas into What’s Coming — If you’ve evacuated a chemical-spill-
the local area. If you’re not prepared for a chemical leak, affected area, don’t expect to return until the authorities
you could be poisoned. You might also have to suffer say it is safe. When you do, you may have to contend
through the deprivation of a local area devastated by a with the long-term environmental effects of whatever
major chemical disaster, which will overburden chemical was released.
emergency services and law enforcement.
Looting preoccupied. Even if law enforcement is on the job, a
sudden riot can break out and cause people to start
What It Is — Looting is one of those things that happens looting simply because they are part of a mob.
whenever there is a breakdown in law and order.
Whenever social chaos reigns, looting is never far What To Do In The First Five Minutes
behind. There are always people in society who take
• Don’t give in to anger. You can’t afford to confront
advantage of a crisis, a natural disaster, or some other
a mob of looters, no matter how much the chaos
tragedy to start looking for “free stuff.”
bothers you.
Looting usually occurs because an emergency or social • Do your best to blend in among the looters. They
chaos condition has left law enforcement overburdened will ignore you if they think you are one of them.
and unable to respond to individual acts of theft. Then, Shake your fist and shout the same slogans they
too, the mob mentality that usually holds sway when are shouting. Make your expression one of
looting happens tends to embolden individual thieves. happiness or excitement. Match the people doing
They will walk off with things they would never think of the looting.
stealing by themselves, because hey, everybody’s doing • Flee the area where the looting is occurred as long
it. as you can sneak away unnoticed.
• Take shelter, preferably at home, and stay there
The danger of looting is that you could be caught up in it until the looting, and the emergency, has passed.
(and later arrested) or that you could come into conflict • Avoid the streets at night at all costs. It is at night
with looters and end up beaten to death (or worse). Most when looters and rioters are boldest.
of us value law and order, and the temptation to confront • Prepare yourself mentally to fight back viciously if
looters is strong. You might also have to defend your set upon by a group of looters. You’ll be fighting
home or your shop from looters, as was the case when for your life.
Korean shop owners took to the rooftops of their stores
with rifles during the Rodney King riots in Los Angeles. Suggested Supplies & Preps — Consider stockpiling
the following items to be better prepared for looting:
Worse still, you have no control over where looting will
occur. Looting could break out literally anywhere if some • Emergency food and water (so you don’t have to
emergency condition precedes it and law enforcement is go out while a riot or civil unrest is ongoing)
• Emergency AM/FM radio (to monitor the news)
• Gas mask (for tear gas)
• A nondescript hoodie (for concealing your identity)
What It Is — A forced evacuation is any government • Gather your pre-prepared kits of documents and
mandated flight from your home or survival retreat. It bug out items, which are essentially to your
happens because the government dictates that everyone response to an evacuation
in the area must leave. This is most often done because • Designate “travel buddies” for every member of
a natural disaster is approaching. your family or party
• Take a verbal inventory of everything you have
One of the biggest criticisms of government response to with you so that all involved can hear (you’ll only
Hurricane Katrina is that many people stayed behind have one opportunity to inventory your belongings
when they should have left ahead of the storm. Buses in a forced evacuation
that could have been used to evacuate citizens were left • Follow the authorities’ instructions
to be flooded, rather than used to facilitate evacuation.
Those left behind suffered in deplorable conditions, such Suggested Supplies & Preps — Consider stockpiling
as at the Superdome, where they were treated like the following items to be better prepared for a forced
animals by the very people who were supposed to be evacuation:
helping them.
• Prepare a kit with your birth certificates, medical
A forced evacuation is one in which the government is records, insurance, titles, deeds, and other
determined not to repeat that same mistake. Anyone government documentation, which you’ll want to
found in the affected area will be forced to go. If you are have access to if you are evacuated
not prepared for such a forced evacuation, you could be • Flash drive containing scans of the same
caught far from home with no supplies, none of your documents and any other information you want to
personal and essential government documents, and carry with you
nothing to do but live at the mercy of a government that • Portable emergency AM/FM radio
does not have your best interests at heart. Your • Bug out bag for extended travel away from home
government wants to restore order in a crisis. The
individual safety of you and your family is not of concern What’s Coming — The results of a forced evacuation
to the authorities. are hard to judge. Every situation will be different.
Stranded (Vehicle Breakdown/Lost) Suggested Supplies & Preps — Consider stockpiling
the following items to be better prepared for a stranded
What It Is — A stranded vehicle leaves you and your vehicle or breakdown:
passengers stuck in a location where help is not readily
available. The danger of being stranded is that you may • Emergency food and water
not have any of the supplies you need to survive in a • Car kit with emergency flares, blankets
location you did not intend to visit in the first place. • Spare “burner” prepaid cell phone
• A shovel or entrenching tool
People get stranded every day. Most of the time, you’re • Gloves, hat, boots, and an extra coat
just flagged trucker away from getting help from a cop • Scarf or bandanna (for protecting your head/face)
along the highway. But if you’ve ever been stranded in • Spare sunglasses
the middle of nowhere, on a back road somewhere or
even farther out in the wilderness, you could be very far What’s Coming — When you’re stranded, your job is to
from help. The danger is amplified if the weather is poor wait until help arrives. It may be necessary, however, for
and exposure becomes a real threat. Either way, being you to judge whether help is ever going to come to the
stranded means being stuck somewhere without the location where you find yourself. It may be necessary for
supplies you need. You may not even be dressed for the you to walk out simply because you’ll have to wait too
weather because you were counting on your car to keep long to be found. That’s a potentially deadly decision, as
you warm and dry. people often die when they leave their cars. Make leaving
your vehicle a last resort.
What To Do In The First Five Minutes
Consider also joining a roadside assistance club, like
• Stay with the vehicle, where you have the best AAA, so you always know who to all if you are stranded.
chance of being discovered
• Deploy flares or cones from your car emergency
kit
• Call for help if you can
• If you are stranded along a busy highway, do not
get out of your vehicle (you could be struck and
killed by a passing car or truck)
Conclusion