First off, this is not meant to be an all encompassing "plan" just putting some thoughts down in writing in the hopes that it sparks more thought, debate and ideas among other like minded people. My thoughts listed here are based on "staying put" because that's what we've got to work with.
Insert whatever SHTF scenario here<______________>.
Power is out indefinately so far as we know and as of now we are on our own until further notice.
Depending on your location, expecations could be vastly different as far as the speed with which society breaks down.
In my own neighborhood, I would expect the first few days of a crisis to be somewhat of a non-event as we have been without power due to tornados/tropical storms and Ice storms in the past for between 3 days and and week.
Once the realization that the power may not be on for an extended time and trips to the grocery and gas station prove to be fruitless runs, then the situation would begin to change.
This is what I am thinking as far next steps:
(1) WATER: I'd have the family start filling every available container with water. We are on city water and need to get what we can before the treatment plant goes out. (we have other sources for water but it's not as easy as filling containers at the sink)
(2) SECURITY: weapons/ammo check. what ever this is for you and yours. Just keep in mind that if a situation occurs quickly, you may not have time to load mags position your weapons.
(3) PERISHABLE FOOD: Freezers will be good for a day or two without power but after that things will start to spoil quickly, especially in the summer time.
Small packs of meat/vegetables should be cooked and consumed quickly. Better to cook it all and eat well that to lose a lot of it fast.
It you have turkeys/hens etc. that are frozen I would leave these for last as they thaw slowly and will help keep temps lower in the freezer.
If you've got milk/dairy/eggs in the fridge and a dutch oven or propane oven, I'd do whatever baking the milk/dairy/eggs would allow. Baked goods keep longer and are edible even when stale.
(4) LONG TERM FOODS: Begin inventory of stored foods and look at meal planning from jump street. Hopefully you've got some plans already in place and you can just review then, do a quick inventory of current pantry items and begin executing your dietary plans.
(5) SECURITY: From the first night forward, we should have a plan to secure our propane tanks, outdoor grills, etc. I would think these would become a target for theft in short order.
(6) OBSERVATION AND INTERACTION: **at this point I'd be CC 100% of time. I would not be openly brandishing defensive hardware at this point. I would be in touch with neighbors just to see what they have seen/heard and what they are thinking. Those of us who live in gated communities or communities where there is an active "homeowners" association it would not hurt to know who your officers are and see what they are saying. **Note of caution: many of the officers/presidents of these associations generally like to be "in charge" and have a tendency to "know what's best" for the neighborhood. More of these associations than not will be controlled by people with a "liberal" or "less conservative" viewpoint. I would exercise discretion telling anyone in these positions about any personal preps.
I suspect after a week, two at the most, of being without power and more or less on our own we will start to see things deteriorate at a more rapid pace. Initially, I think it would be people/looters/freebooters from outside the neighborhood that would be the first threat. I'd be looking for 'out of place'
vehicles, people, etc. Then there would be people in the neighborhood who failed to do any prep that would quickly become desperate.
(7) SECURITY: Everyone should have a 24/7 plan for security by this point. Someone in your family/group needs to be awake and functional at all times. **It may not be a bad idea to have some type of black out curtains/covers or similar to keep the world outside from prying. When it's dark it's easy to see who has a good stock of candles/light sources. It does not take a rocket scientist to figure out that if they had enought foresight to prepare ahead with candles/light sources they may have other goods/food as well. I'd just as soon people think we have little to nothing.
8) SECURITY: If someone is working outside, be it cooking on a grill or open fire or whatever, there should be someone watching thier back all the time. Eyes "on" the whole time. Everyone needs to be on thier toes and watching/looking for things/people that are "out of place" or "wrong".
**PEOPLE WHO ARE BUGGING:
A lot of people have plans to relocate to a backup/prepared location. If you are meeting others, plans should already be in place for correct IDs if you show up at the bugout location at 3.00am. It would be a tragedy to get shot trying to enter your group retreat.
Also, if you are "bugging" keep in mind you are leaving your house/apartment/trailer etc to whoever wants it. You should have sensitive information (deeds, titles, legal papers, etc) in a fire proof box that you can either secure or take with you.
GENERAL HYGIENE: Do you have enough toilet paper? What is your plan when it runs out?
How much hand sanitizer do you keep on hand? when the toilets stop flushing, what is your disposal plan?
How much soap/bleach/alcohol do you have on hand?
Questions:
If you do "bug out" do you let your neighbors know this when you are leaving? They may want to know that any activity at your home are people who are unauthorized to be there.
Do you "donate" any goods/foods/weapons/ammo that you CANNOT take with you to a neighbor(s)?
Would it be beneficial to lay in an extra 25lb bag of rice to possibly 'donate' to the neighborhood or association to help feed the unprepared?
Is there a point where openly displaying your firearms is beneficial? (at what point do you go from looking like a "nut" to looking like a well armed
serious citizen ready to defend life and property?) How do you decide "when it's time" to do so?
Should we be prepared to put physical barriers around the perimeter of our property/yard at least to slow down/trip alarms if interlopers arrive?
Enough from me for now. What are your thoughts?
Insert whatever SHTF scenario here<______________>.
Power is out indefinately so far as we know and as of now we are on our own until further notice.
Depending on your location, expecations could be vastly different as far as the speed with which society breaks down.
In my own neighborhood, I would expect the first few days of a crisis to be somewhat of a non-event as we have been without power due to tornados/tropical storms and Ice storms in the past for between 3 days and and week.
Once the realization that the power may not be on for an extended time and trips to the grocery and gas station prove to be fruitless runs, then the situation would begin to change.
This is what I am thinking as far next steps:
(1) WATER: I'd have the family start filling every available container with water. We are on city water and need to get what we can before the treatment plant goes out. (we have other sources for water but it's not as easy as filling containers at the sink)
(2) SECURITY: weapons/ammo check. what ever this is for you and yours. Just keep in mind that if a situation occurs quickly, you may not have time to load mags position your weapons.
(3) PERISHABLE FOOD: Freezers will be good for a day or two without power but after that things will start to spoil quickly, especially in the summer time.
Small packs of meat/vegetables should be cooked and consumed quickly. Better to cook it all and eat well that to lose a lot of it fast.
It you have turkeys/hens etc. that are frozen I would leave these for last as they thaw slowly and will help keep temps lower in the freezer.
If you've got milk/dairy/eggs in the fridge and a dutch oven or propane oven, I'd do whatever baking the milk/dairy/eggs would allow. Baked goods keep longer and are edible even when stale.
(4) LONG TERM FOODS: Begin inventory of stored foods and look at meal planning from jump street. Hopefully you've got some plans already in place and you can just review then, do a quick inventory of current pantry items and begin executing your dietary plans.
(5) SECURITY: From the first night forward, we should have a plan to secure our propane tanks, outdoor grills, etc. I would think these would become a target for theft in short order.
(6) OBSERVATION AND INTERACTION: **at this point I'd be CC 100% of time. I would not be openly brandishing defensive hardware at this point. I would be in touch with neighbors just to see what they have seen/heard and what they are thinking. Those of us who live in gated communities or communities where there is an active "homeowners" association it would not hurt to know who your officers are and see what they are saying. **Note of caution: many of the officers/presidents of these associations generally like to be "in charge" and have a tendency to "know what's best" for the neighborhood. More of these associations than not will be controlled by people with a "liberal" or "less conservative" viewpoint. I would exercise discretion telling anyone in these positions about any personal preps.
I suspect after a week, two at the most, of being without power and more or less on our own we will start to see things deteriorate at a more rapid pace. Initially, I think it would be people/looters/freebooters from outside the neighborhood that would be the first threat. I'd be looking for 'out of place'
vehicles, people, etc. Then there would be people in the neighborhood who failed to do any prep that would quickly become desperate.
(7) SECURITY: Everyone should have a 24/7 plan for security by this point. Someone in your family/group needs to be awake and functional at all times. **It may not be a bad idea to have some type of black out curtains/covers or similar to keep the world outside from prying. When it's dark it's easy to see who has a good stock of candles/light sources. It does not take a rocket scientist to figure out that if they had enought foresight to prepare ahead with candles/light sources they may have other goods/food as well. I'd just as soon people think we have little to nothing.
8) SECURITY: If someone is working outside, be it cooking on a grill or open fire or whatever, there should be someone watching thier back all the time. Eyes "on" the whole time. Everyone needs to be on thier toes and watching/looking for things/people that are "out of place" or "wrong".
**PEOPLE WHO ARE BUGGING:
A lot of people have plans to relocate to a backup/prepared location. If you are meeting others, plans should already be in place for correct IDs if you show up at the bugout location at 3.00am. It would be a tragedy to get shot trying to enter your group retreat.
Also, if you are "bugging" keep in mind you are leaving your house/apartment/trailer etc to whoever wants it. You should have sensitive information (deeds, titles, legal papers, etc) in a fire proof box that you can either secure or take with you.
GENERAL HYGIENE: Do you have enough toilet paper? What is your plan when it runs out?
How much hand sanitizer do you keep on hand? when the toilets stop flushing, what is your disposal plan?
How much soap/bleach/alcohol do you have on hand?
Questions:
If you do "bug out" do you let your neighbors know this when you are leaving? They may want to know that any activity at your home are people who are unauthorized to be there.
Do you "donate" any goods/foods/weapons/ammo that you CANNOT take with you to a neighbor(s)?
Would it be beneficial to lay in an extra 25lb bag of rice to possibly 'donate' to the neighborhood or association to help feed the unprepared?
Is there a point where openly displaying your firearms is beneficial? (at what point do you go from looking like a "nut" to looking like a well armed
serious citizen ready to defend life and property?) How do you decide "when it's time" to do so?
Should we be prepared to put physical barriers around the perimeter of our property/yard at least to slow down/trip alarms if interlopers arrive?
Enough from me for now. What are your thoughts?
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