Readiness

Are you ready yet? If not, why not?

Be ready now.

Immediate Readiness 

DLH

One Second After by William R. Forstchen

I just finished reading One Second After by William R. Forstchen (in fact, I read it in one sitting last night), and this is a book I must recommend to anyone who cares about being ready for whatever comes next.

While Forstchen’s apocalyptic electromagnetic pulse event is flawed in some ways and his aftermath scenario is a definite worst case, his story does an outstanding job of pointing out the incredible vulnerabilities our way of life faces if we experience a disruption of the critical goods and services we continue to expect to be delivered to us without fail.

This book, like others in its category, is not so much about trying to predict the future–although Forstchen is trying to deliver a stern warning about the very real threat posed by EMP–as it is trying to point out that we’re all at risk because we have so little capacity to support ourselves in the event we do not have access to electricity, technology, global distribution systems, and fuel.

Forstchen’s story may scare you, but if you are smart, it will force you to think. And if it forces you to think, then it should force you to act. Do so while there is still time. Be ready now.

DLH

Be ready now is a weekly post about things you can do right now to get ready for whatever might come next courtesy of Dennis L Hitzeman’s Readiness Weblog. You can find other posts in this series in the “Be ready now” category.

This week’s theme: Transportation

• Immediate: Maintain a fuel reserve for every vehicle you own. Optimally, your reserve should include enough fuel to refill each vehicle’s tank once. Take care to store fuel in proper containers and in safe areas. Keep each vehicle’s tank filled to at least a quarter tank, with a half tank being better.
• Intermediate: How will you transport yourself if fuel or vehicles are not available? If you intend to walk or bike, are you physically fit enough to make the trip?
• Long-term: Consider owning alternative forms of transportation, such as bicycles, quad-cycles, or ridable animals.

Do you find this information informative and helpful? Feel free to contact me and let me know. You can also contact me about ways you can support this effort.

DLH

Be ready now is a weekly post about things you can do right now to get ready for whatever might come next courtesy of Dennis L Hitzeman’s Readiness Weblog. You can find other posts in this series in the “Be ready now” category.

This week’s theme: Bugging out

• Immediate: The main part of being ready to bug out is to know where you are headed. Develop a plan around the kinds of emergencies that might occur in your area and consider everyone involved in your backup plan. Be sure to have secondary and even tertiary rendezvous points in case the primary location becomes inaccessible. Also, be sure that everyone involved in your plan has the proper gear available in the case of a bug out. Such kits should contain at least a three day supply of food and water as well as appropriate foot and weather gear.
• Intermediate: Consider what you will do if a bug out lasts more than a few days. Where will you go? Why will you go there? If you are headed toward a particular place, is anyone there expecting you? How will you get there? For every answer, you should also develop alternatives.
• Long-term: Plan how not to be a refugee. Refugees are people fleeing an emergency but who do not have the capacity to care for themselves in any appreciable way. The best way not to become a refugee is to accumulate the necessary gear and skills to be able to survive even if every other part of your plan falls apart. For instance, learn how to hunt with simple tools like bows or spears and learn how to properly prepare and preserve meat. Learn how to start fires without matches, and so on.

Do you find this information informative and helpful? Feel free to contact me and let me know. You can also contact me about ways you can support this effort.

DLH

Be ready now is a weekly post about things you can do right now to get ready for whatever might come next courtesy of Dennis L Hitzeman’s Readiness Weblog. You can find other posts in this series in the “Be ready now” category.

This week’s theme: Sanitation

• Immediate: The best rule of thumb for proper sanitation is to keep waste products away from people. Consider storing non-potable water for the purpose of flushing toilets, and designate a place to dispose of trash and other waste at least 50 yards downwind and down-water from people. Do not dispose of waste near well heads or open water. Make sure you have sanitation supplies, such as toilet paper and trash bags, on hand. Consider purchasing a sanitation kit to allow for safe storage and removal of waste.
• Intermediate: Consider purchasing a self-composting toilet or self-composting waste system for the number of people involved in your readiness plan. Locate sites for compost piles and trash pits that are at least 50 yards away from water supplies and are downwind from human habitation areas.
• Long-term: Long-term sanitation involves finding ways to permanently dispose of waste products and will generally involve three components: disposing of human waste, disposing food waste, and disposing of or recycling non-food waste.
  • Human waste can be safely buried at least 50 yards away from potable water sources, and functioning septic systems (that is ones that have access to water) will continue to function if cared for. Otherwise, an outhouse with a leach bed or a self-composting toilet can also be used. At worst, a pit that is periodically buried or burned can be used.
  • Food waste (yes, even meat and bones) can be composted, although compost sites should be located away from water areas. Composting can be accelerated by adding animal feces to the compost, by the regular addition of soil, and by turning the compost periodically.
  • Non-food waste should be handled based on what it might be. In a long-term readiness situation, most waste will need to be recycled for its raw material value.

Do you find this information informative and helpful? Feel free to contact me and let me know. You can also contact me about ways you can support this effort.

DLH

Be ready now is a weekly post about things you can do right now to get ready for whatever might come next courtesy of Dennis L Hitzeman’s Readiness Weblog. You can find other posts in this series in the “Be ready now” category.

This week’s theme: Hygiene

• Immediate: Buy a stock of body cleaning products that do not require water. You should have at least one package on hand for each person involved in your plan. In addition, consider stockpiling extra water, soap, and towels.
• Intermediate: Emergencies of any duration require a different approach to hygiene, especially if water resources are scarce. Remember that hygiene does not require potable water, but you should never used fouled water for hygiene. Consider stockpiling extra water, soap, and towels for hygiene purposes. You can build homemade water filtration systems from readily available components to recycle water for hygiene purposes. Consider stockpiling fuel and containers to purify water.
• Long-term: Long term hygiene concerns involve constructing systems that allow for the collection, filtering, and recycling of non-potable water. In many places, the best method is to construct an outdoor shower facility with a rain collection system, a collection basin, a hand pump, and a drum water filter. Water can be kept from freezing during the winter months by the addition of a stove and heat transfer elements.

Do you find this information informative and helpful? Feel free to contact me and let me know. You can also contact me about ways you can support this effort.

DLH

Be ready now is a weekly post about things you can do right now to get ready for whatever might come next courtesy of Dennis L Hitzeman’s Readiness Weblog. You can find other posts in this series in the “Be ready now” category.

If you have been following these posts for the past five weeks, you will have noticed that, if you followed the suggested plan, you will have the following things on hand for immediate readiness:

• A plan for what to do in the case of a disaster or unrest.
• 2.5 gallons of water for every person involved in your plan.
• A case lot of ready to eat food.
• A clothing kit for everyone involved in your plan.
• A tent (or tents) big enough for everyone involved in your plan.

At worst, depending on what you decided to buy, you might have spent several hundred dollars, but in fact, you could buy everything on this list for a couple of hundred dollars if you are savvy about how you spend. If you followed this plan, then you are probably now more ready than as many as 90 percent of the people in the United States are right now at the time of this writing.

If you did not follow these posts or the plan they suggest, consider doing so now. It’s never too early to be ready, but when disaster strikes, it is far too late.

Do you find this information informative and helpful? Feel free to contact me and let me know. You can also contact me about ways you can support this effort.

DLH

Be ready now is a weekly post about things you can do right now to get ready for whatever might come next courtesy of Dennis L Hitzeman’s Readiness Weblog. You can find other posts in this series in the “Be ready now” category.

This week’s theme: Clothing

• Immediate: Put together a clothing kit for each person who is part of your immediate readiness plan. The kit should include, but is not limited to, at least one change of underwear, at least one pair of good quality socks, a pair of work pants or jeans, a shirt, a sweat shirt, a pair of sweatpants or long underwear (That can be worn under the regular pants), a pair of work gloves, a pair of winter gloves, a stocking cap, a scarf, and a good pair of walking shoes. Other items to consider could be sunglasses, dust masks, simple tools (a Leatherman or equivalent would be a place to start), a winter coat, a rain coat, etc. Pack all of the clothing in a waterproof container or bag and store them in a central location that everyone involved in the plan knows about. If you wear dress clothes to work, consider packing a smaller version of this kit into your car or carry it with you in a backpack. If you carry nothing else, carry walking shoes.
• Intermediate: How much of your clothing is appropriate for an enduring emergency situation? Do you have the capacity to repair your clothing? How will you keep your clothing clean? Consider all of these factors for a period lasting as long as a year. Consider stockpiling extra clothing for everyone involved in your readiness plan.
• Long-term: Do you know someone who can make clothing? Do you know of a local, non-commercial source for fabric and supplies? Consider stockpiling raw materials.

Do you find this information informative and helpful? Feel free to contact me and let me know. You can also contact me about ways you can support this effort.

DLH