Preparedness

Miscellaneous
1

I know this is a gun group, but we all carry to prepare for what COULD happen. I always carry, but the recent train wreck in East Palestine, Ohio really changed my direction. In the end, we really need to be prepared for ANYTHING. Yes, that includes using a weapon in self defense, but what about other incidents like this.

I have now made a bug out bag containing enough supplies, food and water to last three days in my truck should something like the train derailment happen and I need to leave the area quickly. I also have an organizer in my truck that has work gloves, tools, tourniquets, first aid supplies and other items should I need them if I do need to leave home quickly. I even have a few days supply of my medications and food for my animals.

What sparked this was the train derailment and the fact that i have 4 sets of railroad tracks less than a mile from me. I know to some I may seem like a nut, but when SHTF, we MUST be prepared for the worst. Anyone else have bug out gear like this. Of course, I have pleanty of ammo along with the gear I mentioned.

Scott

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I have a pretty similar setup and it’s not being a “nut” it’s being prepared. I have a truck bag/setup as well as other items at home.

Bug out bag items (In no particular order):

  • High Protein and carbohydrate bars and 3 bottles of water
  • Metal water bottle to purify water
  • Firestarter and tinder as well as a Knife
  • Emergency Blanket (multiple is definitely better as they don’t take up much room)
  • Backup power supply to charge a phone
  • Flashlight and batteries
  • IFAK (Pressure bandage, TQ, chest seal, packing gauze)
  • Gloves/Mirror/Multi-tool/COMPASS!!!
  • Paracord rope
  • 50 rounds of 9mm for my ECD and spare 5.56 for my truck rifle.
  • Other random things I may have thrown in

This isn’t perfect, but it would help with survival for around 48-72 hours in an emergency which may be from something NOT related to a disaster or public emergency. It could be that I’m driving somewhere to go camping and my truck breaks down in the middle of nowhere or as we see up here in Wisconsin, the weather gets bad and I get stranded until emergency crews can clear the roads.

I think it’s also important to have experience using some of these such as a fire starter. If you don’t know how to use a magnesium stick to start a fire, it’s not very valuable to you, or how to create a shelter using emergency blankets.

Do you have emergency supplies in your home as well for if something happens and you need to shelter in place for extended periods (ie. nuclear fallout) or other dangerous situations?

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Preparedness extends beyond firearms and get home bags. In my view, people should be prepared for other man-made disasters. Top of my list include:

  1. Grid down for extended periods due to storms overwhelming inadequately planned grid connectivity, hackers attacking the grid, or just somebody with a rifle shooting up a transformer (the bigger ones have to be made and come from Germany, BTW, on trains after several weeks/months delay).

  2. Hyperinflation erupting due to our government’s inability to control spending. When the federal government finances its politically popular social programs, growth in the bureaucracy and military adventurism in the form of endless wars, it does so with money it borrows and prints. That devalues our currency (inflation), and when it gets out of control, hyperinflation like that in Venezuela, Argentina, Turkey, Israel, Egypt, 1920s Weimar Germany erupts suddenly. Think about how you’d fare if your pension and savings were suddenly rendered worthless in a few days/weeks.

  3. Critical supply chains. The pandemic should have illustrated how fragile our supply chains are. When the port of Los Angeles closes down, commerce stops. Dittto oil/gas pipelines, grocery store suppliers, etc.

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Good post, and yes, we need to be prepared for a lot these days. I expect that most USCCA members are “preppers” at some level or another. My wife and I prepare for natural or man made disasters as well as we can. We’re not going to expect to bug out and live on a mountain top surviving a nuclear winter for a year or more, but we’re ready to ride out a protracted power outage, food or fuel disruption, etc. And our vehicles are equipped with everything we’d likely need to survive being stranded for a time.

I mentioned in a different thread once about communication plans when prepping, and got no response. I don’t see it discussed, on these threads much, but I’d advise people to get a plan together that involves plain old fashioned radio communication, whether it be on the shortwave bands, including CB, or family radio frequencies, or even marine VHF, which has a decent range. Get a set of radios together, including a “base station” with enough antenna to be able to reach out a good distance. There may be a time when it’ll be the only way to keep in touch.

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Lots of preparedness minded folks here. A couple of the more recent discussions:

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I remember the original Hitchcock thriller ‘Rear Window’ where the guy in the wheelchair (a pro photographer in the 50s, played by James Stewart) has to stall/delay the bad guy (played by Raymond Burr). He uses his camera flash, popping flash bulbs in and out as the bad guy approaches.

Some emergency lights have an extreme brightness setting (the warning label often says do not look directly into the light). If you are unable to carry in a place or in a situation where you need a fast means of at least slowing an attacker, super-bright light may be a consideration. Hard to do anything when you are temporarily blinded. I would carry this in both a bug-out bag and a car ditch-kit. Here is the one I have: Ready-Hour LED Flashlight (also available from My Patriot Supply)

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Make sure you pack plenty of Peter Paul Amond Joy and Mounds, because sometimes you feel like a nut and sometimes you don’t. Ok I’ll stop. Thanks for the heads up.

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It may seem a little crazy, but I have a gas mask from Mira Safety. NATO grade NBC filter and a spare one avialable. Other than the normal prepper mentality, this would cover me for a chemical spill from the railroad tracks that are 500 yards away.

The product quality from Mira is just as good as anything the Army issued me. Not horrible price points either. I got the 7 series military mask, which is optimized for using a rifle. It has a little canteen with a drinking tube as well. For those who don’t want a gas mask, they sell respirators that will protect you from many of the same threats.

Just fyi

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I made these a while back, I vacuum seal this stuff into a wallet sized package. Put it your the Gin Bin or purse


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Not crazy at all. When I was in Israel during the second intifada, we were assembling infant day packs for lack of a better term and putting infant gas masks in them.

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I’m sending my oldest off to college in the not too distant future. I’m working on supplies for his dorm room.

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12

Sweden just sent this out to all of their people.

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13

Good post and some great info!

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But, you will be the hero when it all turns to crap. You will find your critics will become your greatest fans. You do you. BTW you’re doing what needs to be done. It’s still stuff that can be used everyday. Use replace move on. No shame.

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Mine hangs on the hook in the back window of the truck. Hung since the great scamdemic. Now just a novelty. Lol

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In my original post, I listed some of the things I have in my bug out back. Some of you brought up several good points as a good pack should be for available for bad weather, civil unrest, natural or man made disasters or other incidents that may arise.

My bag weighs 17 lbs. Some of the contents include:

2 Smart Water 33.8 oz bottles of water. (I like these bottles as they are durable plastic in case I need to reuse them.)

72 hours worth of dehydrated food.

Small medical kit, contact solution, extra contacts and case, spare medications I am on. (Just basics sealed in zip lock bags).

Bug spray, sun screen.

Lighter with medical tape wrapped around it. (I did this because I probably won’t need a whole role of tape, so this cut weight were I can.)

Toilet paper in zip lock bag.

2 small flash lights with extra batteries.

Multi-Tool.

Filter straw if I run out of water.

Bungee cords, zip ties, duct tape, rubber bands.

Emergency sleeping bag, rain poncho that can also be used as a makeshift tent, signal mirror, signal whistle, maps of the local area (GPS could go down).

Leather work gloves, extra socks, thin thermal long sleeve shirt.

Small pry bar. (This can be used as a pry bar, hammer, weapon, or can be used if you needed to break in somewhere get to cover if needed.)

Small solar panel to charge my phone, rechargeable flashlights etc.

This is not EVERY piece I have available, and some will be interchanged according to weather. I mean if it’s summer, I will lose the thermal top, the same as if it’s winter I can get ride of the bug spray. To me, it’s important to continuously check the bag every month to see if batteries need replaced and what you can eliminate or need added according to the current weather you are dealing with.

Pictured is my basic bug out bag with solar charger and the small pry bar I carry/

Scott

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You mean when we were told to “believe the science!?”

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Yeah, I did not believe the media pushed science. It’s like putting up a chain link fence to keep our mosquitos. If you can smell a fart the virus is also coming in. Lol

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19

You, sir, are way too organized. Nice bag and system.

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Thank you, but when SHTF, you can never be too prepared!

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