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What disaster are you prepped for??

3K views 24 replies 15 participants last post by  IamElmerJFudd 
#1 ·
Over the last few weeks I have caught a few episodes of those various doomsday shows on NG network. Those people have some weird ideas of the end of the world. I doubt a comet will strike the earth with no warning and the mega volcano is not likely in my area, nor are tsunamis or global warming induced floods. No zombies are likely(although this one would be a blast) and complete social collaspe is tough to sell. A 1970's Jimmy Carter gas crisis is a real possibility.

I do not consider myself a "prepper" but I am mildly prepared for whatever disaster befalls me. For instance, during the worst snow year in decades my home was without power for eight days. I used my milsurp diesel 5K generator to power my home for 4-6 hours a day, it heated the place up, insured some pleasant TV time, got the home heated and the laundry done, everything in the fridge stayed cool and we were none the worse for wear.

There was 18" of snow in the road and I kept my drive and the nearby street cleared as well as possible. My trusty M35A3 was chained up and able to drive out with no problems, even with another 18" of snow it would have probably made it.

I have three kinds of heat in the home and shop, food for at least six weeks and my own well. If things took a turn for the worst, I'd stock up on more canned goods and dry goods and probably top off my 200 gal fuel tank. If the locals got restless, I'd build a tanglefoot and upgrade the fencing around my property then plant pasture grass over the whole mess. Nothing says funny like falling face first into barbed wire. I don't see myself building a "bunker" in the back yard or woods and then spending my weekends trying to keep the tweakers from hauling the stuff away or the high schoolers from using it for keggers. Putting it on TV is the worst idea EVER in my opinion.

I think shortages of fuel, food and currency are real possibilites. If the current socialist government continues to incite hatred of those with good credit and jobs I can see a serious increase in property crimes and theft with the government doing little to address it ( it would be a form of "income redistribution").

Violence from civil unrest after Katrina is troubling, lack of respect for law abiding citizens in their own homes by civil authorities gave me some concern as well. But, all of the problems I see that could use a little preparation for are fairly short term. I can see a general decline in civilization and slow failure of our government as it slides towards a greek style ruin. Then we end up like England, 70% of the country on welfare and a false sense of global importance based on our success in WWII, a second rate country.


What do you see as the "Top 5" or 10 issues people should be prepared for?
 
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#3 ·
More realistic disasters are Hurricane, Tornado, No flood here, Probably not going to see SHTF, TEOTWAWKI, in my lifetime so I'm all set for Hurricanes. Been through 6 of them so I'm all set.
 
#5 ·
retirement....to accidently happen....
no weather related damage has happened to us in 30+ years living in my house?
just around us!
fires but i have the stuff for that...
government shut downs.... mostly!
fuel shortages because of a weather related problems......kinda...
have been lacks lately.....
 
#6 ·
Fire (quite likely as we are in a heavily wooded area).
Toxic spill/accident. Major interstate junction, several warehousing complexes nearby. Large RR presence.
Weather, mostly severe wind or winter storm.
Political upheaval. No clarification needed.
R.M.E's. Random Moron Events. Such as "Occupy Something", or "Lets have a HUGE political rally", but not tell 50% of the attendees from out of state how exactly to get to the venue.

These break down into smaller concerns such as:
Loss of Water/power.
Stranding.
Refugees of various sorts. Mostly self-inflicted as they refuse to prep for anything round here.
Need to evacuate.
 
#7 ·
I'd say my biggest concern is a financial melt down, devaluation of the dollar completely wiping out the little bit I have put aside. Dollar has devalued to 1/4 value in ten years ($4 today buys $1 worth in 2002) and that barely includes the government's start of four consecutive years of trillion dollar deficits and printing money as fast as they can http://www.forbes.com/sites/charleskadlec/2012/03/19/the-rising-price-of-the-falling-dollar/

I am significantly worse off today then I was two, three, four years ago. Funny thing is I still have the same income and burdens on my finances plus inflation (which really does exists at a much higher rate over 1.2% or 2.1% what ever they are saying it is.)
 
#8 ·
I think the 2 biggest threats deal with civic unrest related to one of two things: 1.) Natural disasters, I.E. Katrina or 2.) Social services being cut off due to financial cutbacks. As far as a global financial meltdown- I seriously doubt it, the fact is most people dont have enough $$$ in a fund to worry about loosing value- half of all tax filers in the US made under 36K- these people are not heavily in any market. As far as the Government imposing Martial law- has this ever happened??? Besides they have far more guns and bigger guns than all of us combined- Im not going to give too much thought to it. I have seen, however, how quickly civic unrest can explode ( lived in LA during the Ridney King thing) All you have to do is restrict water for 3-4 days and people start to loose the ability to think rationally, " a dog will always find a way to get a bone"
 
#10 ·
In the desert I live in natural disaster is not likely a problem, except if water were to be cut off. It is rather inert as far as natural or global disasters are concerned. Civil unrest might be a problem, but I don't think likely. We do not have nearly the population density that most big cities have. We had an occupy group here, but in the whole time they were there, I never saw them or had reason to go by where they were. From where I sit, I see financial turmoil to be the threat. Either from a governmental collapse, or an economical collapse created by spending us in to oblivion. Were that to happen, may be we would have a threat from the drug cartels, like in the Mexican towns turf battles caused by failure of enforcement.

I understand for some, SHTF could come tonight while you're sleeping, heaven forbid, from a violent turn of nature or earth. I spent a day in Joplin, Missouri... all that I visited that day was destroyed in one storm. That is a scenario that I really don't think is likely here. May be the Nuclear power plant outside Phoenix would melt down then I would possibly live in a wasteland...
 
#9 ·
"R.M.E's. Random Moron Events. Such as "Occupy Something", or "Lets have a HUGE political rally", but not tell 50% of the attendees from out of state how exactly to get to the venue." - Plonker

That's a great term, "R.M.E.s," We should use it, it really does cover a lot of situations or conditions that are not naturally occurring.
 
#11 ·
A super volcano ANYWHERE on the planet could result in little or no food grown for one to two years and massive famine. Our government and most others do NOT have a strategic food reserve and farms and granaries no longer hold many weeks supply. Food is a great prep for so many disasters including more mundane ones like job loss or waiting for disability approval.
 
#12 ·
14 million + starving desperate people streaming out of the megalopolis of dark and burning cities ...
No prep except for hasty retreat to parts unknown and sufficient supplies to get out of Dodge on the quick.
A buried cache for an eventual return, if possible, after all the corpses have rotted and the stink is gone.
 
#13 ·
Re: R.M.E's.

Sadly that is based on a couple of actual events that happened here recently. Where I worked at the time was the end of the road, literally. You turned off the 6-lane highway, followed the 2-lane blacktop a couple of miles to the driveway, went through the gates with "PRIVATE PROPERTY" Signs on it, drove across the big parking lot & ended in a circle of concrete. Beyond that was just an empty field & trees.

The 3 tour buses got all tangled up when they ran out of road as they were following the leader in his motor home. Then the fun started yelling, cursing, screaming & fighting as to how when where & why they got lost & missed the entire political rally they were going to. It was about 2 hours East of me in a different state.

Unfortunately I'm beginning to think R.M.E.'s are becoming a bigger risk factor here than many of the more usual storm/disaster possibilities that we used to be ready for. Our motto is becoming "Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large numbers!"
 
#15 ·
I do not consider myself a "prepper" in the TV reality show sense. I'm not concerned about worldwide natural disasters, or pandemic diseases, etc. I'm not concerned with a nationwide, or worldwide social breakdown because I don't think the probability of that happening is very high..What I am concerned with is a localized, short termed disaster, be it natural or manmade. I've seen people lose it due to impending snowstorms. Why I have no idea. We've always weathered such events just fine, because we used our heads and remained calm. I've seen people turn due to the oil crisis back in the 70's. Again short term, but it had an effect.

I have alternative heat in the form of a fireplace. We keep enough food onhand under normal circumstances to last for weeks if need be. Two things I do need to concentrate on though are possibly a generator of some kind to keep food from spoiling for a few days and a way to run our well pump. I plan to remedy those situations shortly though. And, I've always been prepared for any civil unrest that may result from any said short term disaster.
 
#16 ·
One thing AmmoSgt left out was the way government deals with high debt, by devaluing the dollar. If you devalue the dollar by 50% or more like Mexico has done when their debt was due. The government still owes the same dollar amount, but because of the inflation created the worth of the debt is much less of a threat, but the people of the land suffer terribly. Just look South of our border. I am hearing a common theme coming from most economist, The government is going to keep printing money to devalue the dollar, creating inflation to push up the GDP and to lessen the effect of our national debt.

That said, how are you going to fare when the dollar is devalued another 75% - 85% this decade? If you read the article I posted above, they discuss the cost of oil being directly related to the devaluation of the dollar. In fact they blamed the $4.00 gallon gas directly to it.

More businesses will be closing because they can't afford to stay in business. The loss of business alone cripple the government because of the loss of revenues. When a business closes income taxes are lost, sales taxes are lost, property taxes, Social security, then there is the spin off from the companies that supported that business that closed and the businesses that supported that one and so on.
 
#17 ·
I couldnt agree with you more. Im self employed and my income is down 50% from 5 yrs ago. Im 45 and will probably never be able to retire until 70- there simply is no vehicle out there that will gaurantee my income at 90-95% of my highest earning years without being influenced by market conditions. My comment about global meltdown comes from the understanding the the powers that really control things (The Fed reserve, world banks) dont want to kill the golden goose- they still need it to lay eggs. And if thid goose goes down- the others will go down after it. Theres a big incentive to help us avoid a full collapse- I think its highly unlikely. If that where to happen-no matter how much you preparred- It wouldnt be enough. What my initail response pointed to, was what I thought would likely happen- Natural disaster and civic unrest are highly likely things you should be preparred for. Its prudent to have water, 90days food and basic medicine stored- trying to prepare for eveery conceivable event will turn you paranoid. Civic unrest is very, very, very likely to come
 
#18 ·
I'm more worried about some super bug taking out a good percentage of the planet's population. So many people using anti-bacterial soaps and cleaners, there will be a point where these microscopic critters will not be affected by it and wipe us out. We've already got an antibiotic resistant pathogen out there. If it ever goes air born, we're all going to be in trouble.
 
#19 ·
I'm prepping for the inevitable end of The Simpsons, that show has been on 20+ years and is no doubt closer to it's end than begining. The societal upheaval that is bound to follow has me terrified.
 
#22 ·
Here is a guy who kind of explains what I am seeing and how it will effect the economy.:

How an economy collapses... and how to protect yourself from it Part 1

...Could a similar economic collapse occur in the United States?! The harsh truth is that it is not out of the question and…let’s face it… we are clearly trending in that direction.

Back to the central topic of “how an economy collapses”. It can easily boil down to the simple dynamic of supply and demand. A good economy is a reasonable balance between supply (production) and demand (consumption). Put simply, when consumption greatly exceeds production, you have an “imbalance” which (if not rectified) leads to an unsustainable situation resulting in collapse. The most important hallmark of a successful economy is production. This means that people are producing (goods and services) through work, effort, ambition, innovation and initiative. This is usually embodied in the private sector. The most important economic incentive for production is profit.

The problem is consumption and the culprit is usually found in a single entity…government. No matter how you slice or spin it, for reasons both good and bad, the government (the public sector) is an engine of consumption. More government means more consumption and it also means a coercive burden on the private sector. What happens when the folks in the private sector can no longer sustain the folks in the government?...


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V4TF...DvjVQa1PpcFNvvIuRQ9w2Ohz3qbPgp8NKh63fP5SE1YE=
Here's the blog: http://mladjenovic.blogspot.com/2011/12/how-economy-collapses-and-how-to.html

How an economy collapses... and how to protect yourself from it part 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xtyq...DvjVQa1PpcFNvvIuRQ9w2OjPpbrLGBuS-KVyIsKd1e68=
Here's the blog: http://mladjenovic.blogspot.com/2011/12/essay-how-economy-collapses-and-how-to.html
 
#23 ·
I think we can handle anything if it doesn't hit here. I'm just stocking up on canned meats and veggies. My garden is full of manure and ready to grow anything if need be. If we make it thru the bad stuff if something happens we'll be ok for a while.

They predict so many things that can happen i just give up trying to follow it all, most of it is BS totally. If we lose the power grid it will send us back 100years in time. Thats the model T era thats ok with me.

I find the bunker builders very laughable with there 10ga steel as far as being safe. Most ammo will go thru that and then some. The marlin lever action 444 was advertised many years ago as going thru 3/8'' boiler plate at 50 feet. I'm sure the military calibers aren't too far behind. Then one bunker guy says he can shoot from the windows in his house at the bad guys which is silly too. The bad guys can shoot to were he is standing behind the walls in the house since there only plywood/sheetrock right? If the SHTF this isn't a paintball ralley or fun and games. If and when the bullets do fly i'll be gone to my bugout place in the mountains were there are no people. The people in the flat lands will be going crazy after the first 3 days its been predicted. I hope it never happens at all.

I hope it will be a new beginning like its said. I believe we are not of this earth and we were put here by someone to survive. Maybe were from the planet they say that comes by every 25,000 years. Maybe the people who dropped us off here will help us survive. Einstein did say there are 5 different dimentions and maybe even more. Maybe the wole world is truely a stage and were all the players. Someone is getting a big laugh at watching us then.

Lets be honest if there is really a GOD I hope he comes back before the SHTF.
 
#24 ·
Here is my plan, upon reflection. I live a few miles outside of town, there is plenty of timber for firewood, stockade fencing and fortifications nearby. If things crap out overnight, I'll get to work on my perimeter and workon my tan. I have my own well and my own backup power and fuel storage already. I have a large tornado room that is suitable for a fortified bunker/command post, fall back position. I own acreage and can start growing my own veggies and feeding my own chickens if the economy takes a turn for the worst.

My property is mine, bought and paid for. All I need is a few bucks for taxes. It is fenced and can get fenced again if need be, I'd love to built a lovely tanglefoot but the wife draws the line at that. I'm sure a diligent thief can get into the house, but he will get nothing of real value, TV's and crap, anything decent is locked up away from prying eyes. Besides until civilization fails the alarm company will call me and dispatch the cops. After civilization falls,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,I'll use bad people for examples.

When the end of days arrive, I'll use my decades of military experience to my advantage. Armed gangs of liberals and thugs will find themselves wishing they had decided to "redistribute wealth" elsewhere.

I have had to live out there in bad weather and through a seven day power outage, it was not a problem. I had no issues during a forest fire a few years ago, my property is well cared for in that respect. If I could not make it to the grocery store for a month, that just means I have to eat some more canned food.

Unless the Mayan calender thing is true,,,I'm ok for now.

The end of civilization is a slow slide into the sewer,,,,,,,,,,as in Greece. History proves that one,,,,unless we get invaded from space of course. Things will just get crappy and head down from there, unemployment will slide into the 40% range and all the lies about "creating jobs" will just be stuff to chuckle at on the evening news. Currently Spain has 21% unemployment and is dying under the weight of a "green economy". Many countries are slowly drowning under debt, just like ours.

I think the American disaster will be socialists turning our nation into England, high taxes, massive regulations and onerous government intrustion into every aspect of life possible, neighbors spying on neighbors, millions of "security cameras" operated by government agencies and photo radar cameras everywhere possible. We will also have in car spying thru GPS, Sirus and On-Star, as we do now and a general loss in freedom.

I don't "facebook" or blog my random thoughts, except here on occasion. I still use cash to buy things my car has a paper map in the glove box. I'll stay under the radar and enjoy my life quietly while the place crumbles around me.

That being said, I am stocking up on a few things. If it goes bad in November 2012, there is a good bet somethings will be banned, blocked or executive ordered out of existance by the bad people in D.C..
 
#25 ·
Lonegunman, only thing I would advise you to consider is a home fire pump that can draw from any water source. For less than the cost of an ATV or commercial quality lawn mower you can put out fires that could not be controlled with a garden hose. I can't endorse any particular brand because I haven't any personal experience with them but here is an interesting video.
 
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