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One of my readers – Nick, commented on my last article and mentioned some details about his time during a hurricane in Florida. I asked him is he willing to write article about it, so I could post it on my blog because I thought there was some really valuable information too share.<\/em><\/p>\n Nick kindly responded. <\/em><\/p>\n I consider it as a very valuable and great written article.<\/em><\/p>\n He invested great effort in writing down details in it that actually show us some of the very basic and common problems that we might have during any kind of collapse.<\/em><\/p>\n I added my comments through the article (in italics) and few words after the article.<\/em><\/p>\n Nick – I guess I first started \u201cprepping\u201d, before it was a well-known word, in late 1999 as the threat of \u201cY2K\u201d loomed.\u00a0 I was living in a brick apartment building at the time. I bought my first water filters and water storage containers, emergency medical gear (some bandages and gauze), some back-up canned food, a few hundred dollars in stashed cash, and a Romanian AK-47.\u00a0 It was not much, but it was something.\u00a0 If the world was going to melt down, I wanted to be able to cover at least some basics.<\/p>\n Selco – It is great start for any \u201cbeginner\u201d prepper, actually it covers basics in most of the fields of \u201csurvival\u201d.<\/em><\/p>\n We can do philosophy for days about what man who is start in prepping actually needs to buy first, but it is basic-weapon, some food, some medicine, something about water and something about food, and some cash.<\/em><\/p>\n And then to build on that.<\/em><\/p>\n Nick – Fast forward to the 2004 Florida hurricane season when a \u201cthen-record-setting\u201d four hurricanes hit Florida in one season.\u00a0 I had my Y2K preps still, and after power went out from the first hurricane, I added a generator and some stored gasoline.<\/p>\n At the time I was living in a cinder block single-family home.\u00a0 Hurricane Charley was the worst of the bunch, tearing apart buildings, lifting roofs, scattering debris far and wide, taking down power lines and trees (most of which seemed to end up in the streets), and removing power from neighborhoods for anywhere from a few days to several weeks.\u00a0 And this was just the central part of Florida… things were much worse on the coasts where these storms initially impacted.<\/p>\n Still, I felt relatively safe in my sturdy cinder block house.\u00a0 It weathered the storm well, although the roof almost lifted off as a tornado destroyed a huge tree in my back yard (I was in the living room in a leather motorcycle jacket and helmet to protect me from flying debris if the roof came off).\u00a0 A gasoline generator kept the refrigerator running for days, and just as the food and gasoline was about to run out, the power came back on and everything started returning to normal.<\/p>\n Selco – Having generator in that event was great thing, and I like the idea how you used it (to keep food ok as long it is possible), we all just have to keep in mind\u00a0 that maybe if that event was more serious fact that you have running generator could attract unwanted<\/em> quests (noise of running generator means fuel, means possible interesting things in house for intruders)<\/em><\/p>\n Nick – Fast forward again to the 2017 Florida hurricane season.\u00a0 By this time I had been \u201cprepping\u201dfor a few years, prompted mostly by Selco\u2019s SHTF School which I purchased access to on advice of a friend.\u00a0 It was the most eye-opening experience in all my prepping so far.\u00a0 His first SHTFSchool program was gripping in it\u2019s simplistic honesty…<\/p>\n I listened to several lessons over and over again just to hear the real emotions he felt during his time of survival in a besieged city.\u00a0 His second SHTFSchool program was enlightening and thought-provoking in it\u2019s expanse and detail.\u00a0 Many times I listened to certain lessons over and over to be sure I fully consumed all they had to offer.\u00a0 Even today, when Selco posts a new blog article, I go to it eagerly and immediately.\u00a0 There is no more powerful lesson than \u201creal experience\u201d, assuming you survive it… and Selco has.<\/p>\n My main concerns in \u201cprepping\u201d had been long-term societal meltdown and the assumed ensuing chaos.\u00a0 Whether from economic collapse, EMP, civil unrest… whatever the cause, the result I was prepping for was the same… long-term self-sufficiency.\u00a0 By 2017 I had amassed enough \u201cstuff\u201d to consider myself \u201cquite well prepared\u201d… not as well as some, but certainly more than the average guy on the street.<\/p>\n I had several weaknesses, though… no secondary bugout location, and no network of nearby \u201cprepper friends\u201d.\u00a0 People in my area have not experienced much real hardship, therefore they don\u2019t see the need to \u201cprepare\u201d.\u00a0 They spend their time and money on pleasures, then scramble for solutions when trouble arises… so there are not many people to establish \u201cprepper camaraderie\u201d with.<\/p>\n Selco – I definitely agree with your concerns. One of the mistakes in prepper community is that lot of them are preparing for specific (and sometimes low-probable ) events, and by that they are \u201cmissing\u201d some preps and plans.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cSocietal meltdown\u201d sounds good as a starting point for preparing, to build more on that thought let\u2019s say good thought is that we need to prepare for event when \u201cthere are gonna be more people then resources, and as a one (most important) result there s gonna be violence\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n Nick – When the 2017 Florida Hurricane season started, I was somewhat \u201cho-hum\u201d about it… another summer, another storm season.\u00a0 \u201cWhatever.\u201d\u00a0 Been in Florida for 30 years now, no big deal.\u00a0 Plus, I\u2019m \u201cprepared to the gills\u201d, right?\u00a0 No worries, I thought.\u00a0 I was ready for anything.\u00a0 I had a great get-home bag and plan (in case something happened while I was at work), I had a ton of diversified supplies stashed, I had a big lake nearby for water and fish, there\u2019s a hospital a few blocks away, lots of undeveloped land to hide in for a while if things get crazy… no worries.<\/p>\n Oh boy…. was I wrong.<\/p>\n Selco – I have been there, and fact is that majority of us are gonna be there again, in the place and moment when you realize that \u201c everybody has a plan until they get punched in phase\u201d.<\/em><\/p>\n Often comes to good old \u201cadapt and overcome\u201d.<\/em><\/p>\n Nick – Hurricane Irma started off looking like it was going to skirt past the south part of Florida and disappear into the Gulf of Mexico.\u00a0 We watched it for days… we all have weather apps in our phones.\u00a0 I was watching 5 different apps as the storm tracked, and actually bet my work friends it would zip past South Florida and head out into the Gulf.\u00a0 I was more concerned about the poor souls in Texas and Louisiana than us in Florida.\u00a0 But then at the last minute it did a crazy thing… it cut a 45-degree north turn and headed straight up the Florida peninsula.\u00a0 Projections were anywhere from \u201crunning the west coastline\u201d to \u201cstraight up the middle toward Orlando\u201d.<\/p>\n That\u2019s when the chaos began.<\/p>\n The Governor of Florida issued evacuation orders for southern Florida.\u00a0 The streets became clogged with \u201cstorm refugees\u201d trying to escape.\u00a0 Florida has water on three sides… the only way to escape is \u201cup\/north\u201d, and there are not a lot of roads you can use to do that.\u00a0 The Florida Turnpike was clogged nearly dead stop for 2 days… back streets through the countryside were bumper-to-bumper.\u00a0 The four-lane road that runs through my town was clogged northbound for 1.5 days with endless lines of cars full of people and belongings… it never stopped.\u00a0 Day and night they came.\u00a0 I had no idea there were so many people in south Florida, and that it would be so hard to get them out of an area.\u00a0 I wondered about the simple things… will they get out in time?\u00a0 Where are they going?\u00a0 What about gas?…most cars were idling in bumper-to-bumper traffic… where are they going to get more gas?<\/p>\n The gas stations had been sold out of gas the first day of the evacuation, and it was hard for the tanker trucks to get more out to them. Bottled water was gone from almost everywhere, canned food was gone, bread was gone, batteries were gone, flashlights\/headlamps were gone, the camping section of the local department store was stripped of everything from camp stoves\/propane bottles to dehydrated food to sleeping bags to bug spray… all the normal \u201cpanic buying\u201d stuff was gone.\u00a0 I wasn\u2019t worried, I was just out picking up a few things to top off my stash… but I was concerned about the rest of the population around me.<\/p>\n Selco – It seems to me that you missed the moment to \u201cbug out\u201d, usually it is not moment when everybody else chooses to bug out. It is bit before them, or sometimes even after.<\/em><\/p>\n Nick – I went home and put the pre-fitted plywood boards over my windows.\u00a0 I charged my emergency lighting systems. I checked my long-term food preparations and stored up\/treated some backup water. Everything looked good, and I wasn\u2019t expecting anything bad… as hurricanes travel over land, they weaken… I was expecting a Category 2 or 1 storm by the time it got to me.\u00a0 But then the bad news came….<\/p>\n Projections were saying possible Category 3 winds at my location, within hours.\u00a0 That\u2019s a problem.\u00a0 My house is overhung by several enormous Live Oak trees that have been here for a very long time.\u00a0 The house I was in at the time of Hurricane Irma is totally wood and built about 95 years ago.\u00a0 The overhanging trees are at least that old.\u00a0 They are also huge with very, very thick overhanging branches.\u00a0 If one big branch were to break off it would go through the house, and if one of those trees were to fall on the house, it would be complete destruction.\u00a0 I had decided that if the projections were for Category 3 winds or better, I would \u201cabandon ship\u201d so as not to risk being crushed by falling wood.\u00a0 And now, that Category 3 wind was being projected.<\/p>\n Ok, so I have about 2.5 hours to find a safe place to be.\u00a0 I don\u2019t befriend my neighbors, and their houses are no better off than mine anyway.\u00a0 I don\u2019t want to go to a buddy\u2019s place, because the closest buddy is 45 minutes drive away… if this storm is bad, and the roads are blocked like they were after Hurricane Charley, I might not be able to get back to my house for days.\u00a0 I had not packed for a bugout since my stuff is largely at home… I had planned to stand fast in the event of disaster.\u00a0 But the overhanging trees said I had to get out… being potentially crushed to death by trees was not an acceptable scenario.<\/p>\n I went online to check for local hurricane shelters (fortunately the storm had not gotten bad yet, and internet was still up).\u00a0 I found two possible places and went to the closest one… it was a high school made of cinder blocks… very sturdy, and big, and it was less than a mile from my house. \u201cCool… if the roads are trashed afterward, I can still walk back to my house to protect it from looters.\u201d\u00a0 But since I had not made a bugout bag, I had to put one together fast.\u00a0 Food… but how do I cook it?\u00a0 Can\u2019t make fire inside…. need food that doesn\u2019t require cooking. Fortunately I had some emergency rations.\u00a0 Clothing… how much do I need?\u00a0 I might be there for a day.\u00a0 Water… how much to bring?\u00a0 No telling if running water will be in stable supply after the storm.\u00a0 Protection… need to pack a pistol… never know what I\u2019ll encounter on the walk home.\u00a0 Money, cell phone, backup battery pack for the cell phone, sleeping gear… I saw one lady online had a tent set up inside a shelter so she had privacy…. a good idea.\u00a0 I packed a tent and a light blanket.\u00a0 And a poncho. And a headlamp.\u00a0 And toilet paper.\u00a0 And anything else I thought was essential.\u00a0 I had never been to an emergency shelter so I did now know what to expect, what would be provided (if anything), or for how long.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em>Selco – It is good that you choose to \u201cabandon ship\u201d, because lot of folks may not choose that (fear for stuff in house etc), checking for shelters (on still working) internet is cool.<\/em><\/p>\n Nick – Time to do a recon trip.<\/p>\n I drove to the shelter to check it out.\u00a0 Outside were four big Army National Guard vehicles and 3 police cruisers.\u00a0 This didn\u2019t look too good… I felt like I was \u201cswimming into the jaws of the shark, not toward the safety of the shoreline\u201d.\u00a0 It was raining and windy… the storm was about 1.5 hours away now.\u00a0 I walked up to go inside, then had to turn around and go back to the truck… \u201cno weapons allowed inside, even if you have a concealed carry license\u201d the sign said.\u00a0 It was looking worse by the minute.<\/p>\n After ditching my pistol in the truck, I went back inside and was immediately faced with several Army National Guard soldiers in full uniform.\u00a0 Behind them, three local police officers. Near them, a pair of folding tables with several frazzled-looking young women handling lists of \u201cthis and that\u201d.\u00a0 I walked around surveying the place, which caused the soldiers and police to watch me in turn.\u00a0 There seemed to be snacks available for purchase as desired, and there was a white board with writing on it listing mealtimes… lunch, dinner, and breakfast.\u00a0 I asked one of the ladies \u201cYou\u2019re going to serve meals?\u201d\u00a0 She said \u201coh, yes… we don\u2019t want you to go hungry.\u201d\u00a0 How nice. She started describing the menu, but I didn\u2019t really hear her….<\/p>\n \u201cHow many people are you expecting?\u201d I asked.<\/p>\n \u201cAbout 300 to 400\u201d.\u00a0 There were maybe 20 or 30 in the gymnasium of the school already.\u00a0 I estimated capacity of the floor space to reasonably be about 300.\u00a0 400 would be cramped and potentially invite \u201cpersonality clashes\u201d.\u00a0 Of the 20 or 30 people already there, about 1\/3 of them looked like trouble or idiots… too high a percentage in my estimation.\u00a0 I went to check the rest room facilities… what would that be like for 400 people?\u00a0 In a word, \u201cterribly inadequate\u201d.\u00a0 Just three toilets in the men\u2019s room, and other areas of the school were marked \u201cinaccessible\u201d. There was already a homeless guy in the men\u2019s room taking a \u201csponge bath\u201d and making a mess of the place, and the real crisis had not hit yet.\u00a0 This was not looking good.<\/p>\n I went back up to the ladies at the desk and asked them what I needed to know about staying there.\u00a0 If I decided to stay with them, I had to sign in…and if leaving I had to sign out, but I\u2019d likely not be leaving… at least not for 24 hours.\u00a0 \u201cThe Sheriff has issued a curfew for 24 hours… you\u2019ll be with us for that duration.\u201d\u00a0 Oh, great… locked in here with no ability to leave under threat of police and soldiers.\u00a0 Not looking good at all.\u00a0 Still, it was that or risk being crushed to death by falling trees.\u00a0 I was beginning to accept the idea of the shelter.<\/p>\n …but then the bus came in.\u00a0 A school bus.\u00a0 And another school bus behind it.\u00a0 When the doors opened what trailed out was a stream of people that I am certain were from the local drug rehabilitation center.\u00a0 All ages, both genders, dressed every crazy which way, many babbling to themselves, most carrying nothing, some carrying bundles of stuff wrapped up in sheets, none dressed for the weather… it was like watching a clip from \u201cThe Walking Dead\u201d, if it had a \u201cpsychotics\u201d episode.\u00a0 God bless these poor souls, but it was shocking to see.\u00a0 I asked one of the soldiers \u201cWhere are these busses coming from?\u201d\u00a0 He was busy staring blankly at the new arrivals… \u201cI don\u2019t know…\u201d he said flatly and quietly.<\/p>\n That was it… I was out.\u00a0 No protection allowed, insufficient toilets, and 24 hours of \u201cforced safety\u201d in the close company of questionable characters…. that\u2019s not for me.<\/p>\n I drove back to my house and pondered possible answers.\u00a0 There was another school designated as a shelter 11 miles away, but likely the same rules and a much longer walk back to the house if the roads were blocked.\u00a0 I had to find a place to hide from the storm that wasn\u2019t an \u201cofficial shelter\u201d, and I figured I had about an hour to find it.<\/p>\n Selco – Yeah, this may look as a tough choice, for me personally it would be easy choice, even if that means I would need to crawl in some hole somewhere I still would not choose to stay without weapon with bunch of other people, without control when I can go out, with armed people who control that. More about this later.<\/em><\/p>\n Nick – I tossed my hastily-formed bugout bag into my truck, grabbed a pair of tall waterproof boots and a heavy duty poncho, some beef jerky and a canteen of water, and drove into town. \u00a0I had been scouting out hiding places the day before the storm, just in case I needed to tuck my truck into a cubby-hole somewhere for a few hours.\u00a0 The places I had scoped out were already occupied by people with the same idea I had… \u201chide your car from damage\u201d.\u00a0 Drat.\u00a0 Now what?\u00a0 Well, I decided to play it by ear.\u00a0 I went back to my house, pulled out some panels from my fence so I could drive through, parked in my own back yard out of the reach of potentially-falling trees, and settled in to wait it out.<\/p>\n Selco – You had good idea there, to check day earlier about possible spaces for your truck<\/em><\/p>\n Nick – The storm started promptly and in about 2 hours things were going badly.\u00a0 The wind was up, the rain was thick, power lines and transformers were blowing up with buzzing zaps and green\/blue\/white fireballs… everything was dark and the rain was sheeting white.\u00a0 Pieces of palm trees, and small branches from oak trees, were bouncing off my truck, its doors, and windows.\u00a0 Then somewhere down the street I heard a tree tear apart… that splintering crashing bang of something sturdy completely failing from stress and pressure.\u00a0 I had to move out… I was too exposed in my yard, and things were getting worse every 10 minutes.<\/p>\n I drove out of my yard and just followed \u201cinstinct\u201d into town.\u00a0 The first thing I came upon was the tree I heard shatter… it was large, and laying across the street in front of me.\u00a0 The rain was so thick I had to get within two car lengths of it to see what it truly was.\u00a0 Then I had to back up and take a different route.\u00a0 I was headed into the wind so my truck was not rocking much, but the rain was so thick I had to drive slowly, even with the wipers on \u201chigh\u201d.\u00a0 It was a number of blocks before I was in the little \u201cdowntown\u201d area of my town.\u00a0 There had to be something I could park under\/into for a few hours.\u00a0 I even prepared myself for being confronted by homeowners if I needed to shelter on the side of their house.<\/p>\n Fortunately, I didn\u2019t have to.\u00a0 I found a small service driveway on the leeward side of City Hall.\u00a0 It was right up close to a 5-story high building made of solid brick, and the wall was wide too.\u00a0 On the other side of that wall was a huge long building, so there was plenty of sturdy protection.\u00a0 I used my phone to google a satellite image of the top of the building looking for nearby rooftop equipment… air conditioning units, etc… anything that might come loose and tumble off the top of the roof onto my parked truck.\u00a0 Nope, looked clean… nothing close enough to worry about.<\/p>\n I parked, shut off the lights, kicked the seat back to lower my visual profile, locked my doors, chambered a round in my pistol (I had taken the rifle out of the truck due to curfew…. if I\u2019m stopped, it\u2019s easy to explain a pistol, not so easy to explain a rifle), and set my snacks, water, and poncho nearby to wait it all out.\u00a0 The storm continued to grow in strength, but where I had my truck parked was so calm there was hardly any wind at all.\u00a0 Thin, straggly bushes near my truck door were hardly even moving while bushes and trees \u201cout in the wind\u201d were being twisted apart.<\/p>\n The storm intensified steadily and rapidly.\u00a0 If I remember correctly the winds were 88 MPH (miles per hour) steady, with stronger gusts.\u00a0 You could tell when the stronger gusts hit…. the rain started blowing nearly horizontally, debris from buildings, yards, and trees would fly or roll by, and street signs would flex and rotate in ways you would not think possible.\u00a0 In the distance there was the sound of crashing and snapping trees.\u00a0 Flashes in the dark distance indicated more power line damage.<\/p>\n This went on for hours throughout the night.\u00a0 I drifted in and out of sleep.\u00a0 Some time in the wee hours of the morning, still during the darkness, I noticed the steady howl of the wind was lowering… the speed was reducing.\u00a0 Phone apps said wind speed was down into the 60 MPH range.\u00a0 Good, it\u2019s lessening…. I planned to go back to my house once it got into the 40 MPH range.\u00a0 I needed to see if anything had fallen through that flimsy wood structure.\u00a0 In the meantime, I went back to sleep.<\/p>\n I awoke a short time later… wind and rain were still blowing but it was driveable.\u00a0 I sat up and rubbed my eyes and prepared to roll out toward home, just a few blocks away.<\/p>\n Then… the cops showed up.<\/p>\n Initially they drove up at a 90 degree angle to my truck and stopped… they obviously saw me move inside it.\u00a0 Drat…\u00a0 So I sat fully up, smiled, and waved at them, hoping they would see I was okay and they would go away.\u00a0 Nope, they pulled up next to my truck, facing the opposite way from me, and rolled down their passenger side window.\u00a0 There were two of them in their \u201cemergency truck\u201d… a Ford diesel pickup with police markings all over it, as well as all the off-road goodies… lift kit, off-road tires, basher bumper, spotlights, etc… I didn\u2019t know our little town had a truck like that… where do they hide these things?<\/p>\n I rolled down my passenger window so I could hear them, and I kept my hands on the steering wheel so they would not get nervous…<\/p>\n \u201cWhat are you doing out here??\u201d the passenger cop yelled over the wind.<\/p>\n \u201cWaiting out the storm.\u201d<\/p>\n They both stared at me in silence.<\/p>\n \u201cWhy aren\u2019t you home?\u201d he yelled.<\/p>\n \u201cI live in a small wooden house under huge trees… I didn\u2019t want them falling on me.\u201d<\/p>\n They stared at me in silence.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s right down the street, a few blocks away\u201d, and I pointed in the direction I was referencing.<\/p>\n They both turned their heads and looked down the street into darkness and fallen trees.\u00a0 And they \u00a0stared that way for an oddly long period of time.<\/p>\n Eventually I said \u201c…. and I was just leaving to go there now, when you pulled up.\u201d<\/p>\n They turned to look at me….<\/p>\n \u201cGood!\u201d the passenger-side cop snarled.\u00a0 He closed his window and they drove off.\u00a0 I likewise closed my window, turned on my lights, and slowly drove off and back home. I thanked God for his help with the cops… they could have easily arrested me for breaking curfew.\u00a0 For a few minutes there it felt like the Star Wars scene: \u201c…these are not the droids you\u2019re looking for….\u201d<\/p>\n I arrived to find no trees perforating my house, but a ton of \u201cyard debris\u201d everywhere, (took days to clean up), portions of my fence blown down, power out, and some streets blocked by fallen trees.\u00a0 My suspicion that trees could fall was substantiated, but thank God, none of them were on my house.\u00a0 I parked in my back yard and went inside the house to check on things… the high waterproof boots, large poncho and waterproof headlamp came in handy for that, but I could have used a face shield to deflect the wind, rain, debris, and roof runoff that was still happening during the steady 40MPH winds.\u00a0 There was no power on inside, and there were some roof leaks, but overall the place was intact.\u00a0 God is good.<\/p>\n While I was sheltering in my truck near the City Hall, I made a list 3 pages long of things I needed to do\/learned from this.\u00a0 I was honestly somewhat embarrassed that after 5 recent years of \u201cfocused prepping\u201d, I found myself without a solution for the most likely Florida disaster… a bad hurricane.\u00a0 That really rattled my \u201cprepper confidence\u201d, which in hind sight is a good thing.\u00a0 It shook out weaknesses I didn\u2019t know I had, and introduced a \u201cconflicted\u201d situation… curfew, but I can\u2019t stay in my house.\u00a0 Below are just a few of the things I wrote on my three pages of notes.\u00a0 Some apply to my hurricane situation, some don\u2019t, but were good ideas anyway.<\/p>\n 1 -Stock up on quality \u201cno perish, no prepare\u201d foods in case you can\u2019t cook food where you are sheltering.<\/p>\n 2 -Make an overnight toiletries kit, then make expanded versions to supply you for a week, then for a month.\u00a0 Grab the one you need as you pack your escape bag.<\/p>\n 3 -Make a bag of clothes for a day, then expand that to supply you for a week, then for a month.\u00a0 Grab the one you need as you pack your escape bag.<\/p>\n 4 -Make an overnight medical kit, then expand that to supply you for a week, then for a month.\u00a0 Grab the one you need as you pack your escape bag.<\/p>\n 5 -Stage these different levels of kit on shelving near the door so you can grab what you need and shove it all into your bugout pack, just like Selco suggested in his courses and blogs.\u00a0 Time frames are: 1 day, 1 week, 1 month.<\/p>\n 6 -Have tall waterproof boots, and an extra long poncho to cover your back pack and legs.<\/p>\n 7 -Pack your electronics in a sealed ammo can and aluminum-tape the seam.<\/p>\n 8 -Stock up on ethanol-free gas only.\u00a0 Stabilize it, of course.\u00a0 Plan enough spare fuel in the truck to get you out of a danger area without needing a gas station.<\/p>\n 9 -Make trap doors in your hurricane window coverings for ventilation. (can also be used as observation ports\/gun ports)<\/p>\n 10 -Keep colloidal silver in a nose sprayer in your medical kit. (During the hurricane I took a nose-full of dirty roof runoff water and it gave me a nasal infection… spraying colloidal silver solution in my nose cured it in 3 days).<\/p>\n 11 -Nose plugs, ear plugs, face shield (riot type) for being outside during blowing rain.<\/p>\n 12 -Garden cart with non-pneumatic tires for pulling buckets of water from the lake to the house in case water\/sewer services are inoperable.<\/p>\n 13 -Have a hand-pump well installed on the property, hidden.<\/p>\n 14 -Learn preservation of meat, fruits, and vegetables.\u00a0 Survival food has only but so much inherent nourishment.<\/p>\n And last but not least, Selco has always advocated a remote bugout location to get to (\u201cuse your bugout bag only to get to your bugout location and your stash there\u201d), and \u201csupport people\u201d around you to band together with when SHTF.\u00a0 He is absolutely right, but those two things I lack.\u00a0 I live in American suburbia… it\u2019s not like other places where you can \u201chead for the hills between villages\u201d and have a cabin there. It doesn\u2019t work that way where I am.\u00a0 Land with buildings on it is very, very expensive… most people have trouble buying one home, much less a backup building on land elsewhere.\u00a0 And most land that you can see is owned by the government, companies, ranches, or private individuals… individuals that will shoot at a stranger very quickly even during normal times.<\/p>\n I have two buddies I could flee to in an emergency, one is 45 minutes drive, another is 90 minutes drive… that would effectively cause me to abandon much of my prep gear, apart from what I could take in my truck… that is, if roads are passable in the first place.\u00a0 So there is much to think about… it was indeed \u201chealthy embarrassment\u201d to my \u201cprepper pride\u201d to find myself stuck out in a hurricane in my truck, trying to hide somewhere like a rat.\u00a0 It just goes to show… you can be as \u201cprepared\u201d as you want, but God and nature can still throw you a curveball of circumstances.<\/p>\n Selco – I understand your point there-you are prepper for years and at the end you end up sitting in your truck \u201chiding like a rat\u201d.<\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em>I would not be so \u201ccruel\u201d there, you choose lesser evil in that particular moment and it worked good at the end, you worked with what you got in moment.<\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em>And lot of times it will be simple like that, you ll have to work with what you got.<\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em>And yes, having luck will be always part of everything.<\/em><\/p>\n Nick – The best thing to have in any situation, I think, is an open, evaluative, creative mind and the Grace of God.\u00a0 With these things you have an increased chance of survival… because you can\u2019t possibly gear up for everything.\u00a0 Do what you can, think of everything you can, run scenarios to test your assumptions, plans, and gear, adjust as you discover and learn things, but for God\u2019s sake, don\u2019t get too stuck on one plan… because it could go to pieces quickly.\u00a0 Think, try, adjust, trust your instincts, and pray… you\u2019ll increase your odds of making it through.\u00a0 And don\u2019t keep all your gear\/supplies in one \u201cbasket\u201d.<\/p>\n -\u201cNick\u201d<\/p>\n Selco – All post event evaluation points are great and valuable, you realized on your own experience (nothing can beat that) how small things like dirty roof runoff water can complicate things, imagine how some leg wound from dirty piece of wood (debris) would complicate it, or even minor thing like wet socks (and no spare pair).<\/em><\/p>\n You mentioned more points in an email to me, so I\u2019ll go through them:<\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em>Overconfidence in your preps?<\/u><\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em>I would say that you were missing \u201cspeed\u201d in making decision, you made right and great decision not to bug out (congested roads), to abandon your house (danger from fallen trees), not to take community shelter (no guns allowed, possible violence, lack of hygiene etc), you took your vehicle as your temporary shelter.<\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em>All good decisions, but maybe (just maybe) you might plan to use your car a s shelter, prepare it earlier for that, scope earlier for possible \u201chide out\u201d for your car, and \u201coccupy\u201d earlier that place (before others get there).<\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em>In the equation of dangers at home because possible falling trees and that community shelter packed with people (different kind of people) and armed guard at the entrance (exit) and especially \u201cno guns\u201d rule I would too definitely choose my car and danger of storm by being inside that car.<\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em>Preps are good to have, to have right mindset to decide what to do next is more important.<\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em>Not thinking about worst case scenario, about abandoning your home?<\/u><\/em><\/p>\n Nobody like to \u201cabandon home\u201d, people take it as a surrender often, actually it is about making decision what make sense in that moment.<\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em>When you really adopt fact that you ll may be forced to abandon your home only then you can make really good plans for that, like BOB in \u201cshelves system\u201d, because you cannot have \u201cone bag for every situation\u201d, it is impossible.<\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em>Other layer could be your car, it needs to be prepare for abandoning your home with things like extra fuel canisters (not so visible of course), blankets, food, water\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em>After that next layer could be fact that you gonna be forced to abandon your car, so you can be prepared for that, small bottles of water instead of canisters of water, tarps, lightweight tent, backpack, small waist bag\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em>You mentioned above tall waterproof boots and extra long poncho to cover you back pack and legs, yes, it is great, because at the end that may be all that you had from shelter and you started with your home, it is not important how poorly you look if you survived.<\/em><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em>Being a lone wolf<\/u><\/em><\/p>\n Yea, it is tough if you are alone, not impossible (especially in short term events) but it is tough.<\/em><\/p>\n I can only give you two advices there: try to connect with other people, if that still is impossible then just try to be as better is possible in your preps.<\/em><\/p>\n There is no other advice, no magical solution.<\/em><\/p>\n You are mentioned that you have two buddies (45 and 90 mins driving from you).<\/em><\/p>\n It is something, it is some network. <\/em><\/p>\n Having all preps in one location<\/u><\/em><\/p>\n I already understand that you are living in \u201csuburbia\u201d that it is not some perfect prepper settings, but is there option of having some stash hidden somewhere?<\/em><\/p>\n Even if that means taking some of the stuff (few boxes) over to one of your buddies?<\/em><\/p>\n Yes, it is big \u201cflaw\u201d not to have some stash hidden somewhere.<\/em><\/p>\n If any other readers have ‘real life experience’ they would like to share, feel free to submit your thoughts to toby@shtfschool.com for consideration on the blog.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" One of my readers – Nick, commented on my last article and mentioned some details about his time during a hurricane in Florida. I asked him is he willing to write article about it, so I could post it on my blog because I thought there was some really valuable information too share. Nick […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[21,1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shtfschool.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44862"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shtfschool.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shtfschool.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shtfschool.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shtfschool.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=44862"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.shtfschool.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44862\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":46122,"href":"https:\/\/www.shtfschool.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44862\/revisions\/46122"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shtfschool.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=44862"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shtfschool.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=44862"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shtfschool.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=44862"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}POST-EVENT EVAL:<\/h3>\n