Survival in a T2K World

[Targan]

Originally Posted by Cdnwolf

That is the one factor under featured in the game. The rise of diseases from the past. I see chickenpox and even measles becoming a serious epidemic in a small town, never mind the regulars like dysentery and cholera. Black plague anyone???

Luckily most infectious diseases don't just appear out of nowhere. They have to have reservoirs among the population or in the wild. With the demise of easily accessible, fast, large-scale mass transport over long distances, the spread of infectious diseases from their reservoirs will be greatly reduced. Take the great influenza pandemic that occurred after WWI, that was spread all across the globe by all the soldiers returning from Europe to their native lands, and all the post-war movement of displaced peoples.

If you live in a country where a disease like measles has been largely eradicated, it will be a long time before you see it return. Unfortunately the Operation Omega repatriation of tens of thousands of soldiers from Europe to the US is likely to bring a bunch of nasty diseases into the CONUS at the disembarkation points.

Of course, diseases that are the direct result of poor hygiene and/or contamination of drinking water will make a much faster and widespread return. Their mitigation will require serious efforts and education regarding personal hygiene and the safe storage and preparation of potable water and foodstuffs.

[bobcat]

ok for MY situation im fairly well off.
north central PA being far from most primary nuclear targets though the iron works down the way might get hit with something since they do make parts for things like tanks.

if/when the village water supply gets cut i have a backup well dug(left over from before the water system got out here)

small arms, ammo, and reloading supplies readily at hand zero'd and kept in good maintenance(i'm still working on standardising some of it though)

as for food a decent garden, and my stockpiled canned goods should last quite a while

for electricity my brother and i are building a small windmill to provide some power with solar cells also being put in and a few backup generators to provide power as needed for anything beyond just lights pumps and water heaters)

the biggest concern should a T2K scenario actually occur is building supplies i don't exactly have a conex full of lumber and sandbags ready to go or anything.

but for 90% of any fucked up situation that is likely to occur i can safely say i should be able to last a few weeks of sheltering in place before i need to worry about too much.

[stormlion1]

One thing I've been thinking about in regards to survival is camoflauge. If its obvious you have power or food someone is going to come by and going to want to take it. Usually several someones and all well armed. For those sheltering in place, you have no wear to go and have to fend any assaults off or be prepared to give out handouts. It comes down to how long you can last. For those who plan to get outa dodge it really comes down to getting off the beaten path, but you lose access to any tools you can't transport as well as a built roof over your head. Any thoughts on hiding your forethought into being prepared?

[Targan]

Buried shipping containers make excellent bunkers for storing caches. Another oldie but goodie.

[mikeo80]

Stormlion,

I agree with what you said. Being away from population IS a better solution that being in population for the very reasons you state.

There is one problem, unless you are in a isolated spot when SHTF, you are going to be stuck in the city. Transportation arteries will grind to a halt within minutes. EVERYONE is trying to get the heck out of Dodge. Right now I could afford to buy a spot away from Fayetteville, NC. BUT I work on Fort Bragg. So once again I would be stuck getting out. Now, granted, with a T2K type scenario where SHTF starts somewhere else and takes time getting to the USA, then there is the option of evacuation. But, as was stated here on the forum a long time ago, when the first nuke lights off in China, the scramble to get the heck out is on. Transportation stops, you are stuck. Not fun.

Time to get off of my soap box.

My $0.02

Mike