So Alberta had TSHTF, and many had to GOOD, and I bet only 2% where prepared to do so. 😈
On Saturday I went to town (small town southern Alberta) and noticed it was pretty damn busy. The volume of people was due to refugees from the floods. I overheard a woman who evacuated from High River saying "... all we could do was grab a change of clothes, jump in the car and go." I didn't take note of her purchases but she was in a hardware store getting several items. I would well imagine that a bug out bag of some sort would have been a blessing in her eyes at that moment when her family had to leave High River.
BTR
Than= I’d rather be rich than poor.
Then= I first became hungry then I ate.
There = She is there now.
Their = They have their things.
They're = They're going to the mall.
To = They came to the house.
Too = That's too bad.
About what Scotty said, in a real SHTF scenario it is called scavenging if you need something for your survival. Just wiki looting/scavenging and then use your judgement on when it is appropriate.
Food stores that you have will eventually run out so it all comes down to knowledge and how to use it. Think about the early pioneer settlers on this continent. They are real example of what preppers should work towards. They only had what their wagon can carry and they made use of what they can get off the land.
I was looking at how things were done back in the old days 18th century on how they made earth ovens and all that sort of things. It is worth it for a long term SHTF where electricity is scarce.
RG
I would well imagine that a bug out bag of some sort would have been a blessing in her eyes at that moment when her family had to leave High River.
BTR
I was thinking about the same thing, however, I think my GHB/BOB would be more or less useless in that context or similar one. I have spare clothing, survival gear, camping gear, water and rations in our bags. However, if I found myself sitting in my friend's house 2 towns over, and having to get ready to go back to work, I don't think my bags would have been of much help. What would my pocket stove and MREs do to me? How about my compact tent? Machete?
I think we all prepare well for an "end of the World" event, but for those very real SHTF of temporary nature, it may be something I'm realising I'm not as prepared as could be.
It will be interesting to read some "lessons learned" and debriefs from fellow members once life returns to normal,
I would well imagine that a bug out bag of some sort would have been a blessing in her eyes at that moment when her family had to leave High River.
BTR
I was thinking about the same thing, however, I think my GHB/BOB would be more or less useless in that context or similar one. I have spare clothing, survival gear, camping gear, water and rations in our bags. However, if I found myself sitting in my friend's house 2 towns over, and having to get ready to go back to work, I don't think my bags would have been of much help. What would my pocket stove and MREs do to me? How about my compact tent? Machete?
I think we all prepare well for an "end of the World" event, but for those very real SHTF of temporary nature, it may be something I'm realising I'm not as prepared as could be.
It will be interesting to read some "lessons learned" and debriefs from fellow members once life returns to normal,
While a machete would have limited use the extra clothing and quick serve food would serve a definite purpose. Being able to stop at a campground and have a quick meal would be far better than having to go on to the next town and possibly fight over bottled water in the grocery store of some small town. You might even camp over night if 'shelter' is part of your BOB. because you damn well know with all of the displaced people many motels would be full.
Those from High River didn't have to report to work today and I doubt that going to work will be required for most residents this week. I'd bet if that lady had your BOB she would consider it a lottery win.
BTR
Than= I’d rather be rich than poor.
Then= I first became hungry then I ate.
There = She is there now.
Their = They have their things.
They're = They're going to the mall.
To = They came to the house.
Too = That's too bad.
So Alberta had TSHTF, and many had to GOOD, and I bet only 2% where prepared to do so. 😈
On Saturday I went to town (small town southern Alberta) and noticed it was pretty damn busy. The volume of people was due to refugees from the floods. I overheard a woman who evacuated from High River saying "... all we could do was grab a change of clothes, jump in the car and go." I didn't take note of her purchases but she was in a hardware store getting several items. I would well imagine that a bug out bag of some sort would have been a blessing in her eyes at that moment when her family had to leave High River.
BTR
It is sad but it seems like not too many people (if any) saw what was coming and got the heck out before it hit and they were forced to evacuate...why people didn't see it and get their families out with their RV, campers, tent and move them east to dryland is beyond me...call in sick for a couple days if you could not book time off...,I don't understand it
lgsbrooks wrote
It is sad but it seems like not too many people (if any) saw what was coming and got the heck out before it hit and they were forced to evacuate...why people didn't see it and get their families out with their RV, campers, tent and move them east to dryland is beyond me...call in sick for a couple days if you could not book time off...,I don't understand it
I really don't know much about the water shed west of High River but one thing I do know is it is fast with little water storage (pooling?) capacity up stream. I do like High River, the people who live there and shopping there from time to time but with it's flood history over the last 30 years I wouldn't want to live there.
BTR
Than= I’d rather be rich than poor.
Then= I first became hungry then I ate.
There = She is there now.
Their = They have their things.
They're = They're going to the mall.
To = They came to the house.
Too = That's too bad.
Has anyone heard what happened to the guy from High River that did not want to evacuate because of his Boa Constrictor and other similar & expensive reptile/various other pets...would have hated to see snakes that size end up in the water.
Getting back to your original question.......
1. Have preps for a 3-12 month bug in; well stocked pantry, water and long term food items like dehydrated.
2. Various security options, this means weapons and training. Preferably convert weapons in addition to firearms.
3. In door, off the grid growing options. Potatoes will grow in a bag of soil, just put the bag somewhere that gets sun light. Spouts will grow indoors with out much of anything.
4. Learn to scavenge for food that others may pass by; dandy lions, cat tails, pine needles, small game, etc.
If it's bad enough that people are willing to steal and even kill for food, then all you need to do is wait for a few months. Most people will leave the cities, be too weak to be much of a treat or die off.
IMHO
Getting back to your original question.......
1. Have preps for a 3-12 month bug in; well stocked pantry, water and long term food items like dehydrated.
2. Various security options, this means weapons and training. Preferably convert weapons in addition to firearms.
3. In door, off the grid growing options. Potatoes will grow in a bag of soil, just put the bag somewhere that gets sun light. Spouts will grow indoors with out much of anything.
4. Learn to scavenge for food that others may pass by; dandy lions, cat tails, pine needles, small game, etc.If it's bad enough that people are willing to steal and even kill for food, then all you need to do is wait for a few months. Most people will leave the cities, be too weak to be much of a treat or die off.
IMHO
This is exactly what I think and what I am planning. The only drawback that I can see to this is that cities are the places that are going to be full of disease, so while it is useful just to wait until everyone leaves, gets too weak to be a threat, or dies, the cities will be crawling with sickness and that might make them uninhabitable. Thoughts?
Green acres is the place to be. Farm living is the life for me. Land spreading out so far and wide, keep Manhattan just give me that Countryside.
23rd
P.S. Sorry for the moment of foolishness folks....Need a self imposed chuckle every now & then /// Keeps me Sane' ish
LGS,
Mountainman can probably verify better than I but I believe that there was literally only a few hours of warning for those who had their radios or tv's on. For those who didn't or who were at work, or visiting relatives in Ontario like a co-worker, or camping in Kananaskis like a guy they interviewed on the radio...SOL. There was no way to properly evacuate for them. One lady they interviewed got a call from her father to come down to their store and start sandbagging; by the time she drove across town, the water was in their parking lot already. It happened REAL fast.
Like someone mentioned; so many on these forums talk about conspiracy theories and world-ending apocalypses (and who wouldn't because they are fun to discuss) but how many think about a grass fire or losing their jobs? I know I have to re-evaluate how to get back-up documents prepared and consider how I would evac rather than the current 'shelter-in-place' scenarios we are best prepared for.
scary times!
My friend that got caught also was sandbagging other homes than her own when she had to abandon her car and get out . That is one situation of a localized event to learn from and plan for . My own bugout bag is not geared for me to survive in the mountains, it has granola bars, changes of clothes , waterproof shell jacket , pocket knife, filtering water bottle , space blanket ,paracord , whistle , just stuff like that ... sensible hiking boots are located with it as I keep it in my vehicle because I find I am rarely far from my vehicle .
I am with Twenty3rdPsalm and do not want to be located even near the city in the more rural suburbs when a wide spread and long term crisis hits . Even Bosnia knew it was internal strife and had some outside relief and black market . If you had an EMP take out the North American grid and were not expecting outside help anytime soon I don't think my pantry and aspiring semi sustainable landscape would go unraided into the second week and it sure as heck would not supply a crew needed to protect it . Bugging out for the very skilled outdoorsman would be a challenge for long as a lot of people here would try to make an attempt to hit the surrounding wilderness areas and I imagine game if not slaughtered would be on the move and become cagey very fast . Your average hunter who goes once a year might not even have much of a chance a getting much ? Living in a more rural location that is set up is a much more consoling idea to me than trying to rations my 2 months food supply if real long term SHTF in the city or suburbs .
My own preps would get me through say an earthquake .
Getting back to your original question.......
This is exactly what I think and what I am planning. The only drawback that I can see to this is that cities are the places that are going to be full of disease, so while it is useful just to wait until everyone leaves, gets too weak to be a threat, or dies, the cities will be crawling with sickness and that might make them uninhabitable. Thoughts?
LP - My thoughts are thus; The odds are that significant events that may effect your life will be of a less extreme nature than you are considering above. Prep for what's likely first and once you have those contingencies addressed, take on the more fantastic scenarios. If you are certain that western civilization is in imminent danger of collapse, then there is no time like the present to sell out and start your homestead in the middle of nowhere just like the pilgrims did. If instead, you don't have a crystal ball and treat the 'chicken little's' out there pragmatically, plan for those risks that are most likely and hope that you live to a ripe old age surrounded by loved ones.
Antsy
Needs must when the devil drives.
LGS,
Mountainman can probably verify better than I but I believe that there was literally only a few hours of warning for those who had their radios or tv's on. For those who didn't or who were at work, or visiting relatives in Ontario like a co-worker, or camping in Kananaskis like a guy they interviewed on the radio...SOL. There was no way to properly evacuate for them. One lady they interviewed got a call from her father to come down to their store and start sandbagging; by the time she drove across town, the water was in their parking lot already. It happened REAL fast.Like someone mentioned; so many on these forums talk about conspiracy theories and world-ending apocalypses (and who wouldn't because they are fun to discuss) but how many think about a grass fire or losing their jobs? I know I have to re-evaluate how to get back-up documents prepared and consider how I would evac rather than the current 'shelter-in-place' scenarios we are best prepared for.
scary times!
With all the rain and mention on the news of possible river flooding & once the news broke that it was happening in other places so you know its on the way, & for High River (it is called that for a reason) people on the news said they worry about this happening every year...it just seems more people would have taken notice & made plans to be in higher ground (but obviously not with everything they own) when it came their way.
lgsbrooks and others,
When this is totally over and I am back at home I will offer up a deeper assessment of this incident.
As this incident is still happening for me and my family I will provide what I can at this time.
Facts:
Yes, it floods almost every year in High River, especially during Spring Runoff.
High River comes from a conversion of the native name for the "High Trees by the River". Whitemen are lazy, so it was shortened to High River. The River itself is the Highwood River.
The watershed for the Highwood River is probably around 2000 - 3000 square kilometers
The events leading up the flood included a cool Spring, slow melt of the snow pack, saturated water table and then a rain storm that dropped 5" - 6" of rain in the mountains and foothills in less than 12 hours. Like flash floods in the deserts, all of the watershed focuses that huge volume of water into one small river bed. There is nowhere for the water to go but down stream.
What was not known or was not communicated was the volume of water headed our way. In days after the flood, reports in Calgary stated the Bow River system had 2x the water from the 2005 Flood, IF that had been communicated early on people would have been able to make an educated assessment of the severity of the flood water enroute. It is funny we can have tsunami monitors in the Pacific Ocean, but do not seem to have streamflow monitors on key river systems in our province.
Because High River is flooded on a regular basis, folks around here are prepared for floods. This was not a normal flood. The saturated water table meant no water was being absorbed. Anywhere. High River has a lower part of town close to the river and other parts that are high above and kilometers from the river. In fact, some neighbourhoods upstream of downtown escaped flooding. In other areas, some houses escaped flooding while their neighbours were soaked. It was like the news footage of towns hit by tornado's or the wildfire that hit Slave Lake, hit and miss with no apparent reason.
Now, the part of town I live in is about 1 - 2 kilometers from the river. The river bank in that area is at least 20 feet higher than the normal river water level. Our building location is one of the highest in the town. In 1995 and 2005, our side of town did not get wet, from the folks I spoke with.
During the day, we stayed away from downtown to allow first responders to have uninterupted access to areas of highest priority. Because the magnitude of the water bearing down on us was not communicated, that I recall, we did not experience the threat to our property or lives. In the evening, around 1900hrs, our neighbour came over and said we will all be evacuated. I went to have a look and sure enough the fields north and west of us were filling with water, but not river water it was the ground water being forced up from the water table. At that time, 1900hrs, the water still had 6 feet of vertical gain to start touching our property. Peak flow was expected at midnight. Could the ground water rise more than 6 feet in less than 5 hours?? We did not think so. The water was already higher than the two worse floods in collective memory. Yes, assumptions were made and balanced against historical flood levels and available data.
We learned from the security personnel sent to instruct citizens of the evacuation order that in a couple of hours the town would be shutting down all power and with that the water would also be down. Hours before we heard on the radio that the sewage system was off line and for folks to stop flushing toilets. It was the loss of utilities that help us to decide to evac on Thursday night. We were not really concerned, we did not foresee a lengthy eviction. On Saturday, 22 June 2013, when I went to try to gain access to my place which was less than 400 meters from Highway #2, I learned there was a second flood event that occurred Thursday night or early Friday. The river became constricted downstream of High River, this caused a backflow - a current of rising water to travel upstream. This new body of water forced its way into NE and SE High River and immediately flowed into all low lying areas in those parts of town, until the water hit 12th Avenue South. This roadway acted like a dike and the water went no further South in our area of town. Once full of water a lake was created. It went from 12th Avenue in High River - North through the fields to Cargill. In SE/NE High River we have a lake that is about 500+ acres that is 5' to 20'+ deep. After putting a berm around to prevent water from returning and turning on 3x 12" high volume water pumps, the lake water level reduced by an inch in 24 hours of pumping.
This was not an event of we did not know a flood was coming. It was an event of how big is the flood that is coming.
I will try to provide more details once I know them.
For those who plan to bug in and never bug out, I would like to suggest to you to have some sort of bug out plan, for events you did not expect. I like High River, it is good community. We picked a place that was high and dry, in the end it did not matter. We were or would have been forced out.
Good health to my fellow evacuatees,
May we all be home soon!
Mountainman.