Disaster Preparedness FG Style

[nikoneko]

As mentioned in the other thread I've researched this topic quite a bit since the Tohoku quake so thought I'd share some info. It would also be interesting to hear other's thoughts on it especially in regards to Japan specific things.

I'll post info as I feel like it or find it. The first is on bug out bags (BOBs). These are bags, usually a small backpack, that are meant to be kept by the door and grabbed in the event you need to get out of the home quickly because of an earthquake, tsunami, etc. The bag/bags (one for each family member is recommended as you may be separated) usually contain everything you would need to sustain a person for 72 hours. It's impossible to say what every individual needs but priorities should be First Aid (FAK), water, food, and shelter. A typical basic list is from the kits that Mayday Industries sells:

1 - Backpack
1 - 2400 Calorie Food Bar
1 - Solar Blanket
6 - Pouches of Water
1 - Dust Mask
1 - Poncho
1 - Flashlight
2 - Alkaline "D" Batteries
1 - 2 Person Tent
1 - 50' Nylon Cord
1 - 12 Hr. Light Stick
1 - 54 Piece First Aid Kit
50 - Water Purification Tablets
50 - Waterproof Matches
1 - Utility Knife
1 - 5 N 1 Whistle
1 - AM/FM Radio with Batteries
1 - Camper's Stove
1 - Pair Leather Palm Gloves

Add or remove what you may need personally and don't forget special things you may need such as medications. Also it's recommended to have cash in there in change, small, and large bill form.

Personally I would also upgrade this list with a better knife, like a Leatherman or Swiss Army knife, a crank/solar radio (I found a great one when buying ours, I'll post the link later), 50' of 550 paracord to replace the nylon cord, duck tape, and a few other things.

Zombie Squad is probably the best survival resource I found in my research with incredible amounts of info to give you ideas of what you might need. They have pinned topic on BOBs: http://zombiehunters.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=36016

Also one thing to remember when assembling BOBs is they will need to fit your evacuation plan. Will you be going to a shelter, a family member's house in the inaka, roughing it urban style, by car, by bike, foot? All things to consider. I'm into the outdoors so my plan is to camp in the mountains if needed, so I include things like a good fixed blade knife and a hand saw for processing firewood, my fire kit which has a striker and various tinders, a small fishing kit, and even snares.

Lastly the kits sold here in Japan are an absolute joke and incredibly overpriced. Below are some links to US companies who make/sell them. I never found a retailer who will ship the full kits internationally due to them having food and knives in them so you will either need someone to reship it or by the parts you can individually.

http://www.maydayindustries.com/kitshome.html
http://www.thereadystore.com/survival-kits/72-hour-kits
http://www.costco.com/Common/Category.aspx?ec=BC-EC39718-Cat75277&pos=1&whse=BC&topnav=&cat=90742&eCat=BC|3605|75277|90742&lang=en-US
http://www.survival-goods.com/Build_Your_Own_Emergency_Survival_Kit_s/178.htm
http://www.campingsurvival.com/emergencykit.html

Oh and remember this is something you'll hopefully never need so it's probably not wise to spend a fortune on it...

[nikoneko]

[Coligny]

1- The list need version numbering, date of last modification and name of which person suggested what at which date (some kind of versionning)
I think we should avoid at all cost the 'dumpster diving thread' syndrome where you end up having to read hundreds of pages to have the info you want.

2- All items should be hyperlinked to one or serveral examples:
led flashlight (1, 2, 3-headband)

3- the list should include link to ressources website and forums.

4- the list should include books, to read before. and books to have with you (like the "when there is no doctors" serie)

5- Should include list of tv shows or movies. (NO, not including "LOST" kthxbye). To at least prepare the psychological side. "The Day after" was not so bad as a "cold war gone hot" description.

6- The full official list should be published by 1 person only (you or one of the "Elder Gods" of this forum (Dorian Greji, Kthulltaro, Shoggothmigirl...) and the background of the message containing each version should be of a different color to be easily spotted.

7- I read aboot the ZS (making dead things deader) what aboot creating a local FG-ZS chapter ? With T-shirt and hot booth babes at meetings ?

[nikoneko]

Wow I never thought about it so seriously but sounds like a decent idea. I have always wanted a good place with Japan specific info so maybe we can do it in this thread. I can edit the first post to be an index of the informative posts like you say in #2 and repost my BOB one lower.

And on #7 I don't read it much but you realize a big part of ZS is getting outdoors right?

[CrankyBastard]

Make sure you have footwear near your futon/bed before turning in at night.

[Mock Cockpit]

In before this thread turns into a "what will you do on Z-Day" gun and big truck bonanza.

[nikoneko]

In before this thread turns into a "what will you do on Z-Day" gun and big truck bonanza.

THIS. That is absolutely the reason I was reluctant to post it. Thought about it for months actually and only did because the Earthquake! thread started talking about similar. But I do think if we can all be adults we can maybe help each other out. (lol did I just say that on FG?) Some of us went through this stuff for real on 3/11 and I've never seen much info about Japan specifically in English other than 'omg radiation get out Japan!'

[Coligny]

In before this thread turns into a "what will you do on Z-Day" gun and big truck bonanza.

I'm not sure I get the smartness of this respsonse... One of the book I received this morning being aboot vehicle and shelter "bug out" preparedness. (any vehicle, from bicycle to Kamaz offroad semis... sort of...).



Beside... There's quite some sexy offering on this island...



Now before you ask, NO Mitsubishi don't offer this color... just as usual, White, Black, Dark Blue you'd swear it's black and silvers, every possible silvers... light silver, medium light silver, darker light silver, medium medium silver, light dark silver, dark medium silver, dark dark silver... It's like a 1990' Mercobenz color palette, you don't know if you should laugh, cry or kill yourself...

[Coligny]

Example of a quick vehicular advice...

Nearly NO (including the Delica) JDM car have a gravel shield under the engine. (a simple thick plastic sheet is enough and fitted to most imports). But something as ridiculous as a gravel driveway can send gravel striking inside the engine bay and kill it. It's something cheap, not that difficult to put and who can really help even on your daily driving...

[Russell]

Example of a quick vehicular advice...

Nearly NO (including the Delica) JDM car have a gravel shield under the engine. (a simple thick plastic sheet is enough and fitted to most imports). But something as ridiculous as a gravel driveway can send gravel striking inside the engine bay and kill it. It's something cheap, not that difficult to put and who can really help even on your daily driving...

Me bet we should start a thread "Disaster Preparedness Coligny Style"...

[wuchan]

my method:

Buy farm.
immediately secure the following:
gas powered forestry and farm equipment
minimum 55 gallon supply of gas, diesel and kerosene
fire wood
generator

Keep a minimum of 1 ton of rice from previous harvest.
Grow veggies.







The only thing I have left to take care of is securing a meat supply...

[Russell]

my method:

Buy farm.
immediately secure the following:
gas powered forestry and farm equipment
minimum 55 gallon supply of gas, diesel and kerosene
fire wood
generator

Keep a minimum of 1 ton of rice from previous harvest.
Grow veggies.



The only thing I have left to take care of is securing a meat supply...

For that, your farm had better be located in Roppongi...

(Sorry, Nikoneko, couldn't resist this one.)

[FG Lurker]

Buy farm.

Make sure said farm and said farm's water supply (including the watershed the water actually comes from) is upwind from any nuclear plants or at least 500km away. Probably easier said than done in Japan.

If something goes seriously wrong with one of the Fukui nuclear plants it will probably make water from Biwa undrinkable, a "minor problem" for the 10million+ people who use that water (me included).

My plan is having two residences, one in Osaka and one ~150km away in Okayama. I don't really wish to live full time in Okayama but I certainly could if things ever got bad enough to require it.

[wuchan]

Make sure said farm and said farm's water supply (including the watershed the water actually comes from) is upwind from any nuclear plants or at least 500km away. Probably easier said than done in Japan.

If something goes seriously wrong with one of the Fukui nuclear plants it will probably make water from Biwa undrinkable, a "minor problem" for the 10million+ people who use that water (me included).

My plan is having two residences, one in Osaka and one ~150km away in Okayama. I don't really wish to live full time in Okayama but I certainly could if things ever got bad enough to require it.

We have three separate wells two of which are for the organic rice.


I don't think Japan will have another fuckyoushima. In typical J-government style it is either "we don't give a fuck" or "hang the fucker for even thinking about it". Usually something bad happens for them to change stance. I have a feeling that the few remaining nuke plants will be shut down very soon.

[nikoneko]

The only thing I have left to take care of is securing a meat supply...

On some thread I read people were showing their food storage, the borderline nuts kind where they have like a years supply of canned goods and such.. a farmer came on and said alright you crazies here's mine, pics of the pastures with sheep and goats roaming about, pretty funny. (Sorry Greji no pics.)

Anyway, if you can't raise animals couldn't you do soy beans or nuts for protein? Just curious really.

[Coligny]

On some thread I read people were showing their food storage, the borderline nuts kind where they have like a years supply of canned goods and such...

I don't exactly see what problem it makes to have a year worth of food supply... I never have less than 6 month stock of cat dry food. Mainly because I buy bulk (expensive brand+bulk discount=normal average price)

Meanwhile I do think the mindset of this thread should be staightened ASAP before we start to all lose our time here.

[nikoneko]

Oh no there is nothing wrong with it, in fact I'll do a post about it later. It's just some people go completely overboard and just fill their houses with food while constantly looking for more.

[Greji]

The only thing I have left to take care of is securing a meat supply...

I got some great ideas on how you can do that!

[FG Lurker]

We have three separate wells two of which are for the organic rice.

That water originates above ground at some point and could be contaminated before it moves underground. I'm not saying it's likely but it certainly isn't impossible.

I don't think Japan will have another fuckyoushima. In typical J-government style it is either "we don't give a fuck" or "hang the fucker for even thinking about it". Usually something bad happens for them to change stance. I have a feeling that the few remaining nuke plants will be shut down very soon.

The import of natural gas to generate electricity is what lead to the recent trade deficit and is not sustainable. Japan's choices are to shut of the power, go bankrupt importing gas, or return to nuclear power. None of these options is desirable but nuclear power is the most likely path.

[waruta]

On some thread I read people were showing their food storage, the borderline nuts kind where they have like a years supply of canned goods and such.. a farmer came on and said alright you crazies here's mine, pics of the pastures with sheep and goats roaming about, pretty funny. (Sorry Greji no pics.)

Anyway, if you can't raise animals couldn't you do soy beans or nuts for protein? Just curious really.

I know that Mormons/LDS guys have a year supply of food in their closet (apparently one of the Church's commandment thingys), even Romney talks about it. A year's supply is a lot of food. A LOT. Even if you rotate it out, for a family of 4 that's a couple of tons of foodstuffs.

Anyways, I saw on the list that there were water purification but not any containers or fold-flat or CamelBaks or anything. I wanted both a CamelBak and one of those convenient water bottle with purification in the straw to be used in a pinch, when you can't or don't have easy access to the purification tablets.

Also thinking about MRE's and a better knife + Leatherman for sure.

Currently, we have the following in our BoB:

1) Passports
2) Money
3) Sanitary Stuff incl. my contact lens stuff, soap, antiseptic and whatnot
4) First Aid Kit - anything less than a Level 1 Trauma I can probably handle. It's not going to feel good, but if you need a surgeon within 30min or less, I doubt anything I can carry will help you.

5) PowerBars/Energy Bars and Chocolate
6) Water (2L x 2)
7) Purification Stuff
2 Days of Clothes
9) Knife
10) Work Gloves + Nitrile Gloves (see aforementioned surgery)
11) Dust Mask (3M Dual Filter + Gas Charcoal filter spares) and the usual Flu filter shit.
12) 4 Cell Maglite w/ LED bulb
13) LED Tactical Flood with 1500 Lumen output (for blinding zombies)
14) Poncho

What I read above does remind me to fill out the pack a bit more and maybe pare down some of the stuff I have in it already, for instance I would want to have:

A string saw
Firestarter or Fire Piston
Tent
Paracord
Solar/Survival Blanket
Small Variable Fuel Stove like an MSR or BioFuel stove (that burns anything)
Hand-cranked Radio+Charger

Anyone else for making up a list of BoB stuff that we want and can maybe bulk buy + make FG BoB's? *Just a thought.

[nikoneko]

Yes a bladder is a good idea, Camelbak, Platypus, and Evernew all make them. I use the Evernew ones, but only because they are made in Japan. The list from Mayday doesn't have a water container because their kit has it in individual packets. I'll do a post about the various ways I know to sterilize water next since you mention it.

And looking at your list I did forget to mention important documents, such as passports, a copy of your bank books, insurance stuff, etc. Great list btw.

13) LED Tactical Flood with 1500 Lumen output (for blinding zombies)

DAMN! What is that a Gentos or a Fenix? I get cries of mabushiiiii when I accidentally point my 160 lumen Gentos headlamp at people I can't imagine 1500..

[nikoneko]

Water is obviously one of the most important things you will need in a survival situation. Second possibly only to shelter and/or warmth depending on the conditions. Here are all the ways I know of to make it safe for drinking.

A first step to all of these with any water is to run it through a coffee filter, bandana, t-shirt, etc. to remove any particles.

Boil it. Many people don't realize it but you can drink almost any boiled water and it will be safe. About the only thing boiling will not remove is things such as heavy metals or chemicals. You just need to bring the water to a rolling boil, at that point it has passed the pasteurization temperature and will be safe to drink. Many people don't like the taste of newly boiled water so it's usually recommended to transfer it back and forth between two containers a few times which will fix the taste.

Filter it. Many companies make filters for camping and various other uses. Many people prefer these for the taste over the other methods. I don't use these myself but I believe Katadyn is the most popular brand for handheld filters. Also be aware not all filters are created equal be sure to research how well they work before buying one.
http://www.katadyn.com/sgen/katadyn-products/products/katadynshopconnect/katadyn-wasserfilter/

Purify it. Many companies sell water purification tablets. These are dropped into a liter of water and generally take 30 minutes to several hours to purify the water. Again Katadyn is a popular brand for these. You can also use bleach but it's not something I'm real familiar with and won't go there as it's obviously dangerous.
http://www.katadyn.com/sgen/katadyn-products/products/katadynshopconnect/katadyn-micropur/

Disinfect it. The simplest method is to use clear PET bottles and just leave it in the sun. According to the wikipedia it will be safe within 6 hours to 2 days depending on the weather.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_water_disinfection

Distill it. This is generally not recommended in a survival situation as the amount of energy needed to make it work outweighs the benefits.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Distillation

For me if I were in the city I'd probably want a filter but in the outdoors boiling it works just fine. I do carry micropur tablets with me though "just in case".

Hmm I think that's it.. If anybody knows more be sure and post them, and if I made any mistakes correct me please.

[Sa_Race]

Only a newb in Japan but if I were leaving here with ma family, one thing I'd buy for sure is some kind of axe/sledgehammer/pry bar combo.



Expensive and difficult to find here, but this could be the difference between a happy-ending close call and earing your kids burn in the middle of rubbles (sorry for the imagery).

[SIZE="1"]Also what is better than people looking at you with fear, speaking of the fucked-up gaijin with a psychopath weapon near his futon.[/SIZE]

[nikoneko]

[Coligny]

On the topic of water and bleach, the saying goes that 1 drop of bleach per liter make the worst cadaver ladden water safe to drink.

The informal name of the method is Verdunised... Because it was used during the battles of Verdun (mah hometown) during WWI

On the topic of food ration. Don't forget Jusco Bars/Calorimate... several perfume available... and quite usefull on a day to day basis too. Lightweight, cheap (jusco's are around 130-150 yens)... Don't even taste worse when expired

[Coligny]

Also what is better than people looking at you with fear, speaking of the fucked-up gaijin with a psychopath weapon near his futon.

I need that in mah car...

Road rage will never be the same again...

(They really drive like maniacs these days... I tried to do the 40kph speed limit on the route #1 at 1730... to make it short... I so all my life passing in front of my eyes... 10 times in less than 5 minutes... and without commercial breaks...)

[nikoneko]

On the topic of water and bleach, the saying goes that 1 drop of bleach per liter make the worst cadaver ladden water safe to drink.

The informal name of the method is Verdunised... Because it was used during the battles of Verdun (mah hometown) during WWI

On the topic of food ration. Don't forget Jusco Bars/Calorimate... several perfume available... and quite usefull on a day to day basis too. Lightweight, cheap (jusco's are around 130-150 yens)... Don't even taste worse when expired

Great info thanks! I don'r know the Jusco bars but I did check Caloriemates a while back, if I remember right the calorie to size ratio is not as high as the rations but would do great in a pinch.

One thing I forgot to mention, the other thing that makes the emergency rations desirable is they have a 5 year shelf and usually a really wide temp range they can be stored it.

[nikoneko]

The closest thing I've seen to that here (not that I've looked mind you) is the Chinese shovel. They are kind of a running joke in the outdoor communities but supposedly are pretty high quality and mostly live up to this video for what they can do.

[yt]VzpRh-ZE9Mo[/yt]

[Coligny]

Yeah, I got one of those foldable shovels in the car in case in got stuck in the snow...

Which would require first that it snows... and stay cold enough for the snow to stay on the ground...

Which happens for 2 days max... every 3 years, in this town... But the mayor better declare a curfew next time unless he wants again to see the streets turning into a live Michael Bay overdosing on RedBull movie...

(I think I really need to restart taking my meds...)

[Yokohammer]

Yep, got me a folding shovel in the car too.
But it's more for digging drainage ditches around the tent.
Or toilets.*

But yeah, it could also be useful for getting the car out of mud or whatever.
Or just general rubble removal.

[SIZE="1"]* No, not for digging drainage dishes around toilets, dummy, for digging toilets![/SIZE]