Bail out plan?

B

beezaur

Joined
Jul 31, 2002
Messages
430
I keep reading about bail-out-bags and other evacuation type equipment. I have made similar packs, mostly for natural disaster preparedness (recovering after an earthquake, etc). I never considered actually evacuating, though - I guess because I have always lived in the country and saw my home as the destination.

I'm really curious what everyone's plans are and where you would go. Is the duration a few days, weeks, or longer? I'm also interested in the scenarios. For example, has anyone considered a situation in which you would leave permanently and start a new life somewhere?

Scott
 
In a true SHTF scenario seldom will anyone have warning enough to
prepare beyond what they carry. That is why I carry the raw basics
in tools to be able to make what I might need as I go along. Just
as man has done for thousands of years. The raw basics.

For a real good prview of what can or could happen look at the news
about war and turmoil in third world countries now. Those people are
in a true SHTF life style everyday. :(
 
"In a true SHTF scenario seldom will anyone have warning enough to
prepare beyond what they carry. . . ."

That's what makes me suddenly see "bail-out-bags" and such in a new light. Last year, western Washington had a mild earthquake. It was a 6.[something] - gentle skaking, but long duration. I was at school when it struck and headed home as soon as I could get to my truck, an hour drive. There are a lot of bridges on that drive - what would I do if some were down?

Here's the nutty part: I live in a house owned by my wife's family. The owner's stated plan is to torch the house in the event of an earthquake for insurance reasons (fire insurance, no quake insurance). Crazy plan, probably wouldn't work, but there I'd be. No home, no goods, only what was in a BOB in my truck. As it turned out, the owner beat me home, but there was no torch-worthy damage.

Admittedly, this would be a strange situation, but it still came close to happening.

No matter what the event, I think the outcome would be the same: you'd be dumped out with whatever you had with you at the time, probably with nowhere local to go if the problem was widespread. That requires a plan, or at least a set of possible plans, before any gear can be meaningfully loaded into a bag.

Scott
 
In my area (S. Oregon) we hear a lot about some impending shake-the-world earthquake. We also deal a lot with wildfires. Plus, toss in the occasional 100-yr flood (that seems to come back every ten years) and survival/evacuation become a big possibilty. We have no major cities around here, so urban survival is not an issue. The only real natural barrier to travel would be the river.

For short-term situations I would stay at home and make do - if my house is still standing. Plan B involves going to my parents' property and setting up camp. Plan C would only happen in the most dire of situations (TEOTWAWKI) and would probably involve a permanent camp back in the hills. We can get almost anywhere we need to go on foot, although it would take longer, so I'm not that concerned about the accessiblity of my selected retreats.

For advance preparation don't forget to include family and/or close friends in your plans. A cohesive family unit will add strength and comfort to your situation. My extended family made short and long-term plans for Y2K, so now we just keep those plans in the back of our minds for the just-in-case.
 
My Bug out bag really serves 3 uses

1) A Bug IN bag - 4 or 5 times, I've been stuck away from home, and I had a choice, stick where I was, or hoof it 17 miles home. Once I promoted a bunch of rides and the like, ended up walking ONLY 3 miles of the trip, and took 8 hours to get home. The other times, I used my bag to hunker down where I was. MY co-workers were GREEN with envy when I was able to change my clothes, wash up, shave and eat

2) My "Go" bag. I do Volunteer work (NYC ARES and NYC Chapter of the Red Cross)- if there is a fairly large disaster, I'll probably be at a shelter - not so much as a person needing the help, but as one of the folks helping run it. If done this a couple of time now

3)A 72 hour "Bug Out" bag - short term. I'm not really worried about the long term. I've had to do THIS twice - amazing how fast you'll leave when some idiot worker puts a backhoe through a gas main right outside your house. It's grab an GO - RIGHT NOW
 
Originally posted by beezaur
Here's the nutty part: I live in a house owned by my wife's family. The owner's stated plan is to torch the house in the event of an earthquake for insurance reasons (fire insurance, no quake insurance).
Click to expand...

I realize you've probably talked with them about this already, but in all likelihood the insurance company will be able to tell that the fire was deliberately set. Circumstances would already be suspicious (hmm..."fire insurance, but no earthquake insurance"...hmm...) and an investigator will be able to figure out whether anything happened during the earthquake that could plausibly cause the fire.
In particular, if your in-laws are so amateurish that they didn't manage to get any real damage done, I don't see any way they could fool an auditor.
Honestly, if they were my in-laws...I'd move to another house, and another state if possible. :eek:
 
Scott - your original question makes a good point - where do you go when you evacuate?

Something I try to keep in mind... Once you leave your home, you become a refugee.

I'm not saying that a BOB is a bad idea - I keep one ready. The point is that if you need to have some place to go.

While planning what to keep in a BOB, also plan for a destination should you ever need to evacuate. Talk to family or friends about the possibilities and make some plans.
 
Scott,

I am so amazed by this arson plan that I feel I must respond. I have for eighteen years in the fire service, so I have a little background. First, arson is almost always detected. The best you can expect from this is that your insurance company will pay you nothing, the worst, years in prison. If a firefighter would be injured or killed, the charge will be aggravated arson or murder. Second, the fact that you know about this plan (and have mentioned it on a public forum) could make you an accessory. Whoever thought this plan up is an idiot and a potential criminal. Stand up and tell them you will inform the police and arson investigators if they ever follow through, and that they should immediately stop any such discussion.

Our jobs are hard enough (especially during a disaster), don't make it any worse.

:mad: :mad: :mad: :barf:
 
"First, arson is almost always detected. . . ."

Sort of. This is a rural area where the skill of the investigators is, well... As an example, a local man who lived alone died in a house fire here a few years ago. They determined the cause was "smoking in bed." Fine, except that the man never smoked. Complaints from people who knew him made no difference.

I have a roll of duct tape in my truck specifically for a restraint in the event she tries to torch the place. There are others who know of her wacky plan and my resistance to it, so I doubt I'm in any real legal danger. The only danger is that she would willingly destroy my things, and like you say, no one would pay for their replacement. There are lots of other crazy ideas that come from her - just listen to Art Bell's late night radio show and you'll get the idea.

Realistically, there is a very small chance that

1) an earthquake like that will happen in the few years before I buy my own land AND

2) she actually does decide to torch the place without stopping to think AND

3) I, knowing her plan, am unable to stop it.

So yes, I am playing the odds, but as long as engineering school and land aren't free, this is what I am stuck with. The woman isn't *totally* without her facilities. Hopefully she would realize it wouldn't work.

Scott
 
I already live in my designated bug-out location, so I'm staying put.

If that isn't possible here, I'm hopping in my boat, which is already stocked, and heading "elsewhere". But I don't expect to have to.
 
There's a cool cave, about 8 miles from my house, up in a quite part of the fell's, there is a source of natural running water close by and if anything realy heavy kicked off thats where I would head. Its known by a fair few but they would be the types too hide under the bed;)
By the way Scott I think the arson thing is a great crack, mainly because I have been royaly shafted by insurance companies several times, infact wait for the twats to turn up, then spark the place.:D
Oh and Geraldo, chillout mate, take a look at some treads on P/T, If I actually thought those guy's weren't just bigging it up on the keyboard, I would probably come to the conclusion that the mad man ( or mad muslim ) in Washington is not the only gun toteing nutter across the pond. ;) :cool: :D
Lets face it we all like to flex our ego's a little otherwise the whole forum would prove Ray Mears right " theres none so bigger bore as a Knife bore......" Somewhere in Bushcraft I think.
 
Our bug out choice is really simple as we live in a valley with three exits. One heads 12 miles to the ocean (west), the other over the valley hills to the north and the other heads east into farm country. The route we'd take would depend entirely on where the danger was originating from and the type of hazards we'd be subjected to.

We learned the hard way that we needed to have a bag prepared in the event of an emergency when the floods of 95 hit us. Not once, but twice in a 3 month period. No sooner did we get everything cleaned up and the majority of our belongings replaced than we were hit again even harder. Copies of birth certs, Old I.D.'s, necessary medications, rope, flashlights, clothing, shovel, blankets, food, water and so on all needed to be within reach of the front door and the bed, so we made up two bags. If we were able to grab both, that's great, if not, we'd have at least one bag that'd cover our needs until we were either safe to return home or were put up elsewhere by friends or family. Now we live in an apartment with one exit, so the gear sits where we can grab it and head out the exit to the truck. We also have a permanent kit in the truck.
 
Speaking of caves,recently on a hike I found and im sure everyone else has to, a cave that goes into a mountain,im not sure how far back it goes but I yelled into it and all I heard was hello hello hello for about 5 seconds,probably pretty deep into that mountain.
I didnt go into it "no flashlight no thanks" I couldnt even see 10 feet into it.
Longbow I noticed you said you live in a valley and your from Cali,are you anywhere near the San Fernando valley.
Anyway Im going to have to check out that cave,when I can find someone with some nads to go in there.:D Cause god knows I aint going alone.
 
Featherstone, nope, I live on the east side of the Monterey Peninsula. We got some caves around here too and I've checked a few of them out, but none went in very far. The local Indians hid in these caves when the spanish were killing, er, converting them.

Because there are some fairly dangerous trails in our area, as well as many caves yet to be explored and I never know if I'll get home in one piece, I carry a fairly complete kit with me while hiking. I carry it in a vest which is more comfortable to me than a pack and the items are more readily accessable. I will sometimes throw a length of rope in a shoulder bag if I plan on hitting some unexplored caves while on my hike. Here's a pic of the vest with items showing.

vestkit005.jpg
 
I live in my area as well, and if I need to go somewhere, it will have to be to another island, and if that's the case, then the wrath of God must be in full swing. My biggest problem would be getting back to the island in the event I'm stuck on the mainland. If my home goes up or is destroyed, I've got plenty stashed around to live in, or I'll take over some of the nearby vacation homes that are empty 90% of the time. If things really go to hell, it's however has prepared the best, and can defend it.
 
Beezaur, I'm glad to see your plan to deal with the arson scheme.

As for my bugout plan, well, because of my job, I can't leave. In fact, my problem might well be getting in to work. My wife has two options, a local friend who plans on having people bugout to his house. The second is relatives either close or far, depending on the scale of things.
 
Originally posted by FEATHERSTONE
Speaking of caves,recently on a hike I found and im sure everyone else has to, ...I didnt go into it "no flashlight no thanks" I couldnt even see 10 feet into it.
Click to expand...


Brave man saying that on this forum.

You didn't have *a* flashlight?

I live in a British city, and I've *always* got at least two on me.
 
I could see myself evacuating for a number of natural disasters.

tornadoes or flooding could destroy my home. I am sure a number of other things could happen but those are the most common.

I have 1 BOB in my home and 1 in the truck, so I am pretty covered.

My in-laws live a few hours away and have lots of land so we would be heading there.
 
Originally posted by Robert H
My biggest problem would be getting back to the island in the event I'm stuck on the mainland.
Click to expand...

I keep an inflateable kayak in my truck when I head back over to the mainland :-)

I also know where my boat dealer (in Anacortes) keeps the keys to all the boats sitting at his demo dock, and he's a good friend, so worst case, I'll leave him a note, and borrow one to get home.
 
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