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Bug Out Bag

edited August 2010 in Everything Else
This question is somewhat related to zombie apocalypse, but with a more practical application.

Do you have a "Bug Out Bag" in case of an emergency (could be an emergency of any sort - flood, fire, earthquake, etc.) that would require you to get out of your home in a hurry? What is included or what should be included?

For example:

Flint/firestarters/waterproof matches/lighters
Compass
Hand crank radio/flashlight/cell phone charger
Rope
Leatherman tool/Swiss Army Knife/hammer/hatchet
72 hours worth of food
Water purification tablets/filter
Work Gloves/Sterile Gloves
First AId Kit
Emergency poncho/sleeping bag
Magnifying Glass
Mirror
Shrill Whistle
Duct Tape
Toilet Paper/Paper Towels/Dishrags
Sewing kit
Entrenching tool


Do you think you should have enough stuff for three days or a week?
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Comments

  • ......
    edited August 2010
    You go to /k/ nowadays or something?

    Anyways, now that I've read your post. Enough food for 3 days is enough.
    Post edited by ... on
  • You go to /k/ nowadays or something?
    No. The Weather Channel's Cantore Stories has been making me nervous lately. It's coming up on the 5th anniversary of Katrina.
  • You go to /k/ nowadays or something?

    Anyways, now that I've read your post. Enough food for 3 days is enough.
    Agreed. There are 6 billion other people to choose from for all the days after.
  • I think we had a thread about this before. It got derailed into a gun control debate.
  • edited August 2010
    I think we had a thread about this before. It got derailed into a gun control debate.
    Not quite. That thread was about preparations for a zombie apocalypse. I'm asking about what you might put in an emergency bag for an emergency that has a higher probability of actually occurring in real life. You probably wouldn't carry any guns for a weather-related emergency.

    . . . or would you?
    Post edited by HungryJoe on
  • I have the same bag I carry every day. It's got everything I need.
  • I have the same bag I carry every day. It's got everything I need.
    You carry an emergency bag everyday?
  • You carry an emergency bag everyday?
    No, it's full of the things I use every day, which happen to also be the same things that would help in an emergency.

    Wallet, phone, keys, laptop, usb sticks, leatherman, pen, pencil, sharpie, notebook, earplugs, business cards, stain removal pen, chewing gum, moleskine, boogie board, occasionally DS and/or additional camera (other than the one in my phone), lip balm. Everything I need for almost any realistic situation.

    You can always see a weather related emergency coming. It's not like it can sneak up on you. If it is sneaky, like a tornado, it doesn't damage a wide enough area to make survival difficult. If a twister blows away your house, you can likely hit up the grocery store and a hotel afterwards.

    In the occasionally wise paraphrased words of Penn Jillette, you can always save your ass with money. Always have money. If there is a place where money won't save your ass, don't go there. If money won't save you anywhere in the world, then no bag or kit is going to make a shit of difference.
  • edited August 2010
    You carry an emergency bag everyday?
    No, it's full of the things I use every day, which happen to also be the same things that would help in an emergency.
    This sounds exactly like an admission you carry an emergency bag everyday.
    Wallet, phone, keys, laptop, usb sticks, leatherman, pen, pencil, sharpie, notebook, earplugs, business cards, stain removal pen, chewing gum, moleskine, boogie board, occasionally DS and/or additional camera (other than the one in my phone), lip balm. Everything I need for almost any realistic situation.
    This is what you'd need in an emergency?

    Rym: OMG! It's an earthquake!
    Scott: Don't worry! I have my buisness cards!
    You can always see a weather related emergency coming. It's not like it can sneak up on you. If it is sneaky, like a tornado, it doesn't damage a wide enough area to make survival difficult.
    "Always see a weather related emergency coming"? Tell that to people who've lived through hurricanes, mudslides, floods, earthquakes, etc. These things can all happen quite suddenly. You might have some foreknowledge about a hurricane, but hurricanes have a nasty habit of suddenly shifting direction.

    What if, angels and ministers of grace defend us, someone lit a cigarette in your apartment building?

    What about housefires? Are you so very certain that you'll never be the victim of a housefire? Perhaps you have a method of predicting housefires. Oh wait - I forgot. You're prepared for every conceivable eventuality. You always have your lip balm.
    In the occasionally wise paraphrased words of Penn Jillette, you can always save your ass with money. Always have money. If there is a place where money won't save your ass, don't go there. If money won't save you anywhere in the world, then no bag or kit is going to make a shit of difference.
    So, what's your point? Should you always carry a large sum of money with you in case of emergency?
    Post edited by HungryJoe on
  • f money won't save you anywhere in the world, then no bag or kit is going to make a shit of difference.
    That is one of the stupidest things I've ever heard in my life.
  • In the occasionally wise paraphrased words of Penn Jillette, you can always save your ass with money. Always have money. If there is a place where money won't save your ass, don't go there. If money won't save you anywhere in the world, then no bag or kit is going to make a shit of difference.
    I think you need to rewatch the first eps of Fist of the North Star and realize what you need to save yourself and what a suitcase full of money gets you.
  • If a store is flooded, destroyed by fire or earthquake, looted, or some such thing, you'd be out of luck. Your money won't buy items that no longer exist.
  • Wallet, phone, keys, laptop, usb sticks, leatherman, pen, pencil, sharpie, notebook, earplugs, business cards, stain removal pen, chewing gum, moleskine, boogie board, occasionally DS and/or additional camera (other than the one in my phone), lip balm. Everything I need for almost any realistic situation.
    I predict that the first thing you would do with that bag in an emergency is drop it and run.That is, if you could run, which you already told us you cannot.
  • "Always see a weather related emergency coming"? Tell that to people who've lived through hurricanes, mudslides, floods, earthquakes, etc. These things can all happen quite suddenly. You might have some foreknowledge about a hurricane, but hurricanes have a nasty habit of suddenly shifting direction.
    There are no mudslides in NYC. You can see a hurricane coming from halfway around the world, literally. A flood probably won't get me on the third floor. Never live in anywhere that has earthquakes. Even if you do, if you are in a properly constructed building, it will be ok. I also have renters insurance, which is insanely cheap and covers the problem of housefire. Also, my building has a crazy fire alarm system and even a sprinkler system.

    Any disaster that is likely is already covered. Any situation that is not covered will be either so improbable, that it is stupid to prepare for it, or so devastating that no reasonable preparation could suffice. The extremely devastating scenarios are also so unlikely, that the burden of preparing for them is not worth it. The suffering you will feel by worrying about them is worse than the things themselves. Just stop worrying.
  • And here we see the fundament of Apreche, someone who'll never be more than 5 feet away from concrete.
  • edited August 2010
    Scott, New York could fall apart easily see Tokyo.
    Post edited by Cremlian on
  • And here we see the fundament of Apreche, someone who'll never be more than 5 feet away from concrete.
    1) Situation is so bad, that preparation can't help. Example: Unpredictable tsunami while on a boat.
    2) Situation can be foreseen and prepared for. Example: Evecuate from the hurricane.
    3) You'll be ok with money. Example: Localized disaster like tornado or house fire.
    4) Situation so unlikely that preparation isn't worth it. Example: Do not carry around a biohazard suit in case of outbreak.
  • edited August 2010
    Scott, New York could fall apart easily see Tokyo.
    Japan has tons of earthquakes, New York not so much. Even if there is an earthquake, there's really only two possibilities. One is that I get crushed, trapped, etc. In which case I'm either dead, or my cellphone is the only thing that can save me allowing rescue workers to find me trapped under the rubble. No bag of tricks could possibly help me. The other is that money can save me. Cellphone, money, things you carry anyway.
    Post edited by Apreche on
  • Cellphone, money, things you carry anyway.
    Do you actually carry cash on you because if you are relying on cards you will be super screwed.
  • Do you actually carry cash on you because if you are relying on cards you will be super screwed.
    Yes, and there are ATMs everywhere.
  • Really Scott? Really? if anything major went on the power would be the first to go.
  • edited August 2010
    Really Scott? Really? if anything major went on the power would be the first to go.
    Everything important has backup generators and batteries. I even have UPS in my house that last quite awhile. I can also see the power plant from my house. If something happened to it, I've got a lot more to worry about that money will not help. If it's still there, then I'll have power back in a few days at worst.
    Post edited by Apreche on
  • Everything important has backup generators and batteries. I even have UPS in my house that last quite awhile.
    Except that ATM generally won't be those things that are on backup generators.
  • edited August 2010
    2006 Queens Blackout. If you think backup generators are very much better in Manhattan just because a better class of people live in Manhattan, I think you'll have a bit of a surprise.

    Emergencies aren't limited to flooding, hurricanes, and such. Power outages, blizzards, and many other unforeseen things can happen. That's why they're called emergencies. Preparation for emergency doesn't mean sitting around and worrying, as you seem to think. A minor amount of effort in preparation can pay off big in the event of an emergency. I'll hazard that you've spent much more time worrying about smoking and acheivements than I have about emergencies.

    I have to say something about evacuation in the event of a hurricane and your assurance that fire and flood can't hurt you. Do you really believe that evacuations are pulled off without a hitch and without problems? Ask the people who tried to evacuate before Katrina. As far as flood and fire, do you think that a flood has to reach the third floor before it affects you? Do you think that the flood won't disrupt city services? Do you think building foundations are unaffected by floods? It's nice that you have renter's insurance, but if you have a fire, what do you do while your claim is being processed?

    Scott, I truly believe that, without some sort of preparation, you'd have about as much chance of surviving a real emergency as a newborn kitten. Actually, a newborn kitten might be picked up and cared for because she is cute and lovable. You? Not so much.
    Post edited by HungryJoe on
  • You can always see a weather related emergency coming. It's not like it can sneak up on you. If it is sneaky, like a tornado, it doesn't damage a wide enough area to make survival difficult. If a twister blows away your house, you can likely hit up the grocery store and a hotel afterwards.
    It doesn't matter if you can see the emergency coming because it means everyone in your area can also see that emergency coming. That means everyone is running to the store at the last minute to get milk/bread/water/etc. It means that gas is sold out all over town, it means EVERYONE is evacuating at the same time as you.

    I'm going to use hurricane Rita from 2005 as an example because I think Scott would have been screwed in that situation. Hurricane Katrina hit three weeks before Rita and everyone in the Gulf Coast was on edge. No one wanted to be left behind and get stuck in Houston fighting for their lives like what happened in New Orleans.

    We knew Rita was coming, there were strict instructions on who should evacuate (towns between Houston and the Gulf) and that everyone should have their hurricane preparedness kits ready before it hit in a few days. Guess what happened? No one actually was prepared for a hurricane, despite the fact that we'd seen Katrina a few weeks before this. Everyone ran out to the stores bought all the bread, milk, water, batteries, and every other important supply you could think of. Then Rita was upgraded to a category 5 and everyone in Texas and Louisiana freaked out and panicked. Houston was already filled with Katrina evacuees and they were trying to get away, everyone from the coast was trying to get inland, everyone in Houston then decided they wanted to get away too. Gas was sold out all over Houston, and the few places with gas left had prices as high as $5 a gallon (maybe more). Not to mention that when you finally did find gas and tried to evacuate you were stuck on every single road/highway/tollway out of Houston. The evacuees before you tore through each town up to Austin/Dallas/San Antonio like a swarm of locusts. All the hotels were full along the way, there were gas stations with gas left, the ATMs were empty because no one thought to bring cash and emptied every one they could find, no stores were open to the horde due to fears of looting/rioting/etc so have fun peeing in front of everyone that's stuck on the road with you. People ran out of gas/diesel in the evacuation and then they were stuck there. One of my classmates left too late, was stuck in traffic for 10 hours (got a whole 50 miles maybe?) and turned around and went back to Houston because she couldn't afford to get stuck on the road with her kids. James and I were on the road for 26 hours (the same amount of time it takes us to drive up to NYC from Houston) just to get from Houston to San Antonio. We were lucky and had a gas station get a supply truck right as we got into a tiny town that was maybe 30 miles away from San Antonio.

    Rita ended up fizzling out and while a lot of Houston lost power they were able to get everything up fairly quickly (faster than Ike's damage in any case). I'll only mention Ike in passing where most of Houston was without power for 2-3 weeks after Ike hit, where again not having food or supplies would not have worked for you Scott. Supermarkets could only take cash, and again gas stations began to run out as well and (powered) hotels were very quickly filled up with people with home damage. ATM cards were useless and neighbors began bartering supplies to keep going until power came back. You were even more out of luck if you tried to save your car from tree damage (there was a lot all over Houston from Ike) and stuck it in the garage and then were car-less for 3 weeks because you couldn't get it out.
  • D'AWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW, WHAT DOES KITTEN DO HERE? COME KITTEN, COME WITH ME. YOU CAN HAVE SHARE OF DRY FOOD TOO.
  • edited August 2010
    Ok, so there's a hurricane coming, and the evacuation is a madhouse. Money can still help you. Instead of evacuating on the highway, go to the local small airfield and charter a plane. Almost nobody will be smart enough for that. If something like that isn't possible, then money can't help you. Even so, a "bug out bag" isn't going to help you either.

    With power outages of extended duration I would just leave town on a boat, plane, or (non-electric)train. If the outages are extremely localized, it's no problem at all.

    All emergencies can be divided into those where money can save your ass and those where money can not save your ass. Tell me a situation where money can not save your ass, but the "bug out bag" will. I don't see any.
    Post edited by Apreche on
  • edited August 2010
    Ok, so there's a hurricane coming, and the evacuation is a madhouse. Money can still help you. Instead of evacuating on the highway, go to the local small airfield and charter a plane.
    Hurricane + Aeroplane . . . not a winning combination. They generally don't play well together.
    Almost nobody will be smart dumb enough for that.
    FTFY
    Post edited by HungryJoe on
  • edited August 2010
    Hurricane + Aeroplane . . . not a winning combination. They generally don't play well together.
    You fly before the hurricane gets there, and you fly away from the hurricane. This isn't rocket science. All you really need to do is get far enough to somewhere you can rent a car where the roads aren't jammed.
    Post edited by Apreche on
  • I have a bug out bad, in varying levels. I have a basic bag that stays in my trunk and so is relatively close by. at my apartment I normally have a backpack with enough food and clothing for 3 days of camping. At home I have enough MRE's and water for 2 weeks. If I have to evacuate I can, even if its on foot. If I can hunker down and wait out I will. I also have a shit hit the fan tac vest, if looting and Katrina style disorder breaks out.

    NYC is most vulnerable to a long term blackout. Under the right set of circumstances the power loss could be much more than 3 days. After 3 days most generators would be run down. I'd stay inside and eat my own food and not venture outside and wait it out.
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