Where are you most likely to be in a survival situation?

At home or within 20 miles away at work. I keep a case of bottled water in my trunk, and a case of canned goods in my trunk also, along with a few canned goods in my office kitchen. We keep water and canned goods in our vehicles along with small bug-out backpacks, I like to think we are prepared, but you never know.

 

I can relate to Seacowboy's original idea for this thread. I was flying my newly purchased Ercoupe home (1946 c/d model) from Indiana and was on the trailing end of a bad stationary front. It took me a couple of days to get home proper. This was before I ever had a cell phone, and quite admire my wife for putting up with me not being able to call and tell her where I was, or what was going on!

Anyway, I was getting into the worst of the weather, margins dropping below minimum VFR, ceilings less than the mountain tops, etc. I was flying contact for the last 150 or so miles, that is, close to the ground (about 500 feet AGL) and using landmarks for reference to navigation. One problem, though, was the Appalachain mountains.

They might not be as big as the Rockies, but they will kill you just as quick. Most people might think that rural Pennsylvania really isn't that rural. Then they weren't in Northwestern PA. As I was flying down a mountain vally and through a dip between peaks, with the tops in the ceiling and constant light rain, in a 60+ year old aircraft with just basic VFR instruments, gets you thinking.

Those mountains could have swallowed me whole. The puny ELT (emergency locator transmitter- transmitts an SOS in morse code over 121.50 MHz after it has been through an impact) that was strapped to the turtledeck of the aircraft would not have the power to transmit past the 2000 ft peaks. There were no houses in the immediate area, or anywhere as far as I could see for that matter.

I was slightly inexperienced with the Ercoupe. I just bought it, and most of my time in the aircraft was on this cross-country from Indiana to Pennsylvania. It wasn't a very good performer, it was incredably slow to climb, low cruising speed, and glided like a brick. It did have one notable attribute; it was a very pretty aircraft... And it had a relatively slow stalling speed, so I would probably hit the treetops at about 45-50 mph. As long as I didn't get pungied by tree branches or my header gas tank pierced and douse the craft in flameable fuel, I should have been able t walk away. The undercarriage of the Ercoupe was designed to be very sturdy, hopefully it would have taken the brunt of the impact...

Luckily it wasn't needed. I followed I-80 east, until I crossed the Juniata river and headed south to Mifflintown. I landed at Mifflintown airport very tired and exhausted, and happy to be home.

The moral of this story- I only had the contents of my flight bag in the event of a crash. My pocket knife, some cash, maps of the statewide area (called sectionals), small tool it, and a little Baretta .22lr pistol and box of CCI Stingers were in the bag. I always thought the Baretta was kind of "out there", but after that episode I started to think that it might not been enough.

Thinking back, how would I start a fire (as long as I did succome to one in the crash)? Navigation would have been a little easier, I was alwys told to walk downhill and follow the flow of streams or creeks, and you will eventually run into a road or someone's house. I could have removed the compass from the instrument panel if I needed to (granted that it wouldn't be damaged in the crash).

Obviously, I was not prepaired for any contingency other than getting home.

 

My situation has radically changed since I began this thread a while back. I am no longer spending 11 months out of the year on planes and ships or overseas in third world little paradises but now find myself in Mobile, Alabama where people wear T-shirts and bumper-stickers rather than actually doing anything about what they disagree with. It is somewhat different being back in a land where people are so vain that when they decide to end their own miserable lives, they have to make a statement and take out a dozen familly members or ex-co-workers first. With that aside, I sure enjoy having a home to come to at the end of each day. My biggest threat here would seem to be hurricanes, tornadoes, fires, epidemics, and chemical releases from the industrial components, well that, and getting shot by some suicidal little prick that wants to leave his mark. We have a sixty-second evac plan, a sixty minute evac plan, and a 12 hour evac plan as well as a steadfast bug-in option for all but the most catastropic events. Home is worth defending and we have a willingness to share with our group.

 

Definately bug in at our home fortress in Vista (North County San Diego), California. I can sustain my wife, 3 daughters, 3 son in laws, and 4 granddaughters for almost a full year with water, food, communications and electricity (antenna tower and solar panels on the roof). The 18' block wall around the perimeter provides the first level of defense against outside invasion. In addition to large water storage, we also have a well. Solar panels, marine batteries, regulators and converters run my freezer, refrigerator, lights, entertainment and other comforts. Weapons, ammunition and skills to keep out undesirable characters. Ric

 

Well, IF I had my druthers about it all, I'd much rather be up north of a small town, population of 465. At 8+ miles away, and isolated I'd feel better.....safer anyway!
But, I know I'll be here on the outskirts of a 'major catastrophe' awaiting only for the fuse to be lit, right next to the biggest highway we have north/south I-17.
I hope to get the heck out of here, in the next 60 days max!

 

I will probably be here at home or close by. I am retired military. My home is on 20 acres in a rural area with 2 small towns each about 10 miles away. My property is about 2.5 miles off paved county road. There is a lot of planted pine forests in this area. I have a few good neighbors that also found this little 1/4 by 1/2 mile (80 acre) oasis surrounded on all sides by planted pines. We are off the beaten path. There is only one road in and access to anything other than tanks could be slowed or stopped from coming thru the planted pines by artfully dropping a few across each and every access trail thru the pines. I will probably hunker down right here with my neighbors. Each of us watching each others backs. Most all of us have made an effort to stockpile essentials for the worst.

 

Wow, share some more with us. I am interested in your solar set up, as well as your water storage.

 

In downtown New York City. Remember those pictures of people walking over the Brooklyn Bridge on 9/11? If I wasn't vaporized, blown to pieces, poison gassed, infected or radioactivated that would be me.

Note for those in a safer location: include some fire extinguishers in your preps. Expect some out of control fires in your area and no fire department to put them out.

 

For those bugging in, don't forget those smoke alarms, CO alarms, flashlights and xtra batteries!