The Urban Preparedness Essentials!

[tonydahose]

So many berries and fish... no chance of starving to death at all!

just make sure the bears aren't in the same vicinity looking for those items too jason :p

[vampyrewolf]

tony, guessing you missed this...

marlin lever action (.45-70)
or remington 870 12 gauge (depending on the type of zombie)

Just remember to watch out for grizzy droppings. It smells like pepper spray and has little bells in it :p

[clovisc]

quattro -- i'll be hiding my chokwes in a waterproof box until after the zombie situation is resolved. outdoors, S30V doesn't go very long without rusting up here.

no grizzlies on my island, patrick. :D i stopped using that bear spray stuff on my clothes becomes it irritates my skin too much. :p

tony -- i've run into black bears plenty of times. usually, they're slinking around the river, and it's a 50/50 split on whether or not i leave the area or stay. the last encounter was in september... maybe 12 yards away, while fly fishing. looked me right in the eyes, then went back to eyeballing the coho i was casting towards. i packed up and left, singing in a calm voice, and walking backwards carefully. as long as you don't surprise them, or freak them out while the cubs are around, you'll be fine.

i ran into a mother bear with cubs last year, while i was fly fishing... she was hugely PO'd. i had to leave... quickly. as i made my way to the van, she was following after me in the bushes, growling and being extremely ill tempered. the next day i returned to the same spot... and was chased off again, by the same bear. :D :rolleyes:

usually bring the marlin or 870 on longer hiking trips, just in case. i don't know if i could shoot one for sport. maybe i'll give it a try next spring. i'd have no trouble pulling the trigger in a survival situation... then i could cut it open and sleep inside, empire strikes back style? :rolleyes:

[rljohns]

I totally disagree. Most cops I know are the same way, and understand. For the ones that don't understand I don't care.

I mean heck, what's next........they think that my flares are a possible terrorist weapon?

It was meant to be tongue and cheek humor. It doesn't work so well on a blog. Yep, got to watch those flares it may look like dynamite to the uninformed.

Duct tape is the universal fix all. I even keep a roll in my desk at work to tape the binding of my notebook. I kind of wonder what security would think, we are getting anti-everything. They won't even let us have anything with a cutting edge. I am at a non-company site so I am OK.

[quattrokid73]

Clovisc, sad to hear about the S30V in your area. I suppose H1's your fav then.

I've not yet had corrosion problems with anything but my Bark River's (and only tarnishing).

I guess I'm lucky.

[tonydahose]

tony, guessing you missed this...

marlin lever action (.45-70)
or remington 870 12 gauge (depending on the type of zombie)

i didnt miss it, i am just clueless on what would take down a charging bear if and this is a big if as i am sure things would start puckering up tight at that point in time :p you could hit it in the right spot to stop it.

then i could cut it open and sleep inside, empire strikes back style? :rolleyes:

mmmm i am sure you well smell pretty as rose when you crawl out..lol

[Dr. Snubnose]

45-70....would make the bears head disapear!..... Doc :D :eek:

[Clawhammer]

45-70....would make the bears head disapear!..... Doc :D :eek:

My sole contribution to an urban preparedness kit.

[Clawhammer]

The reality for me is I just have a good sized stock of 'consumables' I keep in rotation.

Tinned food, bottled water (the tapwater here tastes awful) and ammo all realistically have a limited shelf-life of just a few years (I keep these turning over regularly). Apart from my fishing/light camping gear, the only other thing I keep for emergencies is a small wad of cash in small denomiations for any SHTF situations!

...and of course my Glock and Marlin 30-30! :)

[rljohns]

The reality for me is I just have a good sized stock of 'consumables' I keep in rotation.

Tinned food, bottled water (the tapwater here tastes awful) and ammo all realistically have a limited shelf-life of just a few years (I keep these turning over regularly). Apart from my fishing/light camping gear, the only other thing I keep for emergencies is a small wad of cash in small denomiations for any SHTF situations!

...and of course my Glock and Marlin 30-30! :)

I didn't know you could have any guns down under.

[Clawhammer]

I didn't know you could have any guns down under.

You're not far off. Unless you've got a special permit LEO or for specialist pest control;

No Semi Auto's,
No Pump action Shotguns (pump-action rifles OK so the Remington 7600/7615's are popular )
No .50Cals or larger (unless blackpowder)
Handguns over 9mm/38 may only be used by Metallic Sillouette club members
Pistols must have a barrel length over 4.75 inches and Revolvers over 4 inches.
Can't Hunt with hand guns. No open or concealed carry, range use only.
No firearms (rifles and pistols) may have a magazine capacity over 10 rounds.

All firearms owners undergo strict background checks, must complete safety training and have their storage facility inspected.

They must be a member of an appropriate gun club or have a "letter of permission" from a landholder to shoot on their property.

Now here's the twist:-
In this country, suicide rates aren't openly reported but gun related deaths are. So, if you kill yourself with a gun it's reported but if you poison yourself it isn't! So since people don't have easy access to guns for a quick clean suicide they're using other methods making the statistics look like the legislation is preventing deaths. But people are just choosing other ways of killing themselves...so nothing has changed.

And as for the weapons related crime stats? Nothing's changed the rate's remained unchanged...crims are still doing what they've always done with illegal weapons. Only the honest joe has had his freedoms removed !

[hickster]

Assuming that one lives in an urban or suburban area, what are the prime essentials we aught to have with us for mastery of emergency/survival situations:

Natural Disaster
Terrorist Attack
Personal Emergency
Daily Utility

I really can't believe no one has pointed out the obvious...a cell phone.
Reliable (even somewhat) communication is far and away your best tool for any of the above situations.
hickster

[Hannibal Lecter]

My Dear Friends,

My EDC varies depending on the time of the year. Right now the temperature is 39 degrees and falling like a stone. :mad:

The EDC items on my person are designed to get me back to my EDC bag. On my person at all times:

Spyderco Cricket
Cell Phone w/camera and GPS
Glock 27 IWB
Custom Kiridashi on belt
Kershaw Talon
Emerson Combat Karambit
Wallet
Keys
Surefire E2D Defender Light
Seiko Orange Monster Diver


My EDC bag is designed to get me back to the Jeep. In it:

2 spare magazines for the Glock 27
Fenix P3D flashlight and one spare set of batteries
EOD Breacher Bar
Both AC and DC chargers for cell phone
Hatch Cut-Resistant Gloves
Wiley Impact-Resistant Glasses
Personal First Aid Kit
Automobile Window Glass Punch
Warm hat, neck gaiter and earmuffs
Earplugs
Sharpie Marker
Ink Pen
Pencil
Note Pad
Index Cards
Butane Lighter
Swisstool
Ceramic Knife Sharpening Stick


The Jeep obviously gets me back to the house. In the Jeep:

Warm jacket
Extra boots
Spare socks
Warm gloves
Mid-Sized Crowbar
Pickset

The gas gauge never goes below 1/2 tank, especially in the winter time.


YMMV. :D

---------------
Hannibal Lecter

[Woz]

I have an EDC Organizer by Maxpedition filled with

Victorinox Spirit Tool
Victorinox Cadet
Victorinox Dual Sharpener
Spyderco Police SS, SE
Fenix E01 Light and 1 spare cell
band aids
Sharpie
pressurized pens by UniBall
a Moleskine notebook
some money (about 25 Euro)

It stays in my EDC bag if I carry one (most often) or in my car if a have "light carry" days, so when I have to wear formal clothes and no messenger bag. I always carry 1-2 additional knifes (Spyderco Cricket or Dodo and a larger one) a Leatherman Juice, some pens and a Nitecore light on my person plus one pen, one Fenix E01 and a Paracord survival bug on my keys, so quite a bit of redundancy. Call me Uberprepared

[boosted]

S&W 686+
one box of .38spl
one box .357 mag
leatherman wave
rat izula
classic g-shock
fenix p1d
ruger 10/22
pen and pencil
bic lighter
one misc book to read

[vampyrewolf]

Let's change the thread's direction a bit. How about the Urban Preparedness Essentials, EDC edition. Meaning things you make sure to have with you every day, all the time.
Commence!

Figured I'd wait a bit so I'm not hogging the thread :p


Truck:
50pc tool set
towel
window scraper
ratan sticks
spare sunglasses
pack of gum
5-6 fruit bars
2 pens
courier waybills (20min of parking without worrying... loading zone, fire lane, private parking...)
30' of paracord
spare socks
2x 12hr chem sticks
roll of quarters
If my truck is at the 1/2 mark, it's not there for long. I fill once a week.

Backpack:
*Pelican 1080 hardback with eeepc701, 16gb sdhc in the reader, spare battery, usb mini mouse, usb-serial adapter, 3' usb cable, 250gb WD passport
*Pelican 1020 with PCI BIOS troubleshooting card, and Parallel port BIOS troubleshootiung card
*Pelican 1030 with my knives (left and right hand militaries that go in my pockets at 4pm)
*Otterbox 1000 with another PCI BIOS card
*Otterbox 1000 with 8-9 RJ45 loopback jacks, and DB9 gender bender
*Otterbox 2000 with 6' extendable ethernet (straight/cross via a switch), vnox cybertool 29, rj45 coupler, cisco connector, crossover connector, gbe crossover, 2 loopback jacks
*25' Cat6 straight with molded ends
*hardcover notebook (standard lines)
*scarf, toque, leather gloves
*7-8 fruit bars, bag of coffee flavoured hard candy, jar of fruit salad, couple granola bars
*2-3 500ml bottles of water
*digicam
*nail clippers, 1gb usb stick, mp3 player, spare earbuds, headset for my cell, FRS radio, 12x AA batts, 12x AAA batts, 3 packages of instant coffee (just 1 cup per pouch), gerber EAB and 10 blades, 2 rolls of electrical tape
*a $20 bill and a roll of quarters
*puzzle book

on me:
*lighter
*wirecutters
*flashlight
*multitool
*cell (fresh batt lasts a week of standby, usually charge it on day 5 or 6 but I do have a 2nd battery at home)
*toothpicks
*3-4 pens, fine tip marker, mini-sharpie
*wallet ($20-30 cash on top of the debit and visa cards, costco card, health card, license, indigo card)
*card wallet (all those assorted membership card that don't get used often enough)
*$5 in change (currently a toonie, loonie and 5-6 quarters)
* "emergency tuning fork" one finger paperweight
*spydie on my neck (ss 'fly or spur usually)
*sunglasses, truck key & remote, spare keys in back pocket (house, office 2km from work, sister's house, spare truck key for door)
*PDA (HP ipaq, 2gb card, bluetooth... notepad, games and calander get the most use)

in/on my desk at work:
*20 or so packs of oatmeal, styrofoam bowls, big bag of plastic cutlery, bag of napkins
*5-6 granola bars, bag of nuts, bag of dried fruit, jam jar (currently appricot/peach/passionfruit), 2 bags of chips, 1 can of pop, 3-4 chocolate bars
*pack of wraps
*2 pouches of tuna, 2 pouches of rice... meal in 2min with a mircowave, but are fully cooked and don't need the nuke.
*5 bottles of water
*loose tea (and bags), 30-40 teabags of a variety of flavours.
*2 notebooks, and an FMP pad wth carbon paper
*12x AA batts, 6x CR123A
*2x 12hr chem sticks
*approx 40 pens
*travel mug
*2 pair of safety glasses (both tinted)
*ethernet cabling tools (crimper, impact tool with 3 tips, pliers, wirecutters, zipties, rj45 ends, rj11 ends, stripper, keychain punchdown tool, 3 wall jacks)
*electrical tape, packing tape

Like I said, I don't even have to get home to my main supplies for at least a week. Even longer if I raid the vending machine at work and claim a culligan bottle. I'd rather have redundancy in my equipment than need something.

[Crocodilo]

While preparing for the unexpected is very fine, "some" people around "some" forums tend to neglect the daily utility side of things. For instance, a simple Bic lighter, although not as hardcore as a ferro rod, is a thousand times more used day to day (lighting my cigarrettes, or melting paracord are the first two uses that sping to mind). Even if in a SHTF scenario, the Bic would probably still be very usefull: odds are that you won't get a flood, a civilization massive destruction, AND your Bic running out of gas, all at the same time. Case in point: I stopped carrying the ferro rod I never used, and just keep some Bics on my pocket, pack, desk or car.

That being said, here's my urban usual load:

1. On person, everyday single day and every moment awake:
-Glasses (prescrition or shades)
-Watch
-Practical clothes and shoes
-Cell phone
-Spyderco folder
-Flashlight

2. Either in person or bag, almost always when leaving the house:
-House, work and/or car keys
-Wallet and cash
-Cigarretes and lighter
-Glasses (shades or prescription)
-Multitool
-Pen and notebook

3. Either in person or bag, quite often:
-GPS
-Digital Camera
-.357 wheelgun
-Bandana

4. In bag, if deemed reasonable and necessary - this is highly variable:
-Spare batteries and ammo
-Paracord and duct tape
-Sharpenner
-First aid kit
-iPod
-Good ol'fashioned book
-Laptop
-Snacks and water bottle
-Extra clothes layers
-Spork
-Kids stuff - pacifiers, diapers, toys, books...

The decisions on what to carry involve mainly were I'll be going, for how long, and with who. An errand to the corner shop will see me carrying much less than going out for a regular working day, or a weekend out on the countryside with the family. It's a common "layer" approach.

Or, you can take an ORM approach, and weigh each item judging the "probability of need" multiplied by the "severity of not having it when needed". Carry the top scoring items. With all honesty, a Bic scores much higher than a ferro rod.

[vampyrewolf]

The decisions on what to carry involve mainly were I'll be going, for how long, and with who. An errand to the corner shop will see me carrying much less than going out for a regular working day, or a weekend out on the countryside with the family. It's a common "layer" approach.

my backpack goes just about everywhere I go.
I leave it in my truck if I'm going into a store quickly (like my usual grocery store or walmart runs), and I'll leave it at home (or at whatever house we're meeting at) if I'm heading out drinking, playing pool, or to a movie.

I won't pack my stuff in a laptop bag and leave it in my truck, that's just asking for it to go missing. But a standard school bag goes entirely unnoticed.
I don't imagine that my alice pack on the floor of the truck is tempting to attempt at grabbing. I only carry my targus backpack when I need my 17" laptop for something. Usually the 7" eeepc is enough, and I've chucked the 1080 hardback behind my seat numerous times (and only had to grab that case).

[brandonreed2008]

650 paracord
300WM blaser straightbolt, S&W Snubnose .357, ammo boxes
first aid kit + super glue
flint rod
lighter fluid
small tarp
machete
flashlight
hiking boots
extra socks!
duct tape
fishing line/hook/jar of bait
thick leather gloves
flares
a small pot or frying pan
sunglasses
my fishing hat
:p

[quattrokid73]

Now I'll chime in with my current EDC and emergency kit (pending edit ala this thread):

On me at all times-

iPhone 3G (phone, gps, camera, web browser all in one)
Wallet with max $50, credit, debit, insurance card, License
Spyderco folder chosen on day's activities
Keys with Lacie 8gb thumb drive (contains emergency contact info), ARC AAA-P, Atwood flat ti Gasbaby

In backpack-

Note pads
Pens, pencils, hilighters, sharpie
Charger for iPhone
Pocket Cam
Sunglasses
Gum
USB cord
earbuds

In TAD OP1 pouch in backpack-

Surefire Lx2 w/ 2 extra cr123's
Petzl E-lite
Bic
Light my fire spork
chap stick
Zebra pen
Bark River PSK
SAK with pliers
20ft paracord
bandaids
alcohol wipes
water purification tabs

In Maxped Lunada:

Novatac 120T
4x CR123
Arc AAA-P Cowboy
Bic
Spoon/Fork
Endura 4 ZDP SE
Ladybug Salt
500lb rated carabiner
50ft 550 cord
Petzl Tikka XP
4x AAA bats
Emergency blanket
Large FAK
Quick Clot
Eye protection
Ear Protection
OC/Pepper Spray mix
Fire starting equipment
Sanitation: Travel tissues, travel TP, Colgate Whisp toothbrushes

To add: My Sig Pro + Crimson Trace, 2x mags, Small water bottle, 2x power bar, Spyderco Dayhiker, DMT mini sharpener.