Posted on 09/23/2013 4:47:23 PM PDT by Kartographer
If you haven’t been in a bubble cut off from all forms of media lately, it would be impossible to have missed all of the warnings being issued about the impending loss of our electrical grid.
This isn’t just coming from so-called “gloom and doom” sites or from alternative media. Major mainstream media sources such as ABC News, the Washington Post, the New York Times, and CBS News have all issued the alerts. Unfortunately, the hordes seem to be brushing these warnings off as something that cannot happen, because the reality is too unpleasant to even contemplate. Many seem to think that they are far better to stick their heads in the sand and be assured it can never happen than to prepare ahead of time.
Who Is Ringing the Warning Bell?
In case you’ve missed it, here are some of the warnings over the past few months that most people are ignoring.
When Janet Napolitano stepped down from her role as head of the DHS she released an open letter to her successor. One chilling tidbit she passed on was this.
The outgoing Homeland Security Secretary has a warning for her successor: A massive and “serious” cyber attack on the U.S. homeland is coming, and a natural disaster — the likes of which the nation has never seen — is also likely on its way.
(Excerpt) Read more at theorganicprepper.ca ...
The books “Going Home” and “Surviving Home” by A. American have an interesting viewpoint on the power grid outage besides being a very good read.
/johnny
What else besides an approaching asteroid striking, a calamity unexperienced, could they accurately predict?
If there is an emp nobody except those in the immediate area will know what happened. Nothing electrical will work and that includes battery powered radios AND radio stations.
I’ve got enough food for my wife and me to last about 6 weeks. We’ve got lighters, batteries, first aid. We don’t have enough sanitation supplies or water. I’ve got about 30 gallons but they’re only good for flushing the toilette. I’ve got to get some more.
And I’ve got 1000 rounds to protect what I do have.
Is it coming. Of course, it is. Someday.
Yeah. It is nice to have. But not completely the end of the world if it goes.
A simple 2kw generator should power the average 1/2 HP submersible pump.
Mine makes about 12 gpm without a pressure tank. That is a lot of water.
We have 2 large welder/generators at the farm. They will power most homes, except possibly the Air Conditioning. Depending on the size of the home.
Have thought about buying a PTO generator for one of our small tractors as a easy backup that does not just set idle.
Mine was. Used 3 times camping then put in closet. Year later it won’t work. Been meaning to call the company but I’m afraid of what they will say.
Lately I’ve been hearing emergency prep warnings to have at least 2 weeks of supplies on hand, not the usual 72 hours.
Government websites still say 72 hours, but the commercials are saying 2 weeks...and they are highlighting water.
12 175 watt 24 volt Solar Panels $150 ea on Craigs list in long Beach
8 T105 6 volt Batteries $120-150 each
1 Xantrex C60 Charge Controller $ 100
1 Magnum MS4024PAE 240/120/volt 4000 watt Inverter $2000-2500
Runs 400 foot deep Well(220) pulls 85 amps DC,
GE 21 Cu Ft side by side refrigerator pulls 4 amps DC,
Desktop Computer and 25 inch Monitor pulls 8 amps,
30’ Fully Loaded Trailer, all we use is lights and water pump, negligible power use,
Microwave pulls 90 amps but it is only run for a couple minutes,
Coffee maker uses about 50 amps DC when the element turns on, it cycles on and off every few minutes.
numerous 4 ft Shop Lights with 2 each 40 watt florescent bulbs, Negligible, it takes 2 on to use 1 amp DC, fans,laptops,tablets,kindles,cell phone charging.... all negligible, they dont even register on the meter.
Going to hook up Washer and Dryer this weekend. The big power items are best run during mid day,it will use all 45-50 amps the panels put out and maintain batteries. I still need to add at least 8 more batteries, and 8 more panels, and 1 more charge controller, just haven’t had the time. The trick is to have enough reserve battery power to run all night and morning while still having a 75% charge,til panels start producing, and panels should produce enough to fully charge batteries by 12 noon.
Still have not done any additions to this setup, but I am going to next month. I do have a Washer and Dryer hooked up now, washer is minimal about 10 amps DC but it goes to 30 on occasion when it spins. Dryer pulls 45 amps DC and is converted to propane. These are New Front Loaders from Costco, Whirlpool Duet.
There’s a storm coming for sure, but when and what will set it off is not clear. I expect if they actually do shut down the government Obama will lose it for sure and we will soon have a Constitutional crises, and it there will come a time of choosing. Being able to provide for your family will certainly help when this time comes and will allow those who choose to stand up for the Republic as created by our founders.
I have said it before and now I say it again: “You either prepare and stand on your own beholden to no one or you become dependent on others to provide your basic needs and become their ‘serf’.”
Me I don’t want to be beholden to anyone for providing what is needed for me and mine. I certainly don’t want to have to kiss some ‘gubberment’ third class bureaucratic to try and coax some help from them, I don’t want some ‘jack booted’ thug herding me in line and telling me where to stand, sit, eat or sleep. And last but not least I don’t want to be shut up in with a bunch of ‘zombies’ and have to worry about not only trying to get basic necessities but having to fight to keep what I manage to get.
There is a Great article in my Preparedness Manual on building your on Bug Out Bag titled: A Highly-Mobility 72 Hour Kit-by Ward Dorrity. You can download the whole manual at:
http://tomeaker.com/kart/Preparedness1j.pdf NOTE! THIS IS A FREE DOWNLOAD. I DO NOT MAKE ONE CENT OFF MY PREPAREDNESS MANUAL!
For those of you who haven’t started already it’s time to prepare almost past time maybe. You needed to be stocking up on food guns, ammo, basic household supplies like soap, papergoods, cleaning supplies, good sturdy clothes including extra socks, underwear and extra shoes and boots, cash (I myself have been putting up change for the past few years both for the metal content and the fact that using change places to make what purchases you can will move you down the the list of possible marks during shtf), tools, things you buy everyday start buying two and put one up.
As the LDS say “When the emergency is upon us the time for preparedness has past.”
Again I like to recomend FReeper’s ChocoChipCookie Blog The Survival Mom (Please Blog Police let this one slide!) Where you can get lots of useful information like:
http://thesurvivalmom.com/2011/11/20/8-morale-boosters-for-any-worst-case-scenario/
http://thesurvivalmom.com/2010/02/02/survival-priorities-the-rule-of-three/
And More
Also there is Ferfal’s Blog a survivor of Argentina’s first collapse:
And there is Selco’s Blog a Bosnian War survivor at:
Almost everything I bought from HF was pretty good and definitely low priced. Except a sump pump.
I’ll stay away from their solar panels, etc. Thanks.
I’ll plan on mounting zombies on stationary bikes for lights, about 10/15 watts ea.
i am looking at Yet 1250 or 1200 solar gen. runs btwn 2000 and 3000. is this what u have? been studying solar gen for awhile. so confused!!! yeti looked the best
I am having a hard time laying my hands on enough medicine to let me survive a shtf event, rven though my doctor is also a prepper and is willing to write me all the prescriptions I need. The meds are expensive, and no there is no generic. I have a bad feeling that even with a lot of stored stuff, ammunition, skills, and a good location, I wouldn’t last long, just because of medical issues. Of course, not everyone is going to make it, and I’m in my late fifties so I don’t have much to complain about.
>>Unless they start wandering the streets in the dark searching for brains and and ...
and supersonic lead?
I think the “artesian” part went right over everyone’s head.
A rife-ram pump will work off of an artisan water source ...
I have been saying it for the longest time. There is going to be a two pronged attack.
The Chinese and Iran via jihadi sleeper cells in the US.
The Chinese will launch a cyber attack.
That will bring the power down for a few hours. If they just did the cyber attack, then it would only a few hours until the companies can bring everything up manually after they shut down and disconnect the automated control equipment that the Chinese attacked.
But, while the grid is down for that short period of time, then the jihadis will strike.
They will sabotage vital infrastructure across many places at the same time which will make it impossible to bring the power back up.
They will cut light poles. Cut supports to transmission line towers. Destroy insulators in substations.
They will do it in remote locations so that it will take days searching the lines to find where the faults are.
When there is only one fault on an isolated line, then power companies can concentrate manpower to find the fault relatively quickly.
When you have multiple faults that appear all over the system, then it will thin out the manpower, and it will take a lot longer to locate the faults and repair them.
If they continue to sabotage things as the light companies try to repair the existing damage, then it can drag on for a very long time. Before they get one problem fixed, then the next problem will pop up.
If you have thousands of jihadis all across the country start cutting things down, then it would be impossible to keep up.
They found out that it was very effective in Iraq. People went for months without power because they were cutting the poles faster than they could put them up. In Iraq, it was easy to find where the system was sabotaged because of the baron terrain. But in the US, there is a lot more vegetation, and complicated terrain that the power systems go through. Trying to find where someone cut a pole along the back side of a ridge where no one can see it is impossible unless you physically walk the line.
If that happens, then the local people that are familiar with the local system and terrain will have to help out if you want any hope of getting control of the situation. Keep your eyes out for obvious sabotage. If you see it, report it as fast as possible Keep a watch on the power lines in your area. If you see a stranger that isn’t from the area hanging around the mainline, or doing something out of place, then get a hold of law enforcement as fast as possible. If you see them actively messing with something or obviously getting ready to cut/knock a pole down (bolt cutters and chainsaws) then you will know what to do.
Pull out the gun and calmly tell them to “Put the equipment down, lay down and wait until the law gets there or you will be shot.”
Keep in mind, if you see something odd going on. You want to have your weapon with you, because jihadis being jihadis, they will be armed and will try and kill the nosey infidel if they are caught in the act.
If they put guns on you, then drop them.
The people that help will be taking a risk, but the population at large will have to confront the people doing it if they are to be stopped. There isn’t enough cops and linemen to keep watch on every foot of mainline in this country, so the population that lives on that mainline will have to help.
I would say that after a few days of no lights, and after the word gets out about what is happening, then I would say that people will start taking the initiative on their own to guard the network
The thing I worry about is what will they do once they have the power down? What is stage two of the attack when the population is in an information vacuum? What do they plan when the population is already in a state of distress from several days of no power?
We live half way up a mountain. Our well is 780 feet deep. Great water and lots of it. Don’t know what we’ll do during a prolonged power outage. Melt snow and pray for rain, I guess. On the upside, we have plentiful deer and wild turkeys.
May those in Washington be the first to have their cozy offices go dead in the winter.
They can all freeze and starve to death for all I care.
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