US Families Prepare For 'Modern Day Apocalypse'

Sky News UK ^ | 12/22/2014 | Dominic Waghorn

[bkopto]

An increasing number of Americans seem to think so, and they're preparing for the end.

They call themselves preppers. Mainstream suburban Americans hoarding supplies and weapons while leading otherwise perfectly normal lives.

It's a national phenomenon and it's supporting a doom boom industry worth many millions.

Braxton Southwick is a typical father-of-six in Salt Lake City, who believes the nice suburban neighbourhood he lives in could soon be swept away by some kind of modern day apocalypse.

Like other preppers, he's afraid of some impending catastrophe but also what that will do to American society.

"I think that is what I'm scared of the most," he told Sky News, "Not the actual events. I've already prepared for that. It's the aftermath, when there are no police, there are no military to protect us, we're going to be protecting ourselves."

The trigger could be a terrorist attack, a monetary collapse, cataclysmic failure in power generation, or a natural disaster. Preppers fear what comes next and have no faith in either their government or human nature.

"Once people use up all their resources, they're going to come after the people that prepared and had more resources. So basically we have to take care of ourselves."

[Kartographer]

I prefer a combination of filtration (Berkey, Katadyn) and bleach stock made with Calcium Hypochlorite (pool shock)

http://survivaltopics.com/better-than-bleach-use-calcium-hypochlorite-to-disinfect-water/

[Kackikat]

The newer toilets only use 1 or 2 gallons of water and a couple of plastic jugs will flush one a day.

Years ago there was a magazine, probably still being published, that showed people how to do everything they needed to survive on the land. My mother was a ‘back to the land’ person and lived it, with 3 yrs of food supply ahead all the time. And she owned a real estate business for years in a very rural area...mostly farms and land.

So I have the expertise needed to survive. I always helped her can and preserve food. My grandparents and great grandparents made it through the Great Depression via self sustained farms.

I am concerned with the UN wanting to take over all water supplies in USA, that seems the wrong approach with wells and rivers at stake.

[Repeal The 17th]

We have tried a lot of different options over the years.
we have tried a lot of things...bulk storage, etc.
Ultimately, what works best is you to keep on hand
the foods that you like to eat:
cans of tuna, chili, soup, beans, peanut butter, or whatever...
The one thing most people forget about is water.

[Kackikat]

Interesting, and thanks for info.

[Da Coyote]

“To a much greater extent than we really do.”

Wow, pretentious and stupid simultaneously.

Sociologist.

Duh.

Those are the ones too stupid to even be democrats.

[ProtectOurFreedom]

How are you going to operate your well pump with no electricity? Your water table is probably too,low for a hand pump (not enough suction head)

If you have an electric generator, how long is your fuel supply going to last? Do you store 500 gal,of fuel? 1,000 gal? 10,000 gal?

How do you keep it from going bad?

[wrench]

“The newer toilets only use 1 or 2 gallons of water and a couple of plastic jugs will flush one a day.”

You will make a mess trying to fill the tank, it works way better to just pour in the bowl, and 1 -2 gal is not enough for this style flush, in my experience.

If you have good aim, goforit. Of course, 1 gal jugs are easier to pour from, but I was talking 5 gal buckets of creek water, not gallon jugs.

[Iron Munro]

Do city sewer systems continue to function if power is out for extended periods of time?

I don't know about hilly or mountainous regions, but in areas where the terrain is relatively flat both the water system and the sewage system are powered by pumps running on electric.

Where I live they supposedly have back up generators but only enough fuel for a short time.

When the sewage pumps stop the lines will back up and, like water seeking its own level, the sewage from buildings on higher ground and from multistory buildings will try to flow down into the structures on lower ground.

There are no backflow preventers built into home sewage pipes so the effluent from higher buildings will likely make its way into homes and back flow into bathtubs and out of toilets.

The same principle would apply to multistory apartment buildings. Effluent from apartments on the higher floors will likely force its way back through the system into those on the lower floors.

As poster "Wrench" said those on septic systems don't have this concern.

Also those in flat terrain away from multi story buildings will probably have less of a problem as the pipes will eventually become plugged, hopefully before backflow becomes a serious problem.

[wrench]

“We have tried a lot of different options over the years.
we have tried a lot of things...bulk storage, etc.
Ultimately, what works best is you to keep on hand
the foods that you like to eat:
cans of tuna, chili, soup, beans, peanut butter, or whatever...
The one thing most people forget about is water.”

Mirrors my experience.

Most rural stores run canned vegetable sales every fall with about 30% off the normal price. I always top off then.

This year my grocery had canned tuna for 45% discount off regular price, I took advantage of that as well.

[wrench]

“How are you going to operate your well pump with no electricity? Your water table is probably too,low for a hand pump (not enough suction head)

If you have an electric generator, how long is your fuel supply going to last? Do you store 500 gal,of fuel? 1,000 gal? 10,000 gal?

How do you keep it from going bad?”

It is not for everyone, but all stationary gasoline engines can be converted to propane or natural gas. Propane has an unlimited shelf life, and storage is very safe compared to gasoline.

[Big Red Badger]

Zombie Soup,,,,

Kewl.

[Kackikat]

No kidding, I have flushed toilets that way during ice storms, it’s not a big deal. If you store water in gallon jugs for this purpose you can pour them in a bucket, and it works just fine...and saves trips to the creek in the cold.
One must have the storage room to do that though. WE get ice storms more than snow storms in our mountains in winter, so we keep things others may not in their area of the country. It’s safer to be inside than trying to get to the water....each year, repeat the saving of water.

That way you can use your water however you need it, just keep clean jugs from milk, juice, or tea, whatever you buy in gallon jugs....then in an emergency, if you have water in them you are good to go for whatever you need water for.

The same with food, never rely on a freezer, you can food, dry food, and own a dehydrater. Even if you don’t can, buy long term canned goods and rotate so you use old stuff first. Like I said, my mother was a prepper before they had the term.

[bkopto]

Thanks Gaijin - he looks just like I’d expect: a metrosexual.

[Jamestown1630]

I’m always puzzled by people who do not have more than a few days canned food in the house. Is a few bags of rice and $150 worth of (Progresso, Campbell’s, Dole, King Oscar, Dinty Moore) what-have-you going to put that much of a financial strain on the household? ___________________________________________________________ That's how I feel. I'm not really afraid of 'apocalypse'; nor of war; I'm concerned about temporary natural disasters, and glitchy breakdowns in systems.

Near us, a neighborhood in the District of Columbia recently had a water issue; they couldn't use tap water for drinking, cooking or bathing for days. So they all went out and bought bottled water.

How much does it cost, to keep a few weeks of bottled water around - and the other things you mentioned - so that you're not battling the shortages, at the local store?

We've had one really bad experience with a power-outage that lasted a few days, during a very hot week in Summer. We learned from that, to be prepared. Now we keep water and ice, and sterno to heat-up soup and hot dogs, make hot water,etc., and we bought a few battery-operated fans.

This is just simple stuff that our ancestors always knew. It was just normal living, in the past. Start small, thinking of the things you'd be most miserable without. Over time, you'll get more ideas, and slowly you'll be prepared for the usual things that can happen. Matching coupons with sales, is a boon: after only a year of 'prep', we are at the point where we never have to buy anything for full-price, unless it's fresh veggies


-JT

[ez]

I have been having horrible thoughts lately of the cannibalism that would ensue if the food supply was ever broken. Don’t get caught alone in the open, you’ll probably end up as dinner.

[Iron Munro]

If you are on a well, even very deep wells, you can manually haul water up with a device called a well bucket.

You can buy them ready made and there are even some DIY sites on the net describing how to make your own.

Here is one source:

https://www.lehmans.com/p-1384-lehmans-own-galvanized-well-bucket.aspx?show=all

[bkopto]

Thanks for all your efforts in prodding Freepers to prepare. Please put me on your prepper ping list.

bkopto

[wrench]

“The same with food, never rely on a freezer, “

Can not be said enough. All food and supplies must be able to be stored without refrigeration of freezing.

Now of those pullets will ever get old enough to start laying............

[Kartographer]

You have been added.

[roadcat]

When the sewage pumps stop the lines will back up and, like water seeking its own level, the sewage from buildings on higher ground and from multistory buildings will try to flow down into the structures on lower ground.

I saw this up close and personal a few decades ago, in another city I lived in. My block had two-story homes, living quarters above garages. Block around the corner were single-story ranch-style homes. One time there was a blockage in the sewer system, and human feces waste was bubbling up into the wash basin in our garage. Good thing I was home, safely upstairs and heard and smelled it. I jammed a rolled up magazine into the drain to plug it, and used a wet-dry vacuum to keep the basin from overflowing. Neighbors in the single-story homes weren't so fortunate, their bathtubs and toilets overflowed into their living spaces and made a mess. Sewer pipes were excavated and replaced outside near those homes, and that was the easy part. Not something I ever want to experience again.