PLANNING strategies for group survival…

None of us are lone wolves. The idea of going it alone in a real SHTF scenario may seem romantic most certainly it has been the subject of a great many disaster films…
But real life just isn’t that way… your best chances are with a group… even if your group is your own family some prep and planning is still required…
I have somewhat modified the training curriculum from my time spent as a Mountain warfare instructor into more civilian terms and theory.

Preplanning

Ideally all the members of your group well hold pre-meetings to talk about strategies, and discuss plans such as travel routes rendezvous points. A division of gear, who takes what… Nominate people for particular responsibilities: medic, linguist, cook, special equipment, vehicle maintenance, driver, navigator and so forth. Ensure that everyone is familiar with the equipment and that there are spares where needed - batteries, fuel and bulbs especially.

Divide training schedules of the project into phases: Bug Out phase, route planning, objective and recovery. Clearly state the aim of each phase and work out a time scale. Plan for emergency procedures such as vehicle breakdown, illness and casualty evacuation, conduct mock runs, training and practice eliminate error and shows problem areas your group needs to work on…
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In estimating the rate of progress, especially on foot, allow plenty of time. It is always better to underestimate and be pleasantly surprised by doing better. Pressure to keep up to an over-ambitious schedule not only produces tension and exhaustion but leads to errors of judgment and risk-taking that are frequently the reason for things going wrong.

Thrown into a group brings to play other issues: if you are the one with these organization skills, you need to take change and set goals for the groups survival, the group’s survival depends largely on its ability to organize activity. An emergency situation does not bring people together for a common goal; rather, the more difficult and disordered the situation, the greater are the disorganized group’s problems.

Groups Morale. High morale must come from internal cohesiveness and not merely through
external pressure. The moods and attitudes can become wildly contagious. Conscious well planned organization and leadership on the basis of delegated or shared responsibility often can prevent panic. High group morale has many advantages.

(1) Individual feels strengthened and protected since he realizes that his survival depends on others whom he trusts.

(2) The group can meet failure with greater persistency.

(3) The group can formulate goals to help each other face the future.

Factors that Influence Group Survival. There are numerous factors that will influence
whether a group can successfully survive.

Organization of Manpower - Organized action is important to keep all members of the group briefed; this way the members of the group will know what to do and when to do it, both under ordinary circumstances and in emergencies.

Selective Use of Personnel - In well-organized groups, the person often does the job that most closely fits their personal qualifications.

Acceptance of Suggestion and Criticisms - The senior man must accept responsibility for the final decision, but must be able to take suggestion and criticisms from others.

Consideration of Time - On-the-spot decisions that must be acted upon immediately usually determines survival success.

Check Equipment - Failure to check equipment can result in failure to survive.

Survival Knowledge and Skills - Confidence in one’s ability to survive is increased by acquiring survival knowledge and skills.

PRIORITIES OF WORK IN A SURVIVAL SITUATION.

Each survival situation will have considerable aspects that will alter the order in which tasks need to be accomplished. A general guideline is to think in blocks of time.

The first 24 hours are critical in a survival situation. You must make an initial estimate of the situation. Enemy, weather, terrain, time of day, and available resources will determine which tasks need to be accomplished first. They should be following.

(1) Shelter

(2) Fire

(3) Water

(4) Signaling

After the first 24 hours have passed, you will now know you can survive.
This time period needs to be spent on expanding your knowledge of the area. By completing the following tasks, you will be able to gain valuable knowledge.
(1)Tools and weapons. By traveling a short distance from your shelter to locate the necessary resources, you will notice edible food sources and game trails.

(2) T raps and snares. Moving further away from your shelter to employ traps and snares, you will be able to locate your shelter area form various vantage points. This will
enable you to identify likely avenues of approach into your shelter area.

(3) Pathguards. Knowing the likely avenues of approaches, you can effectively place
noise and causality producing pathguards to ensure the security of your shelter area.

Remainder of your survival situation. This time is spent on continuously improving your
survival situation through hunting fishing food gathering and improving your shelter(s)

When considering shelter site selection, use the word BLISS as a guide.
B - Blend in with the surroundings.
L - Low silhouette.
I - Irregular shape.
S - Small.
S - Secluded location.

SHELTER SITE SELECTION
When you are in a survival situation and realize that shelter is a high priority, start looking for shelter as soon as possible. As you do so, remember what you will need at the site.

Two requisites are--
It must contain material to make the type of shelter you need.
It must be large enough and level enough for you to lie down comfortably.

When you consider these requisites, however, you cannot ignore your tactical situation or your safety.

You must also consider whether the site--
Provides concealment from enemy observation.
Has camouflaged escape routes.
Is suitable for signaling, if necessary.
Provides protection against wild animals and rocks and dead trees that might fall.
Is free from insects, reptiles, and poisonous plants.

You must also remember the problems that could arise in your environment. For instance--
Avoid flash flood areas in foothills.
Avoid avalanche or rockslide areas in mountainous terrain.
Avoid sites near bodies of water that are below the high water mark.

In some areas, the season of the year has a strong bearing on the site you select. Ideal sites for a shelter differ in winter and summer. During cold winter months you will want a site that will protect you from the cold and wind, but will have a source of fuel and water. During summer months in the same area you will want a source of water, but you will want the site to be almost insect free.

S - Size up the situation, surroundings, physical condition, & equipment.
U - Undue haste makes waste.
R - Remember where you are.
V - Vanquish fear and panic.
I - Improvise & Improve.
V - Value living.
A - Act like the natives.
L - Live by your wits, but for now, Learn Basic Skills.

reply to post by DaddyBare


Just in the process of reading the SAS survival handbook but at the moment im learning more from your Threads. You dont know how to make a Blow Dart by any chance?
Thanks

Originally posted by Dionisius
reply to post by DaddyBare

 

Just in the process of reading the SAS survival handbook but at the moment im learning more from your Threads. You dont know how to make a Blow Dart by any chance?
Thanks

Go to a hardware store and buy a nice straight section of 1/4 aluminum tubing...that will be your blowgun... then you need a handful of round plastic beads that fit the inside diameter of your tube... a simple wire clothes hanger will provide with a nice metal shaft...cut 4 to 6 inch straight sections... to assemble heat one end of the metal shaft with a candle flame/lighter/ or just hold it over the stove... then carefully press into the bead and hold until it cools.... now your ready for a test fire... put it in the tube and blow baby blow ...

Yeah I've been making blow guns since I was 12

First step? Find or form a group. In my experience as a single man, this is the hardest part.

Originally posted by DaddyBare

Originally posted by Dionisius
reply to post by DaddyBare

 

Just in the process of reading the SAS survival handbook but at the moment im learning more from your Threads. You dont know how to make a Blow Dart by any chance?
Thanks

Go to a hardware store and buy a nice straight section of 1/4 aluminum tubing...that will be your blowgun... then you need a handful of round plastic beads that fit the inside diameter of your tube... a simple wire clothes hanger will provide with a nice metal shaft...cut 4 to 6 inch straight sections... to assemble heat one end of the metal shaft with a candle flame/lighter/ or just hold it over the stove... then carefully press into the bead and hold until it cools.... now your ready for a test fire... put it in the tube and blow baby blow ...

Yeah I've been making blow guns since I was 12

Nice one DB, sounds easier than I would ever have thought! I want to try making one out of wood, I was thinking a Bamboo shoot would be good. How would you go about hollowing out a hard wood in a survival situation with no bamboo to hand? Do you know of any natural fast acting poisons that would still leave the animal edible?
Thanks

reply to post by Dionisius


The only natural fast acting poisons that don't hurt us is finely ground walnut husks..
Normally it's used to poison fish... they float to the surface and you scoop them up and they are safe to eat...
don't know it would work on an 4 legged critter???

Maybe I need to do a little spermenting

Edit to add normally they heat a steel rod on a fire and push it threw the bamboo... the solid hardwood ones are made by splitting the wood in two then matching groves are cut and the separate halfs lashed together

reply to post by DarthMuerte


Maybe you can leave a flyer at your local church... starting a Wilderness survival group... fun for the whole family!
craigslist is good too...

just be careful and do a damn good interview when picking members...

reply to post by Daddy BEar


i enjoyed reading your post, i'm a volunteer on a disaster response team.

basic FEMA training can be found on the internet, if you volunteer locally, you can get training.

animal disaster response teams work with HSUS, IFAW,Red Cross, to offer training.
animal first aid, dogs, cats, horses, what to do when there is no vet.
chain saw training, etc.

even if you don't volunteer, you could still take the training you want, most is open to public.

local trail organizations can provide topo maps, so you don't struggle more than necessary should your party have to cross forests.

and to new volunteers overwhelmed by our instruction books, i tell them, basically the firemen are in charge, stay out of their way and help as requested.

if you have any former navy personnel in your group, they most likely have impressive disaster training.
putting them in charge can be quite wise.

Such good info, I had to print it out. Any other methods of making blow darts? I already have the blow dart guns. I am also interested in any other natural poisons that have minimal impact on humans for larger game. I heard of boiling down cig butts and scraping the resin, but you would still have to cut a big hole where the dart went in. Any other ideas in regards to blow dart ammo, poisons, and the guns?

reply to post by Skada


didn't realize there was so much interest in blowguns...
tell you what... so as not to derail this thread let me do a little research... take some pictures... and make a separate thread on just that topic...

In group survival how you bivy will depend on the weather.
In cold weather you will want to pair up when making shelters to conserve heat.
Hot weather everyone should sleep separately.
Don't try to make a shelter that will accommodate 5 or 6 people, it will be too large and easily spotted.
If you must have a fire make it very small and in a pit, build a short wall around the fire area to conserve heat and avoid detection. Also, making your fire beneath a tree with help break the smoke up.

It just occurred to me that if you are planning to bug out in a vehicle it might pay to remove all seats but the drivers. That way you can carry more plus in a bad situation it provides cover for all but the driver and makes handling a firearm a more manageable proposition.