10 Disturbing SHTF Threats that most Preppers Haven’t Prepared For

Think you're prepared for any SHTF scenario, Check Again and then say you're ready!!

Was reading various bits on a cool website I am sure so e of you have already visited,

Off Grid Survival

and came across an interesting read:

When planning for a SHTF scenario, there’s really only one thing that we can be sure of; Survival will be a bigger challenge than you ever believed possible. While you can defiantly take measures to prepare yourself for what’s to come, when you’re talking about a SHTF scenario, all bets are really off. Here are 10 things that you may have never considered when planning for a SHTF survival situation.

10 Disturbing SHTF Threats that most Preppers Haven’t Prepared For


This article raises some interesting points that I dare bet not everyone has even thought about. Having all the supplies in the world will not help you with some of the issues mentioned above.

Have a read and make sure you are as ready as you can be for when

THE SH^T HITS THE FAN...

reply to post by StarTraveller


One big one I hardly ever see anyone mention........If we lose our power grids, how long before all of the nuclear sites in the US goes BOOM?? Who can survive that?

reply to post by seeker1963


That's true! Only time I had ever heard of this was in a great video on YouTube:

Life after people


Certainly something I hadn't given any thought to until it was mentioned in detail in this documentary. If you haven't watched it by the way and have an hour+ spare I would certainly recommend taking a look.

After reading those, I am even more glad that I live out in the country.
I feel sorry for those that live in urban areas now, and would even more so if something did happen.

I sometimes think about what would happen if someone with little ones showed up in our neighborhood, it would be so hard to turn them away, but what if your survival depended on doing that?

BTW, just finished The Dog Stars. Post Apocalyptic book that touch on some of this. Good read!

I guess I am pretty well prepared!

You know, looking at that list, it got me thinking: you see all this stuff happening in movies and stuff, but you never imagine you would have to go through it.

Do you really think it'll come down to this stuff?

Pfft. Rookie article. That's the simple stuff.
Some of the harder stuff will be:
Friends, neighbors and family who know you may have supplies and are willing to kill you to get them.
Biological outbreaks - epizootics, plague, cholera, typhus, mutated viruses.
Chemical contamination of air and water.
Medication shortages.
Surviving while on the move.

Once again, I'm so glad I live on a boat.

I live in my "bug-out" lol.

While all of these are important aspects to a survival situation, the variables are just too many... especially when you throw in people. When people panic, feel threatened, or hopeless... they become unpredictable.

That is why soldiers are relentlessly drilled, so that when there abilities shut down... their reflexes take over... even in a stressed situation, they act on repetative reflexes and training. Imagine untrained, undisciplined civilians... your average JoeBlow citizen... in a social, cultural, economic meltdown mixed with paramilitary street warfare... it will be very ugly.

Sanitation is a big deal... even for those that survived the battlefield, the bulk of casualties in past wars prior to WWII was disease, infection, and sickness... all preventable with the most basic of sanitation practices. Something as simple as washing hands and wounds with soap and water would have done wonders back in the Civil War.

That is why in my stash is a goodly amount of soap, alcohol, anti-bacterial agents, antigermicidal gels, etc...

Beyond these, the best weapon a person has is their mind... knowledge, common sense, and practice... it amazes me how many people don't even read maps, know the sun sets in the W and rises in the E, where to find the North Star... and it is North... boil water before use, heck... even wash your hands after using the toilet... not just good manners but an essential basic to sanitation.

I suggest reading and actually practicing some of the stories and skills descibed in old time primers for cowboys, tales of mountain people and homesteaders, etc. I remember reading about how in the Civil War the small cabins/huts had a chimney with a poor draft and the cabin would fill quickly with smoke. While living in a real cabin and heating and cooking with wood, a wind caught my smoke stack just right and my little cabin turned into a smoke house... as cold as it was, I had to open all the doors and windows to get the smoke out at 2am... You learn why you always look down before sitting in an outhouse.... or why, when taking a bath from a basin, you start with the head and work your way down...

I suggest a simple exercise... take a weekend, cut off the breaker box, and isolate yourself from Friday night to Sunday night... see how you do. No cell phone, no computer, no trips to town or neighbors... just try living like yourgreat grand parents for a couple of days... see how you do. No hot showers, no stove or microwave, no electric lights...

Can you build a fire... have wood for a fire... have pots that will cook well over a fire? Water... where is your water... wash your hands... is it "icky" to take a dump outside? Can you walk around your yard in the dark... or do you need to light up everything and make yourself a shinning target? Do you get stir crazy or can you entertain yourself?

If any of this is difficult... how will you do it with people trying to rob you.. shoot at you... military trying to "rescue" you?

Only one I had not thought about is fake law LEO and military. He left one important thing out. The most under prepared for thing is water. All your food and sanitation won't be worth crap without water. Many have short term water supplies but long term is totally forgotten. Some folks have 10 55 gallon barrels of water storage most have less. that is only 500 gallons of water for a family of 5 that won't last long.

For long term you need a renewable source. A well is great but you need electricity to pump it and if you have a generator you need fuel and spare parts not only for the generator but for the well pump etc.

On of the best things for renewable long term water IMO is a rain water collection with the bare minimum of a thousand gallon tank. Preferable 5000 - 20,000 gallon tank/s. An inch of rain on 1000 square feet of roof is 500 gallons of water. Most average house roofs are 1500 to 2000 square feet. if you have 10 inches of rain Thats 7000 to 10,000 gallons of water. Now that is a sustainable water supply. Of course if you have more rain thent better. 10 inches of rain in a region is considered arid. So if you have out buildings that's more roof. 20,000 gallons a year collected would take good care of a family including gardens etc.

Something to think about

Originally posted by AlreadyGone
While all of these are important aspects to a survival situation, the variables are just too many... especially when you throw in people. When people panic, feel threatened, or hopeless... they become unpredictable.

That is why soldiers are relentlessly drilled, so that when there abilities shut down... their reflexes take over... even in a stressed situation, they act on repetative reflexes and training. Imagine untrained, undisciplined civilians... your average JoeBlow citizen... in a social, cultural, economic meltdown mixed with paramilitary street warfare... it will be very ugly.

Sanitation is a big deal... even for those that survived the battlefield, the bulk of casualties in past wars prior to WWII was disease, infection, and sickness... all preventable with the most basic of sanitation practices. Something as simple as washing hands and wounds with soap and water would have done wonders back in the Civil War.

That is why in my stash is a goodly amount of soap, alcohol, anti-bacterial agents, antigermicidal gels, etc...

Beyond these, the best weapon a person has is their mind... knowledge, common sense, and practice... it amazes me how many people don't even read maps, know the sun sets in the W and rises in the E, where to find the North Star... and it is North... boil water before use, heck... even wash your hands after using the toilet... not just good manners but an essential basic to sanitation.

I suggest reading and actually practicing some of the stories and skills descibed in old time primers for cowboys, tales of mountain people and homesteaders, etc. I remember reading about how in the Civil War the small cabins/huts had a chimney with a poor draft and the cabin would fill quickly with smoke. While living in a real cabin and heating and cooking with wood, a wind caught my smoke stack just right and my little cabin turned into a smoke house... as cold as it was, I had to open all the doors and windows to get the smoke out at 2am... You learn why you always look down before sitting in an outhouse.... or why, when taking a bath from a basin, you start with the head and work your way down...

I suggest a simple exercise... take a weekend, cut off the breaker box, and isolate yourself from Friday night to Sunday night... see how you do. No cell phone, no computer, no trips to town or neighbors... just try living like yourgreat grand parents for a couple of days... see how you do. No hot showers, no stove or microwave, no electric lights...

Can you build a fire... have wood for a fire... have pots that will cook well over a fire? Water... where is your water... wash your hands... is it "icky" to take a dump outside? Can you walk around your yard in the dark... or do you need to light up everything and make yourself a shinning target? Do you get stir crazy or can you entertain yourself?

If any of this is difficult... how will you do it with people trying to rob you.. shoot at you... military trying to "rescue" you?

I'm going to do that very thing. I just finished (this evening) a solar power system. My test will be to go a weekend ater shutting the breaker off at the breaker box and relying on solar. After that I can re-evaluate and see where weak points are...

Originally posted by Asktheanimals
Pfft. Rookie article. That's the simple stuff.
Some of the harder stuff will be:
Friends, neighbors and family who know you may have supplies and are willing to kill you to get them.
Biological outbreaks - epizootics, plague, cholera, typhus, mutated viruses.
Chemical contamination of air and water.
Medication shortages.
Surviving while on the move.

Antibiotics. Get them. Fish antibiotics are the same thing. Get them before "they" catch on and you need a script from a vet to get them.

Another aspect are emotional issues,some of us will experience great loss and mental trauma from either a death in the family or being forcefully probed by alien's.

reply to post by AlreadyGone


i'll bet 99% of the membership here will not try this at home. However, I will, this weekend....as soon as I program my shows, call the babysitter, call in to work......Just kidding. No programming, no kids, no weekend work. People want to talk the talk but they don't want to walk the walk. That's the difference between a winner and a loser.

I think what most are unprepared for is Children. AT least in America. I don't have any and i would find it hard to hurt one even if he/she has sticky fingers.. I mean think about it who can turn away an apparent lost child needing someone to help. Most people can prepare they decide ahead of time. But what about all the children. Most families will be giving the food and water to keep their kids alive. When the parent die the kids got to fend for themselves. I am sure some out there could. Well Just saying. As far as the list goes That's just the basics If you haven't already thought about it it can kill you. Maniacs in cop suits.. Paramedics who think they are now qualified doctors. Most who can't fight will try to con you. Give and inch they want a mile. Hard choices I think.
Therian

I would be ready for ALL of those, what "pepper" wouldn't be? They all go hand in hand... Be ready for self reliance and self defense. Also being in the mountains, you don't need to worry about sanitation unless you have open wounds, but at my age I heal quickly and I know to field dress a wound, especially well if i have my 3day bag. Articles like this must be for complete tools... No offense to anyone on ats, but I imagine most of you are with me on this..

reply to post by SSDDay


The only thing im concerned about is winter. Will i be able to provide my family with food? warmth? my plan is to camp out at one of my hunting spots, very secluded. but winter still worries me. (In Canada)

Here's the deal, we were able to adapt to the conditions that have gradually changed overtime and evolved FROM an environment where there were no need for technology of any kind. There were no need for creating spears, there were no need for creating clothes, and fire was not made by mankind. In the even that SHTF, what do you have compared to our ancestors when you're living in an unsuitable environment during seasons?

You have the knowledge of fire, you have the knowledge of what makes (at the very least) a decent shelter, and you know how to make weapons or at least have the knowledge to learn how to make them from virtually almost nothing.

The downside to this is that just about everyone can do the same, and without technology, starvation will be a guarantee as we rely heavily on crops and preservatives to survive. Without these essentials people will die of starvation and our makeshift methods to farm may cause a lot more deaths. After all, the "deadly" poisons that they throw on our crops may be controversial but they protect us from deadly bacteria.

Being self-sufficient and to be able to go out and form villages and militias is going to be important because people will use maps and go down each road to find every last crumb of food and resource so it'll be more than necessary to be cooperative and live in a forged village. Although the odds of SHTF are so minuscule to be honest. There are some safe spots in the world, and if you're willing to make the sacrifice you can eat very well like the Inuits do.

Just wanted to share something my Grandpa 97 yrs young told me the other day and I was thinking that this is the kind of stuff we may again face. Although his story happened back during the great depression when he was a young man it was none the less something that would stick with him all of his life as if it were yesterday. In our future it is entirely possible that his experience could be amplified many times over if what we know and discuss comes to pass. The population has exploded and we no longer have a surplus of goods and commodities as we once did not to mention no longer the ability to even create with all of the outsourcing witnessed in the past decade.

Anyway here is what he told me:

"I was walking along and a nice man came up to me, I mean that he was a decent sort, not anyone you would suspect of being a trouble maker or anything. So he asks me for a cigarette, cigarettes were hard to come by in those days and I was down to my last 3, but I shared one with him and he asked for a light which I gave him.

He walked off and sat on a rock and smoked his cigarette and then went over and laid his head down as the train was coming down the track. There was no time to stop what happened and he was decapitated."

He said he would never forget it.

I am sure that if any of us actually experience anything like a shtf scenario it will stay with us forever. Thanks for your story buddy.