Situation X: "Millennial Blizzard"

The weather service has been saying for a week that your region will be hit by a cold snap in the coming week. You happen to over hear the following on the TV/net/radio:

-Your state/provincial executive has issued a state of emergency to begin in 48 hours
The weather service has advised that a rare combination of weather events is building the storm of the millennium: your are can expect temperatures to -20 F / -28 C for at least 24 hours, and will only slowly warm over the next week, with temps staying well below freezing for at least 2 days after the storm passes. The storm itself will bring at least 2 feet / 60cm of snow, and 75 mph/120kph winds.

-The water utility has announced that they will preemptively drop water pressure, to minimize damage to the water system. They advise that many homes and apartments will have burst water mains, and service may be impacted for days or weeks after the event. They will "turn off" their entire water grid 24 hours before the storm arrives. (24 hours from now!)

-The local gas utility warns that natural gas contracts when cold, and gas lines may not have enough pressure to fuel homes while the temperature is below -5F. They point out that home-owned LPG tanks may also become inoperative due to the lack of pressure in extreme cold.

-The power utility warns that the 75mph/120mph anticipated winds will undoubtedly knock down some transmission lines; the cold and heavy snow will make repairs take much longer, perhaps days or weeks.

-The next story on the news is the long lines at local gas/petrol stations in your area, and how some stations have sold out of product and are now closed.

-There is a live report from a supermarket you know, that there are record crowds at the supermarket, with supplies of milk, bread, eggs, birth control and beer selling out quickly.



How will you prepare?

a reply to: tovenar

All I know is many of the SJW types (The ones that want safe spaces) will be the first to die........

a reply to: tovenar


World war three?

a reply to: Bluntone22

I think it should go into survival though I think it applies to any shtf scenario (Pandemic, EMP, economic collapse, Chinese military invasion etc.)

Just like with a hurricane, you double check your emergency supplies and suck it up if you don't leave. Not much you can do beyond making sure you have a stockpile of wood if you have a fireplace, and learning real quick the value of layering clothing.

However, Minnesotans would just ignore that warning & call it a heatwave

I stock up with tinned food like canned corn beef/spam, bovril cubes, dry packet food like pasta and rice, get a small gas stove and cylinder to boil water. Have torches and plenty of batteries, a crank operated radio and recharger. Get thick winter anoraks with insulated hoods and gloves. Get thick trousers (or wear work out pants and jeans), thick fluffy blankets and duvets. Get tents to set up indoors so that the heat can be conserved - no need to heat up an entire room. If I couldn't find tents, I'd use clothes horses and string up a couple of sheets.

Use the freezing cold to keep food stuffs frozen. That's a Canadian trick. Buy boxes of beer just keep them chilled by putting them outside.

a reply to: starwarsisreal

I think they should all gather outside and scream at the sky.

Maybe it will go away.

a reply to: tovenar


Get a suite at a nice hotel, do up room service and get a manni/peddi.

originally posted by: Nyiah
However, Minnesotans would just ignore that warning & call it a heatwave

I used to be a Minnesotan. Can remember one morning waking up encased in ice. I slept by the window and had not closed it tight enough. The snow blew through the cracks and landed on my Korean blanket. The snow melted, leaving a layer of ice all over my bed. I was still warm and toasty underneath, didn't even know it.

It think the coldest I ever experienced in Minnesota was around -48 degrees wind chill. But I swear it seems 20 times colder in Florida at 20 degrees than anything I ever felt in Minnesota.

I would agree though that those conditions would not make Mid-westerners blink an eye. Did I tell you any stories about Minot?

originally posted by: DBCowboy
a reply to: tovenar


Get a suite at a nice hotel, do up room service and get a manni/peddi.

Exactly what i was thinking, it's gonna be really cold and everything is shut down for a few days? I'm going on vacation.

a reply to: tovenar

Well the first steps in a millenial storm is to stop wearing Ramone's T-shirts when you have never heard a Ramone's song and stop playing Pokemon GO.

However the most rational choice is to stock up on canned food, bottled water, dry wood and if you don't have a fireplace, invest in a generator and some fuel, and batteries for the radio you will need to keep you updated. That should keep you going through a millenial storm, but be wary of the dabbing and the hashtags that will be lying in the underbrush in the aftermath, If you see a fallen hashtag call 911.

In all seriousness i've been through massive storms before and so you should get your supplies ASAP because if you wait to the last minute everything on the shelves will be gone and supply lines will be cut off.

That is normal winter weather up here in these parts. I’d go ice fishing and grab an extra case of brew. True story.

Blame Russia for weather modifications.
Or claim that they interfered with our weather process .
Sorry, had to be said .

originally posted by: NightSkyeB4Dawn

originally posted by: Nyiah
However, Minnesotans would just ignore that warning & call it a heatwave

I used to be a Minnesotan. Can remember one morning waking up encased in ice. I slept by the window and had not closed it tight enough. The snow blew through the cracks and landed on my Korean blanket. The snow melted, leaving a layer of ice all over my bed. I was still warm and toasty underneath, didn't even know it.

It think the coldest I ever experienced in Minnesota was around -48 degrees wind chill. But I swear it seems 20 times colder in Florida at 20 degrees than anything I ever felt in Minnesota.

I would agree though that those conditions would not make Mid-westerners blink an eye. Did I tell you any stories about Minot?

Doesn't the humidity in the air make it seem colder than t is like it makes it feel hotter in the summer?
Not sure, but I think its a factor somehow .

In reality it sucks when something along those lines hits. A few years back we had a storm that is close to what you described, dumped close to three feet overnight over a large portion of the region, knocking out power to basically everyone up here. My home was without electricity, heat or water for four and a half days, a friend was without it for a week and a half.
We used a lot of blankets and a couple Mr Heaters to warm the house, I always have a stockpile of propane cylinders on hand in the winter for ice fishing luckily. We used the charcoal grill to cook outside and ate cereal and canned goods for our other meals.
The toilet situation was the worst part of it, we were unprepared for the power to be out so long and someone(possibly me) used it for a couple deuces early on so it go pretty gnarly by the time we got water back. I went to a friends the third day and filled up around thirty two-liters and milk jugs with water for drinking and whatnot.
And in actuality, I did go ice fishing the day after the storm, I had friends that had driven three and a half hours to come spend a few days chasing fish with me so we weren’t going to be sidetracked by a little snow.
Ended up slaying the smelt and pike too that day.

Like anything, you make sure you have your survival supplies set in -- adequate food and water. You know you won't have any trouble keeping food cold, so that's one plus.

Try to make sure you have a backup heating source of some kind. You may not be able to run it all the time for a variety of reasons (fuel, ventilation, etc.). So you want to confine yourselves as much as possible to one small, well-insulated interior room that can be easily heated and will maintain its heat as much as possible.

Once you have some heat, limit how often you go in and out.

Have clothing and blankets and just understand you will stay snuggled a lot.

This isn't too unusual when ice storms come through and take down power in large sections of the midwest.

apart from the panic buying and the low snowfall, it sounds like a ordinary winter for me.

originally posted by: JHumm

originally posted by: NightSkyeB4Dawn

originally posted by: Nyiah
However, Minnesotans would just ignore that warning & call it a heatwave

I used to be a Minnesotan. Can remember one morning waking up encased in ice. I slept by the window and had not closed it tight enough. The snow blew through the cracks and landed on my Korean blanket. The snow melted, leaving a layer of ice all over my bed. I was still warm and toasty underneath, didn't even know it.

It think the coldest I ever experienced in Minnesota was around -48 degrees wind chill. But I swear it seems 20 times colder in Florida at 20 degrees than anything I ever felt in Minnesota.

I would agree though that those conditions would not make Mid-westerners blink an eye. Did I tell you any stories about Minot?

Doesn't the humidity in the air make it seem colder than t is like it makes it feel hotter in the summer?
Not sure, but I think its a factor somehow .

Yes, the water vapour can absorb and transfer heat way more efficiently than air. Someone will die of hypothermia in cold water faster than in cold air due to the more efficient heat transfer of those water molecules.

Then there's the windchill effect where the fast moving air will take away body heat faster than still air. That can reduce the effective temperature by -10C or more.

Cold damp buildings and environments are the perfect conditions for getting respiratory infections. They used to call it "sailors cough" but it was basically an pneumonic infection of the lungs that couldn't be shaken off.

a reply to: JHumm
Yes. Humid air does feel colder than dry air.

To me it doesn't make a whole lot of difference if the actual temperature is 30 degrees; if it feels like 18 degrees then to me it is 18 degrees.

Forgive me. I am an old lady. When I get too cold I get grouchy. It is better for me to be too hot, because then I get sleepy. No fuss from an old lady that is sleeping.