Survival In A Major City Post-SHTF


Survival In A Major City Post-SHTF

By Adelia Ladson

Lots of folks have their SHTF plans in place and the main component is bugging-out to a rural area, where the inhabitants are few and mostly four-legged. Let me put a thought out there. If everyone tries to bug-out to a cabin in the woods, the woods is gonna get awfully crowded. Just sayin’.

Shelter-In-Place In The City

There is another plan to consider, especially, if that cabin in the woods isn’t an option for you and your family. Unless your home or neighborhood is completely uninhabited, you can always shelter-in-place. Even if you live in a major city or metropolitan area, this is a possibility. Prepping for SHTF city-living is different, in some ways, than prepping for SHTF country-living, but it is also the same in many ways, too. There are basic needs that must be met and basic supplies you need to secure. Here are the things that you need to survive in an urban area after SHTF.

Drinking Water

The first thing you need to have is a way to have clean and safe drinking water. This is your first consideration, above all. Whether you live in a high-rise or a suburban home, finding water is what you’re going to have to do. You’ll have to get it from anywhere that you can find it, even if it’s from a toilet in a public restroom or from a decorative fountain in front of a commercial building. The ideal would be sourcing it from a lake or pond in a park or greenspace but regardless of where you find it, you can’t just fill up your water container and drink it. You need to have a way to filter it so that you don’t have to worry about getting sick or even dying. That’s where having a LifeStraw product makes all the difference in the world. Every one of these state-of-the-art filters will remove 99.99% of waterborne bacteria and protozoan parasites. You can literally take the LifeStraw down to a public bathroom, stick it in the toilet and drink without worry. IF you have a source, where you can get a lot of water at one time, you can get the Membrane Solutions Three-Liter Gravity Water Filter Bag, which also comes with a filter straw that can be used separately. No batteries necessary, folks. Just hang it up in your kitchen.

Food

Next, obviously, you need food for you and your family. If you’re doing what you’re supposed to be doing, you’ve already been stocking non-perishables. But what happens when you run out? You need to plan for the long-haul by having a renewable food source plan.

Fresh Vegetables

If you live in suburbia, having a renewable food source plan may be easier because you have a yard. You can already plot out a garden and reap the benefits of fresh vegetables now. If you live smack dab in a city, proper, you can still have your garden, it just takes a little more effort. There are folks who do have rooftop gardens in larger cities that are just as successful. Having fresh vegetable to eat will be one of the keys to your family’s survival. So, whether you choose to stock them for later or to use them now, the ReadyWise Heirloom Vegetable Seed Bucket is what you are looking for in quality seeds that are non-GMO and grown in the USA. The bucket contains a variety of 39 different heirloom vegetable seeds, giving you approximately 4,500 seeds, which are packaged to have a 10-year shelf-life. Now, here’s a thought: After SHTF, seeds like these will be as good as hard currency. Inevitably, there will be folks who weren’t prepared and would be willing to trade for them.

Fresh Meat

Part of your food source plan also needs to include meat unless you’re vegetarian. So, you need to have a weapon or two or three of some kind. You also need them for protection, make no mistake. In urban and suburbia, squirrels and pigeons are going to be your most plentiful, palatable meat source. Squirrels, especially, can be found scurrying from tree to tree in any park-like area or greenspace. So, a shotgun or a good .22 is definitely a must. Go ahead and invest in some good, ready-to-use Small Animal Snare Kit, too. You can set them up, especially, in suburbia, to catch other little critters roaming around your neighborhood. You really need to have a variety of weapons in your arsenal. Don’t put your eggs all in the gun basket but have a crossbow, too. That way, you can have an alternative when the ammo runs out. You can stockpile ammo and you should but, remember, you gotta plan for the long haul.

Scavenging

So, let’s talk about scavenging, which is something you’ll have to do sooner or later. There will be things you need to go out looking for when supplies start running low or maybe it’s a hunting expedition. When you go out, there are necessities you need to take with you. First thing’s first. You need a good, reliable knapsack to go out with. If you think about it, you will be basically hiking, just in a more urban environment. A roomy backpack will let you bring back items you find while scavenging. Things like medicine and even hygiene items, may still be out there. Also, you can carry essentials you will need for your scavenging expedition like water or your LifeStraw, binoculars, paracord, a small first aid kit and a couple of UV Tooblites. You can even toss in a bottle of Chocolate Survival Tabs if you think you’re going to be awhile. If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a hundred times, I like the M48 OPS Tactical Backpack. Keep in the back of your mind that this well may serve as your bug-out bag if you have to leave where you’ve been sheltering-in-place because it’s not safe anymore.


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