Logistics involves a number of important factors and these are often overlooked when developing your priorities for survival into a manageable plan. A thorough understanding of the logistics of any situation will help you to utilize all of your available resources to achieve the maximum benefit possible. It is also important to remember that a crisis will affect everyone’s survival and not just yours. There will be many others out there who will be struggling to survive the same crisis or disaster.
Survival Logistics
1. Time Management
One of the major factors that comes into play when a crisis occurs is time. You won’t have any time to waste and will need to make every second count. If you have to bug-out, will you have sufficient time to reach your bug-out location or do you have an alternate location that is closer and may serve your purposes? If you don’t have the time to bug-out, do you have sufficient means to shelter in place.
Always allow extra time to accomplish your goals during a crisis or disaster, it will always take a lot longer than you think to get there or to get something done. Plan things to save as much time as possible; because you will need every minute in a crisis
2. Use Information to Your Advantage
The importance of up-to-date information cannot be stressed enough. An accurate level of information will help you stay ahead in the process. Information that is current will keep you informed of any changes that occur which can have a direct effect on your chances for survival. Changes in the weather, traffic conditions or infrastructure failures can have a significant impact on your chance of survival.
3. Maximizing Transportation Resources
Movement and transportation are also critical factors during a crisis. Do you have sufficient means to transport everyone in your group if you have to move to a different location? Do you have sufficient room for supplies that may be needed? Even though you may even have a certain amount of goods stockpiled at a different location, will you be able to get there? Do your vehicles have sufficient extra capacity to handle extra supplies or additional family members? Allowing for excess capacity when it comes to transportation will help you avoid a critical situation during a crisis. This could be as simple as a large capacity van, a trailer that can be attached to your vehicle or a cargo container strapped on top of your vehicle.
4. Skills and Inventory Management
Keeping a proper inventory of your resources (food, water, etc.) is also essential. It is also important to remember that the people in your group are also one of your most important resources. Although water, food and shelter are all critical items, it is important to utilize the inventory of skills available from the people in your group. You will need to make sure that you have adequate levels of supplies to maintain your group until other resources can be obtained. Knowing the inventory of personal skills of the persons in your group will enable you utilize their skills for the maximum possible benefit of everyone.
5. Increase Security Levels
In normal times, security is not always a prime concern. During a crisis or a disaster, security becomes a critical issue. A crisis will quite often bring out the worst in people. Civil unrest can create a unique set of problems in and of itself. Emergency services, such as law enforcement, firefighters, etc., are quite often overwhelmed when a crisis occurs. Many people will be looking to take advantage of this fact. Taking the necessary steps to increase your levels of security whether you are sheltering in place or bugging-out will be a critical and important part of maintaining your safety during a crisis.
Using logistics in your survival planning may help you become a survivor instead of a statistic. A little common sense helps as well.
Staying above the water line!
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2 comments:
On #3, include knowing alternate routes, in case road blocks get thrown up. A choke point can really mess up an evacuation very quickly, so studying those others routes now would be a good idea.
Also deciding on exactly what will go and what will stay is good knowledge - a dry run with loading your vehicle may find everything fits - everything but the people. :^) Knowing what to pare down will save tons of time.
Great post RiverWalker.
To: anonymous 12:18
I've done several "dry runs" and you'd be surprised what was left out of the process that was really needed and found a few things that weren't and the space they took up could have been used for other items that would have been more helpful.
By way of example, I have a 15 passenger van that when loaded with 8 people and their gear simply had no more room...that's only about half its original passenger capacity...gear and supplies takes up a lot of room, even when pared down to just the bare essentials.
knowing how things are actually going to work can avoid a lot of additional problems. I know with a great deal of certainty that should it be necessary to transport more than eight people and supplies that it's going to take an additional vehicle...or something is going to have to be left behind.
Thanks anon.
RW
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