Category Archives: Doomsday survival tips

SURVIVAL TRAINING – PURIFY WATER

You have been fighting zombies all day, your dying of thirst. Water is dirty and you need it to survive..but how do you make water clean so you can live to fight another day….

  1. Clean the containers in which you’re going to hold or store the water. Use dish soap and water. Rinse thoroughly. After washing the containers, submerge them in a solution of 1 teaspoon of non-scented liquid household chlorine bleach to every quart (or liter) of water (making sure the entire surface of the bottle comes in contact with the solution for a minimum of 15 seconds), then rinse thoroughly with a weaker mixture of bleach and water.[1]
    • Don’t use any container that has had milk or fruit juice in it. Milk protein and fruit sugars remain in the container and can fuel bacterial growth when water is stored. Plastic soda bottles are suitable.
  2. 2
    Filter water through a clean cloth.

    Filter water through a clean cloth.

    Filter water through a clean cloth. Then allow it to settle for at least 30 minutes and pour off the clear water for purifying. This process of filtering and settling is especially important if you’re going to be using chemical purification because disinfectants are less effective in cloudy, murky, or colored water.[2]

    • It is possible to use cotton cloth, such as a clean handkerchief or clean white sock, or silk (water passes quickly through multiple layers).
    • One way to set this up is to cut the bottom off of a water or coke bottle. Roll a clean sock up on itself and stuff it down to the neck of the bottle. Pour your water through the filter until it is clear to the eye.
    • If you have a portable water filter, use it.
  3. 3
    Speed up the clearing of water.

    Speed up the clearing of water.

    Speed up the clearing of water. One way to do this is to add a little aluminum sulfate. This causes impurities to coagulate, which are removed as the particulate settles to the bottom of the container.

  4. 4
    Purify the water using any of the following methods.

    Purify the water using any of the following methods.

    Purify the water using any of the following methods. If you can, combine boiling with a chemical disinfection method; the boiling is more thorough, but the chemical method will continue to keep the water safe when it’s stored.[3]Select a method:

    • Boiling: This kills most types of disease-causing organisms and is the most recommended purification technique. Boil the water for 1 full minute, then let it cool. Make sure it’s a full, rolling boil. If you are more than one mile above sea level, boil for 3 minutes longer.[1]
    • Disinfecting: Disinfecting with household bleach kills some, but not all, types of disease-causing organisms. The bleach must contain chlorine in order to work. Don’t use scented bleaches, color-safe bleaches, or bleaches with added cleaners. Most household chlorine bleaches have 4-6 percent available chlorine, in which case add 1/8 teaspoon (8 drops) of regular, unscented, liquid household bleach for each gallon of water (2 drops per litre), stir it well and let it stand for 30 minutes before you use it. Check the label; if the percentage of available chlorine is around 1 percent, or you don’t know what the percentage is, use 40 drops per gallon/ 10 drops per litre; if the percentage is 7-10 percent, use 4 drops per gallon or 1 drop per litre. Double the amount of chlorine if the water is cloudy, murky, or colored, or if the water is extremely cold. If, after sitting covered for 30 minutes, the water doesn’t have a slight chlorine odor, repeat the dosage and let sit for another 15 minutes.[2]
    • Granular calcium hypochlorite: This works in the same way as household bleach. You can dissolve one heaped teaspoon of high-test granular calcium hypochlorite (about 1/4 ounce) in two gallons of water (1 heaped tablespoon or 7g for every 7.5 litres or 1 gram for every litre of water) to make a disinfecting solution. Then add one part of the disinfecting solution to each 100 parts of water to purify.[2]
    • Correction: replace the word tablespoon with teaspoon. As correctly stated above, one heaped teaspoon = 1/4 ounce = 7g. One ounce = 28.35g. One tablespoon = 3 teaspoons = 22g per 7.5 liters = 3g for every liter of water. The solution would be 3 times stronger than it was intended to be.*
    • Potassium permanganate (KMnO4): This can be used to disinfect water. It can be purchased from camping supply stores and pool treatment stores. The water should be colored slightly pink, 3 or 4 crystals in a quart or litre of water. Let the solution stand for at least 30 minutes. This is definitely an emergency measure only, and should not be used for planned leisure activities, such as hiking or camping.
    • Disinfecting with iodine: This is generally less effective than chlorine in controlling the parasite Giardia, but it’s better than no treatment at all. Add 5 drops of 2 percent iodine (from the medicine chest or first aid kit) to every quart or litre of clear water; add 10 drops if the water is cloudy. Let the solution stand for at least 30 minutes.[2]
    • Commercial tablets: For commercially prepared chlorine or iodine tablets, follow the instructions that come with them. If you don’t have instructions, use one tablet for each quart or litre of water to be purified.[2]
    • Solar Water Disinfection (SODIS) method: Pouring the water into clear plastic PET bottles, and exposing to direct sunlight for at least 6 hours has been shown to be an effective method of disinfecting.[4]
  5. 5
    Be careful with the cap or lid of the container.

    Be careful with the cap or lid of the container.

    Be careful with the cap or lid of the container. If you’re chemically disinfecting water in a canteen or other portable container with a screw-on cap, wait about five minutes after adding the purifying chemical(s), then partially unscrew the cap and shake the container so that some of the water sloshes on the inside of the cap and the threads of the container, then re-tighten the cap and let it sit for the remainder of the time specified above or in the instructions. Otherwise, there may still be contaminated water in the cap, on the outside of the container’s neck, or on the threads.

  6. 6
    Improve the flavor of purified water, if needed.

    Improve the flavor of purified water, if needed.

    Improve the flavor of purified water, if needed. Boiled water can taste “flat”, and disinfected water can have a strong chlorine taste. Aerate it by pouring it from one clean container to another several times. Alternatively, add a pinch of salt to each quart or litre of water.[2] If the flavor is still unpleasant, use a powdered drink mix, if available.

  7. 7
    Take care when consuming.

    Take care when consuming.

    Take care when consuming. Once the water in a container has been purified, open and close the container carefully. Don’t touch the inside or the rim with your fingers, or else the water could become contaminated.

    • If you’re going to drink some, but not all of the water, don’t drink directly from the container. Pour it into another container and drink from that. Contact with your lips and mouth can contaminate water that’s going to be stored.
    • If you don’t drink the water immediately, write the date on the bottle. Store it in a cool, dark place for up to six months.

SURVIVAL TRAINING – MAKING FIRE

Just cause you can shoot a gun and rummage for food.doesn’t man you can survive…We have decided to start a series on survival since you have to do more to survive then just shoot zombies

MAKING FIRE FOR WARMTH, PROTECTION, AND COOKING

There are three ways to start a fire without the help of matches. Each can be effective, and all take lots of practice, but they’re actually pretty fun to learn.

Remember: Even in a survival situation, try to avoid harming the environment when building your fire. Look for a spot from which a fire could not spread and where the surrounding area would not be damaged.

5 Things to Know About Zombies

The Bridgewater Township Library is holding its Zombie Party Thursday at 6 p.m. for grades six through 12, as everyone will be invited to see if they have what it takes to survive the Zombie Apocalypse. The party will include Zombie Trivia, Humans vs. Zombies tag and much more. So in honor of this exciting evening, we present five things to know about zombies.

Information from trivology.com.

  • Completely Undead—Zombies are fictional characters that are brought back to life after death. Once back, they are said to feed on human flesh. They come back to life through some kind of magic.
  • Programmed Robot—Supposedly, zombies are not conscious of having been brought back to life, and they act like robots with no other objectives.
  • Long Popularity—Zombies have been popular in European and American cinema since the 19th century.
  • Really Scary—Zombies are considered to be very scary villians in cinema because they are not afraid of anything. They also tend to pop up randomly in films, frightening those around them.
  • Spread by Bite—Normally in films, if a zombie bites another human just once, that person will become a zombie too.

ARIZONA ZOMBIE PREPPERS – Necessities to survive the zombie apocalypse and where to get them

The zombie apocalypse is imminent. The particulars are still uncertain, but what does it matter, really? The world is about to be overrun by walking, cannibalistic corpses, and that’s all you need to know. If you want to survive this inevitable disaster, you have some shopping to do. Here are some essential items you can get at local stores:

Ruger 10/22 rifle: $250 at Second Amendment Sports

A .22 rifle is really all you need to kill zombies, because it doesn’t matter how big the hole is if you shoot them in the head. The Ruger 10/22 is one of the most popular rifles and is relatively cheap. It also makes a great gift for that special someone you’re hoping to repopulate the planet with.

Federal Ammunition Lightning .22LR Ammunition: $2 per 50-round box at Walmart

This higher-powered .22 ammo packs a bit more of a punch while still being dirt-cheap. Both the cheapest and the most important item on this list, ammunition will be the first thing stores run out of when the zombies attack, so buy lots of it now and go shoot some targets to hone your skills.

Gray-Nicolls Evo Slayer Youth Cricket Bat: $70 at Sports Authority

No zombie-killing arsenal would be complete without a solid wooden bat for close-quarters fighting, so why not class it up and smash skulls the British way? This particular cricket bat not only has a badass name but also has wicked tribal decals in a zombie-riffic black-and-green color scheme.

Alpinestars Bionic 2 Protection Jacket: $200 at Cycle Gear

Riding a motorcycle has its perks: better gas mileage, a high adrenaline rush and exponentially-increased risk of death. But did you know bikers also sometimes wear a suit of high-tech synthetic armor, which happens to be perfect for fighting zombies? This armored jacket is bite-proof and impact-resistant, so it should make significant headway in keeping you alive.

MSR MiniWorks EX Water Filter: $90 at REI

Any large-scale disaster, especially in Arizona, threatens the availability of clean drinking water. Having a good water filter means you can turn slimy green puddles into drinking water, so you don’t die of dehydration or dysentery. Don’t be the one who dies of chronic diarrhea in the middle of the zombie uprising, it’s just embarrassing.

REI Flash 62 Pack: $190 at REI

You’ll need a good backpack to carry your gear and any supplies you find while you’re on the move. This pack has lots of storage space, snazzy styling and puts the weight on your hips instead of your shoulders so you can carry more weight for a longer period of time.

Leatherman Blast Multi Tool: $55 at Sportsman’s Warehouse

Leatherman tools are basically Swiss Army knives on steroids. This one has a knife, saw, file, screwdriver, scissors, can-opener and pliers, making it invaluable for life after Z-Day. Cheaper versions exist, but this model is a good balance between cost and utility.

Total: $865

This might seem like a lot, but surviving the zombie apocalypse is priceless. Even the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have taken notice, writing up a full guide for survival ­— clearly, this is a viable threat. You can find the CDC guide online at http://www.cdc.gov/phpr/zombies.htm.

ZOMBIE PREPPERS – Using zombies to teach science and medicine

With my colleague Greg Tinkler, I spent an afternoon last week at a local public library talking to kids about zombies:

The Zombie Apocalypse is coming. Will you be ready? University of Iowa epidemiologist Dr. Tara Smith will talk about how a zombie virus might spread and how you can prepare. Get a list of emergency supplies to go home and build your own zombie kit, just in case. Find out what to do when the zombies come from neuroscientist Dr. Greg Tinkler. As a last resort, if you can’t beat them, join them. Disguise yourself as a zombie and chow down on brrraaaaiiins, then go home and freak out your parents.

Why zombies? Obviously they’re a hot topic right now, particularly with the ascendance of The Walking Dead. They’re all over ComicCon. There are many different versions so the “rules” regarding zombies are flexible, and they can be used to teach all different kinds of scientific concepts–and more importantly, to teach kids how to *think* about translating some of this knowledge into practice (avoiding a zombie pandemic, surviving one, etc.) We ended up with about 30 people there: about 25 kids (using the term loosely, they ranged in age from maybe age 10 to 18 or so) and a smattering of adults. I covered the basics of disease transmission, then discussed how it applied to a potential “zombie germ,” while Greg explained how understanding the neurobiology of zombies can aid in fleeing from or killing them. The kids were involved, asked great questions, and even taught both of us a thing or two (and gave us additional zombie book recommendations!)

For infectious diseases, there are all kinds of literature-backed scenarios that can get kids discussing germs and epidemiology. People can die and reanimate as zombies, or they can just turn into infected “rage monsters” who try to eat you without actually dying first. They can have an extensive incubation period, or they can zombify almost immediately. Each situation calls for different types of responses–while the “living” zombies may be able to be killed in a number of different ways, for example, reanimated zombies typically can only be stopped by destroying the brains. Discussing these situations allows the kids to use critical thinking skills, to plan attacks and think through choice of weapons, escape routes and vehicles, and consider what they might need in a survival kit.

Likewise, zombie microbes can be spread through biting, through blood, through the air, by fomites or water, even by mosquitoes in some books. Agents can be viral, bacterial, fungal, prions or parasitic insect larvae (or combinations of those). Mulling on these different types of transmission issues and asking simple questions:

“How would you protect yourself if infection was spread through the air versus only spread by biting?”

“How well would isolation of infected people work if the incubation period is very long versus very short?”

“Why might you want to thoroughly wash your zombie-killing arrows before using them to kill squirrels, which you will then eat?” (ahem, Daryl)

can open up avenues of discussion into scientific issues that the kids don’t even realize they’re talking about (pandemic preparedness, for one). And the great thing is that these kids are *already experts* on the subject matter. They don’t have to learn about the epidemiology of a particular microbe to understand disease transmission and prevention, because they already know more than most of the adults do on the epidemiology of zombie diseases–the key is to get them to use that knowledge and broaden their thinking into various “what if” situations that they’re able to talk out and put pieces together.

It can be scary going to talk to kids. Since this was a new program, we didn’t know if anyone would even show up, or how it would go over. Greg brought a watermelon for some weapons demonstrations (household tools only–a screwdriver, hammer and a crowbar, no guns or Samurai swords) which was a big hit. Still, I realize many scientists are more comfortable talking with their peers than with 13-year-olds. Talking about something a bit ridiculous, like an impending zombie apocalypse, can lessen anxiety because it takes quite a lot of effort to be boring with that type of subject matter; it’s entertaining; and kids will listen. And after all, what you don’t know, might eat you.