Urban Survival Guide
Urban Survival Skills
Every emergency situation requires different skills
to cope with the crisis. Being prepared is essential
to your survival. The following is the most basic urban
survival skills that every urban survivalist should know, and practice
in order to be prepared for survival.
The Basics
(Wilderness Survival Skills
are the fundamental skills that should be learned for
every survival situation)
Urban Survival
This urban survival guide is divided in two sections;
Street Skills and Home
Preparedness. Street skills are for extreme survival
situations such as homelessness; Home Preparedness is
for protecting your family, home, and property in survival
situations.
Street Skills
Learning Lifesaving Skills
Be prepared; take the time to learn vital survival and
lifesaving skills before you need it!
Keeping Fit
You should also keep fit; join a local gym or build
a home gym and work out three times a week. The three
main areas are body building, stretching, and cardio;
keep in mind that big muscles may be of little use in
a survival situation, but being flexible and having
good cardio fitness (the ability to run, climb, and
keep going) can, and may save your life.
Know Your Environment
Be prepared; take the time to learn your area, what
type of people live there and where. Find a map &
study it!
Explore the area; know where places are, abandoned buildings,
homes, stores, churches, hospitals, etc.
Be aware of any gang territories; ovoid the area.
Keeping your Wits
The single most important skill for the urban survivalist is the will
to survive. If you find yourself in a survival situation,
you must make up your mind that you are going to survive!
Attitude and determination are your allies, doubt is
your enemy!
Keep your cool; don’t be fearful of the unknown;
don’t worry about that which you cannot control.
Instead keep your mind on the task at hand; Survival!!!
Keep your eyes and ears open; be aware of your surroundings
at all times, and expect the unexpected. Your ability
to think clearly and react is your most valuable survival
skill in an urban situation.
Never resort to crime; in desperate situations people
sometimes resort to crime out of fear, or necessity.
Crime will only lead to destruction and will eventually
undermine your ability to survive.
Think before you react!
Finding Shelter
You should look for shelter immediately if your in a
survival situation that requires you to get warm fast
(cold, rain, snow), or if you
have the need to stay hidden. You should find shelter
at least 2 hours before dark in most situations.
Your shelter will be determined by your unique situation.
The following or some things to conceder; do I need
to stay hidden, is there a good water source nearby,
are there any dangers in the area (gangs,
debris, structures that may collapse, stagnate water,
etc.)?
Be aware that abandoned buildings may already have
guest living in them (You don’t
want to wake up in a crack house).
You may have to build a shelter; take a look at our
in-depth shelter building. Every situation will be different,
locate our building a shelter will depend on your unique
situation and area. The following are just a few examples
of shelters that may be available to you in and urban
survival situation.
- Vacant Buildings (be aware of other
already taking shelter, open elevator shafts, and
disease from pigeon droppings, etc.)
- Vacant Houses
- Patches of Wooded Areas [wilderness
shelter]
- Covered Alleyways
- Dumpsters (quick shelter in a pinch,
but be aware of dangers such as disposed hypodermic
needles, broken glass, and bacteria)
- Underside of stair wells
Look for shelters provided by churches, the Red Cross,
YMCA, and other non profit organizations.
Getting Water
The ability to find drinkable water is one of the most
important survival skills any urban survivalist can learn. Once you start
getting thirsty it can weaken your ability to think
clearly. Dehydration is one of the most common problems
associated with extreme survival situations. Dehydration
can weaken, and kill! Lack of water affects your body’s
ability to keep warm, and cool. Drink plenty of water
when it is available and avoid eating too much food
when water is not available.
Unpurified water can contain many harmful organisms
that can make you sick, or even kill you. Other contaminant
such as chemical waste can have a verity of effects,
including death. If at all possible purify
your water before drinking it.
If you’re faced with dehydration and no immediate
means to purify your water source, then drink it; it
is better to take a chance on contaminated water, than
to die of dehydration (tell your doctor
about the water as soon as possible).
No matter how thirsty you are, DO NOT drink the following
for hydration:
- Alcoholic Beverages
- Urine
- Blood
- Sea Water
Any water source that is known to be contaminated
with a toxic chemical, or biological contaminate should
be avoided. If you have to drink from this type of
contaminated water source, follow the instructions
for purifying contaminated water (this
does not guarantee the safety of the water).
It is very important to learn the basic survival skills
to obtaining and purify drinkable water. In situations
such as flooding and power outages contaminated water
may be your only source, learn how to purify your water!
The most common urban water sources are water hydrants
often located on the sides, or backs of buildings and
houses.
Getting Food
You can go weeks without food, however hunger can weaken
you, and impair your “will
to survive”. Lack of food can also increase
your chances of hypothermia, and effect your overall
health and feeling of well being.
First learn how to obtain
food using basic survival skills. Don’t forget
that pigeons are a good source of food; but always cook
them thoroughly to kill parasites.
One of the most plentiful sources of food in an urban
environment is discarded food. Check in dumpsters outside
of grocery stores and delis for discarded food. Use
caution as food contaminated by meat or spoiled food
may cause diarrhea which can dehydrate you and hinder
your ability to survive.
Look for food kitchens provided by churches, the Red
Cross and other non profit organizations.
Protecting Yourself
Learning basic self defense is a very important skill
that can save your life; every urban survivalist needs to be able to fight back! We recommend taking a basic
self defense class. Joining a martial arts school is
great if you train hard and are willing to dedicate
5-10 year to it. Learning basic self defense skills
will benefit you now, and there is far less things to
remember when the situation counts.
You should find yourself a legal weapon to keep with
you at all times.
- Walking Cane
- Broom Handle
- Glass Bottle
- Small Stick
- Pepper Spray
- Stun Gun
Getting Help
People in the US and around the world have become way
to dependant on the government for help. When natural
disaster or other unforeseen situations strike, don’t
wait on the government and non-profits to help you;
it is nobody’s fault, and complaining about it
accomplishes nothing! Help-Your-Self
Whether or not you survive is between you and God!
Do your best, but be willing to accept help when it
is offered. Don’t be stubborn, if help is offered
accept it, and get out of your situation.
Being a survivalist means that once you’re out
of harms way, don’t be a burden on others, but
do what you can to help!!!
- The following organizations can help.
- Local Churches
- Red Cross
- Salvation Army
- Local non-profits
- County Welfare Offices
- FEMA
- National Guard
Home Preparedness
Learning Lifesaving Skills
Every urban survivalist should be prepared and take the time to learn vital survival and
lifesaving skills before you need it!
Survival Skills
CPR & First Aid
Self Defense
Firearms Skills
Keeping Fit
You should also keep fit; join a local gym or build
a home gym and work out three times a week. The three
main areas are body building, stretching, and cardio;
keep in mind that big muscles may be of little use in
a survival situation, but being flexible and having
good cardio fitness (the ability to
run, climb, and keep going) can, and may save
your life.
Emergency Preparedness
Family preparation and planning is the key to surviving
comfortable during emergencies and disasters. Click
here for Emergency Preparedness.
Keeping your Wits
The single most important survival skill is the will
to survive. If you find yourself in a survival situation,
you must make up your mind that you are going to survive!
Attitude and determination are your allies, doubt is
your enemy!
Keep your cool; don’t be fearful of the unknown;
don’t worry about that which you cannot control.
Instead keep your mind on the task at hand; Survival!!!
Keep your eyes and ears open; be aware of your surroundings
at all times, and expect the unexpected. Your ability
to think clearly and react is your most valuable survival
skill in an urban situation.
Never resort to crime; in desperate situations people
sometimes resort to crime out of fear, or necessity.
Crime will only lead to destruction and will eventually
undermine your ability to survive.
Think before you react!
Securing Your Home
How you choose to secure your home will depend on your
survival scenario, but every urban survivalist should be prepared.
Anticipate the situations that could arise; could there
be nuclear, chemical or biological contaminates? Will
you be without power, water, and access to stores? Could
there be looting, rioting, home invasions? Is there
a possibility of fire, flooding, or high winds? How
will you evacuate should the need arise, and it your
transportation sufficient and stocked with needed supplies?
- Nuclear:
Build a simple fallout shelter in your basement or
outside of your home.
- Biological:
Stock up on plastic, duct tape, and bio-filters.
- Chemical:
Stock up on plastic, duct tape, and Chemical-Filters.
- Rioting, Looting, and Home Invasions:
Board up windows, leaving an opening for viewing and
fire a weapon. Steel plates are the cheapest form
of bullet proofing an area in your home. They can
be bought cheap at salvage yards, they can be sand
blasted and painted ¼-½ inch plates
can be stacked up for added ballistic protection.
Invest in firearms
and ammunition. You should not introduce fire arms
in your home without proper training. Take classes in
fire arm safety, and shooting skills (All
family members need to be properly trained!).
Always keep firearms out of reach of un-supervised children.
Invest in a gun safe with a combination lock, and do
not write the combination down!
Keep inspected and charged fire extinguishers on hand.
You may be able to protect your home from fire bombs
during rioting by using an improvised sprinkler system
out side of the home.
Invest in a security system for your home with a backup
power supply.
Protecting Your Family
Plan,
plan, and plan. With proper planning and regular
drills your family can be ready for nearly and emergency
that arises. Always develop a plan of communication,
and have at least two pre-destined meeting place.
Everyone in the family should take
a class on basic self
defense, and firearm
safety. Training your children
about safety is a must!
Should the situation arise get your family to a safe
place, or a home shelter as quickly as possible.
Food Storage
Stock up on foods that do not need refrigeration, and
have a long shelf life.
Water Storage
Stock up on plenty of bottled water.
Energy
Invest in a good generator, batteries, energy efficient
light bulbs, and a self-powered radio.
Getting Out (Evacuating)
Have sufficient transportation and keep it stocked with
an emergency supply kit, and plenty of gas. Don’t
wait till the last minute to evacuate, anticipate the
situation and leave when possible.
Getting Help
People in the US and around the world have become way
to dependant on the government for help. When natural
disaster or other unforeseen situations strike, don’t
wait on the government and non-profits to help you;
it is nobody’s fault, and complaining about it
accomplishes nothing! Help-Your-Self
Whether or not you survive is between you and God!
Do your best, but be willing to accept help when it
is offered. Don’t be stubborn, if help is offered
accept it, and get out of your situation.
Being an urban survivalist means that once you’re out
of harms way, don’t be a burden on others, but
do what you can to help!!!
The following organizations can help.
- Local Churches
- Red Cross
- Salvation Army
- Local non-profits
- County Welfare Offices
- FEMA
- National Guard
If you study urban survival skills, and practice you can be on your way to becoming a top notch urban survivalist.
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