Water Purification

Water is absolutely essential to survival, in order to avoid dehydration, but if the water is contaminated if can make you so sick that dehydration happens even faster.

You can make water suitable for drinking by using thermal, chemical or filtration techniques. Depending on the water quality, sometimes it takes a combination of the three to really do the job right.

Thermal

Bring the water to a rolling boil and keep it there for 1 minute at sea level and 1 additional minute for every 1000 feet of elevation above sea level. If you don’t know your elevation, boil for 10 minutes. This method will kill parasites, bacteria and viruses, but won’t eliminate chemical or heavy metal toxicity.

Chemical

The whole idea behind chemical treatment of drinking water is to poison all the critters that are swimming in your drink. Iodine and chlorine are the old standbys. Make no mistake about it, chemical water treatments are toxic, at least to the organisms being treated. The key to safe use of these products for human consumption is to carefully follow manufacturer recommendations. Additional caution must be exercised because some people have chemical sensitivities or are allergic to some of these substances (particularly iodine).

The effectiveness of a chemical purifier depends on 5 factors — product freshness, water temperature, water clarity, exposure time, and dosage. Check the expiration date on the product package to make sure the chemicals are fresh. For more effective purification, raise the water temperature to 60 degrees F or above. Pre-filter or let the water stand overnight to allow sediments to settle, and then treat only the clear water. Allow the recommended treatment time, and use the full dose of chemical.

For using liquid chlorine to disinfect drinking water, add 1⁄8 teaspoon (or 8 drops) of regular, unscented, liquid household bleach for each gallon of water, stir it well and let it stand for 30 minutes before you use it.

The recommended dosage for liquid iodine is 5 drops of 2% tincture of iodine in a quart of clear water. If the water is cloudy or especially cold, increase the dosage to 10 drops. Shake the container to disperse the iodine and then let it stand for half an hour before drinking.

Filtration

Among the good filters are two types worthy of consideration — a membrane filter and a depth-type filter. A membrane filter utilizes a porous membrane that permits water to pass through, but stops particulates larger than the size of the pores. These filters clog quickly but are easy to clean.

A depth-type filter utilizes an element such as a ceramic block that is porous enough to allow water to be forced through, yet dense enough to capture the bad stuff. Care needs to be exercised with this type of filter element, to prevent accidental breakage. Clean the element by scrubbing or back-flushing when clogged.

If a carbon element is included, the system will be able to remove some chemicals and heavy metals, as well as improve the flavor and smell of the water.

How To Choose A Survival Knife

One of the most important survival tools you can have is a good knife. With it, you can make shelter, fire, tools for food gathering, and water collection. But the knife must be up to the task.

What makes a knife suitable for the rigors of a survival lifestyle? Let’s start with blade material.

Blade Material

The blade of a good survival knife should be made of tough, edge-holding, corrosion-resistant metal. Knife metallurgy is a constantly evolving science, but in general, a stainless steel blade in any one of the 440 A, 440 B or 440 C categories will be a good choice.

Blade Geometry

When it comes to blade geometry, the knife should have a full-length tang that runs all the way to a functional pommel at the butt of the handle that can serve as a hammer. Some part of the blade should have aggressive serration for sawing through small limbs. The back of the blade should have a stout spine that can be hammered on to assist in chores like splitting firewood into kindling or hacking your way through a tree limb. The blade should have a sharp point and good slicing ability. Strive for some balance between the amount of the blade that is serrated and the portion that has a plain edge, because you’ll need both.

Grip

Under survival conditions, you’ll sometimes be wet and muddy. Your knife needs a grip that is not slippery when wet. Knife manufacturers use every trick in the book to accomplish this, from shaping the grip with contours to fit among your fingers, to using aggressive crosschecking, or employing “grippy” materials. Find a knife that feels comfortable in your hand, and do a wet test, if possible. The grip should be durable enough to take a pounding without falling apart in your hands. A pretty grip that shatters the first time you use the knife as an axe isn’t worth much.

Size

Your knife should be big enough and heavy enough to serve as an axe, pry bar, or a digging tool. Ideally, you’ll use your blade to make a good digging stick out of wood, so you don’t abuse your knife by sticking the blade in the ground. But you never know what’s going to come up in a survival situation, and the knife shouldn’t be a wimp about it.

If you pay attention to those four characteristics — blade material, blade geometry, grip, and overall size, you should be able to find a good survival knife that will suit your needs.

Essential Survival Gear

Not every piece of outdoor equipment is equally critical to your survival.

Some items are simply more versatile and valuable than others. And here's a surprise — one of the most important pieces of equipment is also one of the least expensive.

I'm talking about a cheap little rain poncho that costs only a couple bucks at your local WalMart, and is compact enough to fit in a shirt pocket. It might be small and lightweight, but when the weather turns bad this little sheet of plastic might save your life.

The truth is that most outdoor survival victims end up suffering some level of hypothermia, commonly referred to as "exposure."

You've probably read the headlines in which the media announces that someone was found dead of exposure. What they're really talking about is hypothermia, which is a lowering of the body core temperature. It doesn't take much of a drop in core temperature before you start losing the ability to do necessary tasks to keep yourself alive.

The biggest cause of hypothermia is getting wet. Damp clothing acts like an evaporative air conditioner, sucking away the warmth from inside your body. That's why, when I teach outdoor survival, I use a key phrase that says, "Stay dry or die." That's really the heart of the problem. If you get wet, it will be almost impossible to stay warm, so one of the most important principles of survival is to stay dry.

And that's where the cheap little pocket poncho comes into play. If you use the poncho to protect yourself from rain or snow, you are taking the biggest single step in avoiding hypothermia.

The second biggest factor in hypothermia is the wind. Even a slight breeze will chill you in a hurry, especially if your clothes are wet. The poncho is very effective at shielding you from the wind. So with this one inexpensive piece of equipment, you are well on your way to protecting yourself from two potentially deadly survival problems — wet and wind.

As a bonus, this is a versatile piece of gear. Other than wearing it as a poncho, you can spread it out on the ground as a rain collector for gathering drinking water. Or you can use it as part of a shelter roof or wall. Or you can wrap up in it as a lightweight blanket. Or you can use it as a signaling flag to attract attention of rescuers (especially if it is brightly colored). You can even use the thin plastic in a traumatic first aid situation to close a sucking chest wound.

I recommend that everyone carry a pocket poncho when venturing outdoors, and even carry a couple of them in the vehicle. You never know when you might break down and end up walking on a dark and stormy night.

How To Survive A Shooting Incident

Never bring a knife to a gunfight!

Those words of wisdom were told to me by a SWAT commander, after an incident in which a punk tried to attack him in a restroom. The punk had a big, bad knife. My friend had a Glock with 15 rounds in it. The punk lost.

The message, of course, is that you never want to be outgunned. But the reality is that sometimes you are. That's because shooting incidents tend to take place in "gun-free" zones where you aren't permitted to carry a weapon. The reason gun-free zones are such highly favored venues for killing people is precisely because there is so little risk for the assailants. If nobody else has a gun, there is little risk that the victims can fight back.

Such is the mentality of lunatics who go around shooting people in public places. And it doesn't matter whether is a public school in the middle of America or a shopping mall in the middle of Kenya. These events will continue to take place, and probably in greater numbers in the future. Those who are either crazy or have some personal agenda about eliminating other people will continue to become more emboldened by every similar incident.

It's up to you to prepare and train your mind to do the right thing if you're ever involved in such a horror.

So, if you find yourself outgunned in a shooting incident, how are you supposed to survive? You really have only three options — run, hide, or fight. Let's take a closer look at those three possibilities.

Run. If you're caught in a shooting incident and there is a way out, take it. Get out of the area as quickly as possible. The more distance you can put between yourself and the shooter, the greater your chance of survival. And the faster you can do that, the better. Don't stop or even slow down to gather up your stuff, just escape as quickly and quietly as you can. Encourage others to do likewise, but don't let them slow you down by their indecision to join you.

The first step is to instantly assess the situation. Hopefully, you'll be practicing situational awareness all the time, so you'll already know where the possible exit routes are. But in the surprise of the moment, you'll need to quickly scope out the situation and find the cleanest route out of the area. That means you need to know where the shooters are. If you can see them, they can see you, so you need to put some solid barriers between you and them. Then work your way out of the area. When you get clear, call 911 and keep moving away from the scene.

When law enforcement arrives, they will be on high alert, so don't rush toward them or they might think they're under attack. Approach with hands high and shout to them that you have escaped. They might put you on the ground and do an initial search to verify that you're safe for them to deal with. Go along with whatever they demand, and don't make a fuss. Answer all their questions, and try to provide as much information about what's going on in the incident zone as possible.

Hide. If you can't get out of the building, or the area, your next best strategy is to conceal yourself. If the shooter can't see you, he probably can't do you any harm. The most desirable concealment is a place that also offers some degree of solid cover that would stop (or greatly slow) a bullet — a metal desk, file cabinets, solid walls, etc. As you are moving to your hiding place, turn off your cell phone ringer, so it doesn't inadvertently announce your position to the shooter. If you move into a room to hide, turn off the lights and lock the door. Then find a place to hunker down unseen and become as quiet as the proverbial mouse. Noise and movement will give away your location, so don't be tempted to move to a "better" spot. Being absolutely still is your best bet. If places to hide are in short supply, you might try pretending to be dead, in hopes that the gunman will pass you by in favor of live targets.

Fight. As a final option, you might decide to fight back. You should only consider this option if your life or the lives of your loved-ones are at risk and you decide that you have a better chance of survival if you attack the attackers.

A coordinated attack is more effective than going it alone, especially if you can plan an attack to come from multiple points, so the shooter is surrounded and can't take out everyone at the same time. An ambush would involve luring the shooter into a spot where you can hit him when he least expects it. Surprise and exceptional violence should rule your attack plan. When you hit, you want it to be explosive and totally unexpected. Hold nothing back — do whatever is necessary to separate the shooter from his weapons, leaving him absolutely incapable of making any moves to regain the upper hand.

With what's going on these days, it is expected that there will be more shooting incidents in public places, especially in gun-free zones. Be aware of what's going on around you. Have an escape plan in mind whenever you enter a public building. Know how to get out, how to hide, and have a plan of attack in mind in case it comes to that final option.

Practice, train, focus your mind. Be ready to run, hide or fight for your life.

Wolf Attack

Sixteen-year-old Noah Graham suddenly found himself in the jaws of a wolf. 

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources reports that this is thought to be the first actual documented wolf attack on a human in their state. 

Graham and five of his friends were camping near Lake Winnebigoshish when the attack took place. One minute Graham was sitting peacefully talking with his girlfriend, and the next minute he was fighting for his life.

The wolf apparently came up behind Graham and chomped down on the back of the teenager's head. Graham said he had to reach back and jerk his head out of the wolf's mouth. Then he kicked and screamed at the animal, causing it to leave, but it left only reluctantly.

There is a persistent undercurrent of denial among some alleged "nature lovers" that claim wolves don't attack humans. Well, here's one more case to disprove that theory.

Graham was ambushed by the wolf. He never saw it coming, and never even knew wolves were in the area. To his credit, he did the right thing by fighting, screaming, kicking, and generally presenting himself as a target not to be messed with.

If you are confronted by wolves, face the animal head-on, stand tall and make yourself look bigger than life by raising both arms overhead while waving your jacket. Raise a ruckus, yell and scream. That will probably do the trick. But if the wolf, or a pack of them, continue to close in around you, prepare to fight with anything you can get your hands on — rocks, sticks, hiking poles, a knife, a firearm.

As wolves become more plentiful and more habituated to humans, they will lose their natural fear of man, and close encounters will undoubtedly become more frequently reported.

Do not believe that wolves are harmless to humans. These are top-of-the-stack predators who will do whatever it takes to feed themselves and their young.

They know how to survive, so if you're in their territory, you need to know how to survive an encounter with them.

Survive A Hazmat Incident

When a train pulling cars filled with flammable and corrosive materials went off the tracks recently in Louisiana, more than 50 families were evacuated, forced out of their homes to save their lives.
If you become aware of an incident involving hazardous materials, monitor radio or TV stations to learn what's happening. 

Now, you might think this type of hazardous materials incident can't happen to you but, before jumping to that conclusion, let's take a look at the numbers. According to FEMA, "varying quanitites of hazardous materials are manufactured, used, or stored at an estimated 4.5 million facilities in the United States. These substances are most often released as a result of transportation accidents or because of accidents in manufacturing facilities."

The U.S. Department of Transportation reports that over the past 10 years "there has been a major growth in the amount of hazmats transported on a daily basis, resulting in a high level of risk."

In total, there are more than 3.1 billion tons of hazmats transported annually across the county by rail or roadway. By far (94%) is carried by truck. Five percent is transported by air. And about 1% goes by rail, pipeline or ship.

So, what do you think the chances are that an accident might happen in your community, resulting in the release of hazardous materials into the atmosphere, or on the ground, or into the waterways? Would it surprise you to learn that on average, there are more than 15,000 hazmat incidents reported in the U.S., resulting in more than $50-million in damage per year.

The big question is: What are you supposed to do to survive a hazmat incident? Here are the steps to take:

Follow instructions issued by authorities.

Stay away from the incident area, to minimize the risk of exposure and contamination.

The general rule is "Up" — stay upstream of materials released into a waterway; stay uphill (because these materials are generally heavier than air, so they sink to low ground); and stay upwind. 

If you're driving, and must remain in your vehicle, roll up windows, turn off the air conditioner or heater, and close vents. Try to drive out of the area to a safe zone.

If you're indoors, close and lock all exterior doors, so people won't open the doors and allow the hazardous materials inside. Close windows and all vents and fireplace flues. Use plastic sheeting and duct tape to seal all doors, windows, vents and ducts. Use plastic sheeting to seal over all electrical wall outlets, cable TV, and phone line outlets. Turn off ventilation systems that might bring in outside air. Seal cracks and voids around pipes or other openings through the walls.

Remain in place until given the "all clear" by authorities.

If you inadvertently come in contact with hazardous materials, follow decontamination instructions issued by authorities. Depending on the chemicals involved, you might be instructed to shower — or you might be instructed to stay away from water completely. Don't assume that the right thing to do is hop in the shower, because some chemical agents can be activated by water.

If you experience symptoms that you suspect are the result of exposure, seek medical help as soon as possible.

Lightning Survival

According to the National Weather Service, about 400 people in the U.S. are struck by lightning each year and an annual average of 73 die — nearly one out of five.

That’s more than the average weather-related death toll from hurricanes, tornadoes or blizzards — only floods rank higher than lightning strike, when it comes to deadly weather.

One of the things that can happen to a lightning strike victim is cardiopulmonary arrest. Basically, that's death.

To save a victim who has suffered lightning-induced cardiopulmonary arrest, administer CPR while waiting for the emergency medical team to arrive. In spite of best efforts, some victims remain in a coma and eventually die of secondary causes including hemorrhages and lesions to the brain, spinal cord, lungs, liver, intestines, etc.

Those who aren't outright by the lightning strike typically suffer debilitating injuries — severe burns, burst eardrums, blindness, paralysis, memory loss, sleep disorders, weakness, dizziness, numbness, seizures, chronic pain, and other disabilities.

Sometimes victims recover, sometimes they don’t. Sometimes they live the rest of their lives with permanent disabilities. Needless to say, lightning strike is extremely serious.

Due to predominant weather patterns, certain parts of the country are especially prone to lightning. The Southeast experiences more strikes than anywhere else in the U.S. Florida ranks number one, but there is plenty of risk elsewhere. In fact, there is no place in the world that is totally safe from lightning strike.

So, what can you do to be safe? If you hear thunder, lightning is within 6-8 miles so you are within the danger zone and should seek shelter immediately. Safe shelters include: metal vehicles with windows up, substantial buildings, or the low ground.

Avoid trees, water, open fields and high ground. Small shelters such as tents offer virtually no protection against lightning, especially if they are positioned on high ground or near a tree or a small group of trees that dominate the area.  If your only shelter is a tent, it should be located in a low area and away from tall trees.

If you feel your hair standing on end or hear crackling noises, you are in immediate danger. Waste no time in distancing yourself from metal objects (toss the golf club or fishing rod away from you), place your feet together, duck your head, and crouch as low as you can, with your hands on your knees. You're trying to make a small target that has only one "ground" point at your feet.

As a storm approaches, thunder will lag behind the flash of lightning by five seconds for each mile of distance.  For example, if you see lightning and the sound of thunder doesn’t reach you for ten seconds, the strike was about two miles away. The distance from one strike to the next can be six to eight miles, so you are in danger and need to take precautionary actions.

After lightning and thunder have departed, wait a minimum of 30 minutes before resuming activities. Don’t be fooled by sunshine or blue sky. A bolt, literally from the blue, can travel from a storm cell as much as 10 miles away.

The grim reality is that lightning is a capricious and deadly event that cannot be predicted with any degree of reliability. There is nothing you can do to prevent a strike. All you have in your favor is living by rules that offer the best chance for safety.