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Post by cajunlady87 on Feb 4, 2014 20:46:07 GMT -7
This is a topic I feel we haven't discussed. Suppose you're forced to bug out quickly in your area as a family group, meaning those living in your house on a daily basis. You and your spouse plus the kids make it safely to a wooded area. Amidst the confusion one of the kids gets separated from the rest of the group. Of course any child under school age will be in a bind. One of the adults will need to go back to look for the child while the others stay put or move on. Any child of school age just might have a chance, especially tweens and teens. Will they have their own BOB's and know how to use the items in it? Have you taught them any tactics on evading an enemy? Do you have a central location they've practiced getting to on their own in case this happens? Any input can help others here who may not have considered this.
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Post by woodyz on Feb 5, 2014 16:08:19 GMT -7
I will start with some input.
If you have a fire at your home and you have trained on different methods to get out quickly it my happen that some could get separated. Make sure everyone knows multiple ways to exit in a fire and to exit from multiple places within the house.
Make sure everyone knows where to go once they do get hot, I would suggest a neighbors house or other out of the way and out of the immediate fire threat. You need to account for everyone quickly, the fire department will need to know or risk going in to look for someone who may be out already. Have a place to go and go there.
We keep both public rally points and private ones.
Public are like the housing complex recreation area or playground. Then you need to have a rally area if you are at work or school so everyone will know where to expect you to be if you were stuck at that location and needed to be picked up. Also make sure all know where the local and closest community shelter is and make that a place to go in the event someone can get away from where they might be but can't get home. For example if the entire neighborhood where you live was hit by a tornado and your away family can not and should not go into that area the would know to go to the public area.
Make sure everyone knows where the closes police/fire/hospital/readycare locations are so if they are injured or with someone who is injured they know where to go and where you would expect to find them. Maps can be made up and carried but it is better if they know exactly where the nearest help is located and how to get there from any direction by practicing.
Small children need to have their own small comfort bag. Not really a survival or bug out bag but something with identification for them some snacks and water and books or games for them to do while they wait for you to find them. It is a good idea for them to have a list of phone numbers in the bag as well as a flash light and a very loud whistle.
Acts of nature, separation and other such examples should include public meeting/rally places.
Get out of dodge for reasons other than those that would fit into a public meeting area need to be your private rally points. They should be not too far away, some what secluded but easy to find once you have a few times, include one in all four directions incase the exact escape path changes due to circumstance. Cache some snacks and water there for the wait, maybe an emergency blanket or a rain poncho. But you also need to have a communication method in case someone was there and moved or were picked up by another member of the family. A simple method for this is to assign each family member a number or a coin. Include something to mark a tree with as chake (sp) or a marker in the cache there. They can leave a coin in a predetermined spot that lets you know they were there and are gone. Who picked them up can be one coin on top of another as opposed to just two coins. Or using the marker they can put their # on a tree and include the number of who they left with. Or use names, but in private situations you want to make a clear message all of your group will understand but not so clear it is readily apparent to anyone.
If the user of the rally point is older a location code for where they went can be included. For example a single nickle with two dimes stacked and three pennies stacked tells me Johnny (the nickle) went to hwy 20 (the dimes) at exit #3 (the pennies). but it shouldn't be too hard for everyone to understand.
You should have some type of signal that represents each of the four local rally points in case the person(s) at one had to leave but only went to a different location.
Put a deck of cards in the cache, I 5 of clubs on the ground when you get there means Johnny went to the rally point named clubs. A #5 and a W written on a tree at the North rally point means Johnny moved to the west rally point.
Its just a way to get back together if separated or if you arrive a different times.
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Post by cajunlady87 on Feb 5, 2014 16:33:28 GMT -7
You brought up some great info to share woodyz. Do you have young kids living with you who understand your system?
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Post by woodyz on Feb 5, 2014 17:19:50 GMT -7
I have 10 Grandchildren 3 to 20, most are live in KY but spend the summer here. The six year olds and up can understand about going to the neighbors or the playground if there is a problem. All have age appropriate "bags" The older ones who do understand where to go and how to communicate all have assign younger ones. Those up to to 15 year old like to "play" the emergency game. Of course the 3 older just put up with it.
When I go to there houses during the school year we do the same where they live. They all no which neighbor to go to for an accounting and they all know where to meet publicly. Again the older ones are assigned with accountability for the younger.
All of them have shooting and gun safety classes with Papa on a regular basis. The 6 and younger with BB guns and an occasional single shot from a big gun. I feel if they are aware of the guns and have a chance to handle them and understand basic safety issues they are lees likely to be curious and want to pick them up when they are not supposed to, although everything at their houses is locked and kept up. The 10 year olds and up have all killed something, squirrel or rabbit or pest birds, everything killed was cleaned, more as a demonstration for the time being. I shot my first deer before I was 12 but while I have had the older ones in the woods finding and watching deer, I really haven't been able to take them out and actually have them shoot one yet. They all have daddy's ofcourse but non of them have live at home full time daddies and I am just getting to infirm to sit with them in the woods any more.
6 and up have their own knifes, that are kept put up except when Moms or Papa get them out. We practice safe use and sharpening skills.
As I said they all have age appropriate bags and the older ones are aware of and know when to grab the kept up near the door 48/72 hour bags.
We go to the woods and look at animal tracks and find trails. We identify plants, mostly the bad ones at this point, we hide and find age appropriate caches. All go fishing and have caught fish including the 3 year old. We also go out in boats/canoes and practice water safety. All have swimming lessons and swim every year the 6 year olds and up have passed their swimming test and some basic swim related first aid.
During swimming a pool or lake the bigger ones are again assigned little ones to watch out for. I don't mean an adult is not watching but I expect the older ones to correct the little ones when they see them doing something wrong and the little ones lose swim time if they don't listen to the bigger ones. Loss of swim time is a serious heartbreak and a good punishment when you are 6 and under.
We put up tents in the yard and at the lake or beach and sleep out in hammocks and sit around camp fires. Of Course sometimes Papa and the littler ones go to the house or the RV.
10 and up can make a fire in a number of ways and they understand the difference in building a fire to cook or provide heat or both. One 10 year old girl did have a problem with liking to build a fire a little too much, but I think she gets it now.
We look for good camp sites in the woods and discuss the pros and cons of different ones. 10 and up understand the difference between camping and hiding, if not exactly sure of all of the whys.
I wish I was 20 years younger and had more time to teach them all everything I know but I don't and I can't but I do as much as I can when ever I can.
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Post by woodyz on Feb 5, 2014 17:23:48 GMT -7
And even the 3 year old can find the North Star, although she doesn't exactly know why she needs to yet, older ones are doing some compass work but not as much I would like.
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Post by cajunlady87 on Feb 5, 2014 17:57:11 GMT -7
Woodyz from those posts I have no doubt your grandkids would prevail in a true bug out and know what to do. Excellent job on them being taught these skills.
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Post by woodyz on Feb 5, 2014 18:02:07 GMT -7
I do practice what I preach
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Post by woodyz on Feb 5, 2014 19:32:17 GMT -7
Woodyz from those posts I have no doubt your grandkids would prevail in a true bug out and know what to do. Excellent job on them being taught these skills. I hope so I sure can't get some people to pay attention. They look at it as fun time with papa but there is no doubt they will remember things when the time comes that the understand why they need them.
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