Useful Survival Skills for Emergency Preparedness

by Reggie Moore Professional writer and proto entrepreneur

You hear a lot about Emergency Preparedness these days. With all of the turmoil in the world, you need to know how to survive whatever life throws at you so that you and your family can make it safely through to the other side.

The most important skill you can acquire for any emergency is knowing how to be prepared. To be prepared, you have to know what your absolute base needs are. In order these are:

Shelter and Compass

Finding shelter is vital if you are experiencing bad weather or are in a wilderness environment. Learning where to shelter is critical. If you are home, a good rule is: for floods, go upstairs; for tornadoes, go to the basement. The same holds true if you are not home up for flooding, down under something sturdy for tornadoes. Also, if you are not at home but in a remote area, a compass can help you decide where to go. If you know north is higher ground, learning how to read a compass can save your life.

Water

Locating a water source is the next thing you need to find. You can only last three days without water. Without it, your body will shut down as it becomes less able to filter out toxins in your body. Typically, where there is grass growing, there is some kind of surface water. Trees tend to show where there is water under the ground. Learning how to locate water is an essential skill.

Fire

Fire is required to help maintain body warmth. If you are exposed to frigid temperatures, you will need help staying warm. The other thing fire can provide is sterilization for boiling water, sterilizing eating utensils and medical equipment. Learning how to make and maintain a fire is another essential skill you need to acquire to survive in an uncertain situation.

Food

Most people have enough food in their homes to survive for a couple of weeks if they had to. If you are outdoors, there are a few skills you need to be sure you are not going to make yourself or others sick. One of the most important of these is how to tell poisonous plants from non-poisonous plants. For poison ivy and poison oak, a memory rubric is "if there be three, let it be."

Security

Safety is an often-overlooked facet of survival. You have to be able to provide safety for yourself and your family. In a situation such as a mass casualty event, you may find yourself having to gain access to an interior room in a building. Since most people lock everything up, picking a lock can be a life-saving skill. Investing in a few lock pick sets and learning the basics could help if you ever need to get into (or out of) a locked door.

Communications

You need to be able to find out what is going on, not only in your immediate surroundings but elsewhere as well. Learning morse code is a skill worth acquiring. It can be sent through pipes, taillights, even through the air by using smoke. Most Law enforcement and military units will know and recognize signals sent using this method of communication.

Common items to carry with you at all times:

First aid kit
Compass
Utility knife - a common name for them is Leatherman
Firestarter
Collapsible water container that contains a filter
All of these things are very compact and will fit in a small pouch. Any woman could easily fit all of these items in their purse. Men could use something like a fanny pack.

Going to the mountains, a beach, or the middle of a prairie is fun, but life still happens. When you find yourself in an emergency, exercise these life skills and remember that remaining calm can save both your life and those with you.