Hiding Places (Part Two)

We have all of our things hidden safely in various spots throughout the house, city and countryside. Now what? Shortly after the dollar has collapsed there will be some unanticipated consequences. If you have any doubts watch the video on YouTube about the economic collapse of Argentina in 1992, they have still not recovered fully almost two decades later. Here are just a couple of these consequences.


1. No Power - the power company that serves your grid has to keep feeding itself coal and has to maintain the power lines. Once the coal train stops, (each train represents about a week of power for your city) the power stops.


2. No Water - I should add (clean) to that. Yes the water will still run from the pipes, but the people who work at the water treatment facilities may not be dedicated enough to their job to show up for free. The water from your tap may not be safe.


3. No Food in Stores - As big as a Super Walmart is, there is only enough food on the shelves of Walmart to last for three days. In your local grocery store, it is one day's worth of food. When the panic begins, whether people are trying to use worthless cash to buy the food or just running out of the store with it, the stores will be drained quickly.


4. No Gas - Someone has to fill the tank at the gas station. During the aftermath of a hurricane, you find out quickly just how little gas is available in your large city.


5. No Law - It was shameful, and yet entirely within human nature for the police officers in New Orleans to join their fellow residents in looting from WalMart and other stores. Given that the cops are people with families and fears of their own, when faced with odds of 1000 panicking citizens to 1 cop, who is working for free if they so choose, what would you do?


So in light of all these consequences, how do we hide our rear ends?


First, assess your residence. If you are in an apartment complex or condo association have your bug out plan and hiding places chosen quickly. Do it now, watch the video on my You Tube channel for ideas.

http://www.youtube.com/user/DavidStevenRoberts?feature=mhum


If you are in a rural setting, it may be advantageous to stay put assuming you have taken security precautions. If you are in the suburbs, only you know the prevailing attitudes in the neighborhood. A tightly knit community in good times can become a tense community in bad times. But if you HAVE to hide, where do you hide? (from The Last Domino book)


1. Federal or State Parks - I've been asked why I recommend this and it's not because of a deep love for camping. It's entirely practical. If you are on the run, you need to go somewhere with access to relatively clean water and food. There will be fish, wild game, and for the skilled hunter, deer. You won't be able to store, preserve or carry a lot of food if you are bugging out so the food resources should be plentiful and fresh. Some parks will have access to cabins that will in essence be abandoned due to the collapse. There may even be reasonably modern toilet facilities. (Make sure the area you choose is at least a gas tank full drive from the nearest major city or welfare office.)


2. Private Property - If you or a friend or relative owns property or acreage in another state, see if you can arrange to meet them there assuming of course it isn't smack-dab in the middle of a major problem area. (or any area within 50 miles of a medium to large city.) Preferably it will be at least one gas tank's worth of travel outside of the area. That means that troublemakers would have to walk a long distance to stumble upon you and your family.


3. Coastline/Islands - Some states are fortunate enough to have islands on the end of long bridges or a short 'stolen' boat trip away. These islands in many cases are small, easy to defend and abundant in all sorts of seafood available for the catching. Many of these islands have cottages that are rented out to deep sea fishermen. The main drawback is the "water water everywhere and not a drop to drink" problem. Yes they have tap water, but you may have to treat it before using. What about the people there? On many of these islands, the people that work there live on the mainland. They won't be driving to work. The people that live there are few, and they may abandon the island to go find family members. Don't forget to gas up your new boat when you get there, if you can. If you can find a boat with a wind turbine on it, you will be able to keep refrigerated foods for a while on board as the turbine will power the electrical components of the boat.


4. Caves - Some states are fortunate enough to have caves with tours, etc. When the tourists are gone, so are the rangers. Some of these caves are powered by solar powered lighting and some even have plumbing directly from the aquifer so no treatment is necessary. The caves provide a shelter from the elements, hiding places in the nooks and crannies of the cave layout and stay at a constant 65 degrees year round. The food sources would have to be hunted in the park surrounding the cave, but could be safely cooked in the large breezy caverns. Do some homework first to make sure you can get in and out easily.


5. In the City - So, you are in the city and didn't bug out because you had no place to go and no money to get there, even if money did work. If you are in an emergency situation, and keep in mind the "no law" aspect, you are just trying to get out or stay hidden long enough so that the panic dies down from the initial flare up. In the city, you want to be where no one else wants to be. And yes, these should be temporary.


a. Funeral Homes - Psychologically, panicking people want to stay away from the dead and the idea of death. Besides, the cooling room may not be working anymore so it will be a miserable stay, but should be safe.


b. Storage facilities - As in the first hiding places article, these make great hiding places as long as you don't park your car in front of the unit. Spend a little time and knock out a wall or two to give you more than one exit into other units. These doors can be locked from the inside to keep intruders out. You will have to rely on the rain gutters for water and will need some port-a-potties.


c. Utilities - You may or may not be aware that power substations, water treatment facilities, tunnels, airports, train stations, malls and some large buildings have utility units that house the pumps, electrical boxes, and work areas. These units range in size from being just big enough for two to those with enough room in them for a small family and a board meeting. See if you can find these areas as they are out of sight mostly. The advantage to these is that not everyone knows about them, the drawback is that there is typically only one way in and one way out.