WHAT CAN WE LEARN FROM THE HURRICANE HELENE DEBACLE?
By P.J. Beaumont
From September 26-29 of this year (2024),Hurricane Helene came up the west coast of Florida and cut a swath of destruction that culminated in massive flooding the Tennessee/North Carolina border area. Many towns in western North Carolina were wiped off the map, and as of the time this article was written (October 6) the death toll is nowhere near complete. Wide valleys with what had normally small creeks or meandering rivers running through the bottoms got filled up with raging water as much as a hundred feet above the normal level. People who thought they were absolutely safe from flooding because their houses were situated high on hillsides saw their homes ripped away by walls of water that reached impossible heights. Even above the high water line, landslides erased whole properties and destroyed roads. There are numerous tales of Federal and local officials hindering and threatening to arrest volunteers who were using their own helicopters to rescue people. Officials confiscated donated items from independent charities, and took them to places unknown. Will they actually be distributed to the local hurricane victims? No one knows.
So what can we learn?
- NEVER ASSUME YOUR CURRENT SETTLED LIFE IS COMPLETELY SAFE. Your chance of being affected by a major disaster during your lifetime is about one in three.
- THE GOVERNMENT WILL NOT HELP, and in many cases will hinder help from getting to you.
- YOUR BUG-OUT BAG (BOB) MUST BE READY TO GO AT A MOMENT’S NOTICE. Put your BOB together and don’t take anything out, except to check it, replace it, or update the contents, and perhaps to practice with. This is a rule I have trouble adhering to, as I’m always pulling equipment out to illustrate videos or test or practice with. That’s not going to happen anymore.
- YOU NEED TO HAVE A KIT YOU CAN CARRY UP A STEEP HILL! The average American IS NOT ABLE carry a 50-pound pack up a 20% slope to get away from a forest fire or a raging flood. Your short-term (72-hour) kit must be no more than 20 pounds, and your long-term kit must be less than 30 pounds. See this article on the Fast BOB.
- IT IS NOT POSSIBLE TO “SHELTER IN PLACE” WHEN YOUR “PLACE” NO LONGER EXISTS. If your house and the property it is on slides down a hillside, you will have to bug-out. If you survive, you will be left with the clothes on your back and whatever you can carry with you.
- GET INTO AS GOOD A PHYSICAL CONDITION AS POSSIBLE. Lose that excess weight, and work hard to stay healthy and well-conditioned. If you can’t walk long distances or climb steep slopes, you are not only a danger to yourself but to the rest of your party as well. If you have a chronic health condition, do what you can to stay as able as possible.
- EVEN IF YOUR VEHICLE SURVIVES, IT MAY BE USELESS. Many roads were destroyed, and the only way to get in or out was by helicopter, which the authorities didn’t have enough of and banned civilian volunteers from using their own (this changed as word got out and the outrage became overwhelming).
- IF THE WEATHER HAD TURNED COLD, THE RESULTS COULD HAVE BEEN MUCH WORSE. The only good thing about the disaster was that the temperatures were fairly mild. In a future disaster, the victims might not be so lucky. Always be prepared to deal with cold weather.
- WATER FILTRATION IS ESSENTIAL. The most common item shipped into disaster areas is drinking water, but we have no idea how many of the Hurricane Helene victims are still isolated. I have several different types of portable water filter on hand, from inexpensive straw-type filters to expensive Grayl units, plus larger units if I can shelter in place. Also, I know how to make an effective water filter from sand, charcoal, a bucket, and natural items that have disinfectant properties. I recommend you acquire that knowledge, too.
- YOUR LONG-TERM KIT SHOULD HAVE A SAW AND/OR A HATCHET. It can take a surprising amount of wood to keep a campfire going. If it takes several weeks to reach some hurricane victims, and if they need to build a shelter and rely on an outside fire for heat, they’ll need to have good woodcutting implements.
- FIRE MAKING AND PRIMITIVE CONSTRUCTION SKILLS ARE ESSENTIAL. A properly-made lean-to with a good fire in front of it can keep you warm down to sub-freezing temperatures, even if your clothing is inadequate. There’s enough material to make such a camp in any area with trees— IF you’ve developed your survival skills.
- THE NEED FOR SELF-DEFENSE SEEMS TO BE MINIMAL—SO FAR. In the rural areas, the survivors were just trying to stay alive and help each other. If you don’t fear major social upheaval, guns might be a low priority. That assessment may change as time goes on and people become more desperate.
- THERE’S MORE EDIBLE VEGETATION THAN THERE ARE EDIBLE ANIMALS. Hunting is great and meat is nutritious, but game animals can be few and far between. Learn what plants you can eat and which ones not to.
- LEARN, PRACTICE, AND PREPARE. The dividing line between death or permanent injury and a healthy, long life can be a thin one, but it’s possible that a few pieces of equipment, a little knowledge, and simple applied skills can make the difference.
- HAVE INDIVIDUAL KITS FOR EACH PERSON IN YOUR FAMILY. If they are in a group, children and weaker individuals won’t need to carry every type of supply. First aid kits, cooking kits, hatchets, saws, and many other items can serve multiple people, but kids should carry their own cold-weather gear and as much food as possible.