Preparedness Plan For Group - Any tips or topics to cover?

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  • Dorky_D

    Expert
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    Dec 4, 2010
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    My group will be working on plans for stuff. Things like when to leave, who to contact, what to bring, perhaps routes, comm plan, maps and who knows what.

    It is hard to get my head around what should be in the plan. My main objective is to have the stuff pre-thought out and agreed upon, but also simple. It is not to stick to the plan 100%, but to make sure we have thought it through as much as possible.

    What topics would you have (or already have) in your plan? Any tips or resources would be helpful. It is good to not reinvent the wheel and to stand on the wok of others when possible.

    Thanks
     

    Nightboard

    Plinker
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    May 5, 2021
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    New Castle
    Agriculture: What to grow, where to grow it.
    Animal Husbandry: What to grow, where to raise it.

    For gardening, obviously corns and beans are a good Indiana go-to, They can also be dried and kept for winter months. Potatoes are easy to grow, provide a lot of nourishment. There's so much more, i was just sounding some ideas.

    Animals, chickens and bunnies reproduce fast, and give you the extras of eggs and furs. Bugger animals, if you have space.

    Which comes to space. You have to have the space available to feed a group your size. I don't know your group size, but you do. Do the research and appropriate math involved on what it would take to feed your group, and always round UP on group needs, and round DOWN on group supplies, so there's extra room to wriggle.
     

    spencer rifle

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    Apr 15, 2011
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    Scrounging brass
    Shared inventory of supplies on hand
    Multiple water sources, including pre-made tubes for access to wells
    Multiple water purification methods
    Prepared fall-back positions
    Analysis of those positions for defensive operations and sanitation
    Seed bank and gardening skills
    Communications equipment and antennas plus batteries/charging stored in Faraday cage or equivalent
    Agreement on firearms and calibers
    Reloading tools and supplies
    Medical supplies and skills
    Books like "where there is no doctor/dentist"
    Fuel storage
    Vehicles with diverse fuel requirements
    Generator/solar setup
    Barter items (liquor, silver, ammo, coffee, cigarettes, etc.)
    Antibiotics and other meds
    Canning supplies
    Fuel and stoves for cooking/warming
    Silver/brass/copper for eating, water storage
    Pool shock to make bleach
    Food storage (5 gallon buckets with screw lids, mylar bags, oxygen absorbers)
    Knowledge/reference books on wild edible/medicinal plants
    Grain grinder

    I'm sure there's more...
     

    Magyars

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    36   0   0
    Mar 6, 2010
    9,087
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    Delaware County Freehold
    Depending on the size of the group.... security while moving...scouting ahead. Medical.
    Hand signals if not in vehicles.... communication if you are driving.
    A major issue is making decisions on the fly....not appropriate time to discuss and vote.....you need someone to take command.
     

    Libertarian01

    Grandmaster
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    Jan 12, 2009
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    Fort Wayne
    Groups are ugly for feeding and watering.

    Say you get a years supply of food for a person. Let's go with 360 days to account for some waste and/or a feast or two. This is for one (1) person.

    Now marry the person. That 360 days just became enough for 180. Still plenty, so far...

    Let's breed them and give them a child. Down to 120 days.

    Presume they're reasonably young and want to help each set of parents. Three (3) from the original family and four (4) from the parental units. 360 / 7 = 51 days of food.

    Each one has a good friend who is married, and one (1) friendly couple has bred and has a child. We're up to ten (10) adults and two (2) children = 30 days of food.

    This example has NO siblings, and NO other friends of friends. We've just gone from a years worth of food to a month. Now presume gardening, farming, and animal husbandry. (We'll ignore the fact you need to feed the animals.) Let's presume that winter and spring are six (6) monthes long. How will you store food for 12 people for six (6) monthes? Don't forget some will go bad and whatever storage method you use will NOT be 100%.

    I don't mean to be too cynical, but we often (is in almost always) take for granted modern refrigeration, modern preservatives, and modern methods of storing food. Our ancestors had a very hard life dealing with problems we cannot imagine.

    First thing for prepping - try to imagine those problems, with the numbers in your group, and how to deal with first water, then food, then everything else.

    It is my understanding that the Donner Party had some Irish families in it. When the disaster first struck the Irish immediately starting rationing their food supplies while the rest did not. The Irish had been raised with the potato famine while even people of their own day didn't appreciate the critical need of rationing food. The Donner Party was a group of 32 people and we know how that ended...

    Regards,

    Doug
     

    teddy12b

    Grandmaster
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    Nov 25, 2008
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    I look at it very simply. Anything you haven't already done, or don't have on hand or tested in any way isn't going to magically work post SHTF.

    Everyone should be expected to function on their own independently. It's called adulting to be able to take care of yourself and your dependents. Where one falls short to the point it's an issue or has an emergency then another in the group should be supplement as needed.

    If you and yours haven't ironed out any comms issue before an emergency you don't have a comms plan. If the lights go off and you can't talk and meet up "if" needed, then you're kidding yourself about having a group.

    If you and yours don't already have whatever supplies you think are essential for any length of time, then everything is a waste of time.

    If you and yours can't go on a multi-day backpacking trip reasonably comfortably and be completely self supported then you're not ready for anything in my opinion. Backpacking teaches you what gear you actually need, and what you don't.
     

    KittySlayer

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    Jan 29, 2013
    6,473
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    Northeast IN
    Get a list of individual skills in the groups plan. Then plan to cross train skills and share knowledge.

    You may have an expert in a particular area but what if:
    • They miss the boat when you leave.
    • They become injured or worse.
    • They need extra help because too much for one man.
    • You need them to prioritize one of their other skillsets.

    Everyone should teach another person their unique primary skills. Everyone should apprentice to at least become familiar with a new skill.
     
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