Preparedness 101

The Big 5 + One of any Survival Situation
Whenever we are in any survival situation, we are always presented with the task of finding suitable solutions for the Big 5 + One. They are: food, water, shelter, fire, security and sanitation. Throughout most of our preparedness training, we have always been schooTaled that we need to deal with the Big Four: Food, Water, Shelter and Fire.

We at Tac Prep have taken the liberty to add Security and Sanitation to that list. This article hopes to address some of the thought process behind including these items as “must dos” in any survival situation. In no particular order of importance—because a case can be made for each of them being near the top—let’s dig into the list.

Food

On the morning of July 27, 2007 the Cheshire, Connecticut home of Dr. William Petit was invaded by armed robbers. According to police report and witnesses, including Dr. Petit himself, Joshua Komisarjevsky and Steven Hayes forced their way into the home sometime during the night. Armed with handguns and burglary tools, they beat Dr. Petit severely after he surprised them on the lower level of the residence. They tied him up in the basement where he remained all night. The gunmen then allegedly tied up his wife and two daughters in the upstairs bedrooms.

Courtesy of the U.S. Geological Survey
Earthy or musty odors, along with visual evidence of blue-green algae, also known as cyanobacteria, may serve as a warning that harmful cyanotoxins are present in lakes or reservoirs. In a newly published USGS study of cyanobacterial blooms in Midwest lakes, taste-and-odor compounds were found almost every time cyanotoxins were found, indicating odor may serve as a warning that harmful toxins are present.