Arlington County ACS-

RACES

Operator Type III

Disaster
Annual Recertification
Unit 1
Survival
Skills
for the Urban
Environment
OBJECTIVES
 Why teach “survival” in the city?
 Catastrophes vs. disasters
– This is about your SURVIVAL, not volunteering
 Priorities for human survival
 Break-out sessions:
– Shelter construction
– Fire making
– Signaling
 Equipment and supplies
 Social implications of disasters
– Personal security concerns

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“Disaster ” versus “Catastrophe”
Disasters are short term
“Make do for 3-4 days until help arrives…”

Catastrophic events are long term

• Katrina-scale hurricane, tsunami, earthquake
• Major terror attack, nuclear detonation, dirty bomb
• No help is coming soon, “you are on your own”

Why?
• Complete loss of civil infrastructure
• Minimal or no police, fire or EMS response
• No electricity, municipal water, communications
• Transport of fuel / food is severely impaired
• Public safety agencies will be overwhelmed
• Recovery is long term (over 30 days)

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What the military survival schools teach:

Seven Priorities For Survival:

“Hope for the best, but prepare for the worst”
 Positive mental attitude
 First Aid / Sanitation
 Shelter
 Signaling
 Fire
 Water http://www.equipped.com/fm21-76.htm

 Food
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Positive Mental Attitude
Situational awareness, basic knowledge and a
“survivor’s mindset” enable you to cope effectively
 STOP
– Calm down, and size up your situation…
 THINK
– Anticipate which hazards are most likely
– Take stock of materials and resources around you
 OBSERVE
– Orient yourself to your surroundings
 PLAN
– Select equipment and supplies appropriately
 ACT!
– Execute the plan, evaluate progress, adjust, go on.
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DISASTER PREPAREDNESS

Have an evacuation kit ready at all times

• Don't presume that a disaster will be short-term
• Pack essentials first, then consider comfort items
• In real emergences, forget last-minute purchases
• Plan for more supplies than you “think” you may need
• Inspect / renew your supplies each spring and fall
• Provide entertainment for young children.

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WHEN “IT” HITS THE FAN”

Use these six steps in problem solving

 Size Up ...your Situation
 Determine... Objectives (stay or evacuate?)
 Identify ...Resources (either stored supplies or
salvaged materials from your surroundings)
 Evaluate …Options (use the safest way)
 Build ...an action Plan (use your head)
 Take ...Action
– re-evaluate your action plan, adapt, improvise and overcome!

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FIRST AID AND SANITATION

 Maintain personal and family health

– Prompt treatment reduces infection risk
– Sanitation reduces risk of disease vectors
– Water borne illnesses, diarrhea
Major cause of dehydration
 Increases your survivability!
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Disaster Injury Risk Factors

 Tool / equipment hazards, risk of hand, eye,

head injuries, electric shock, chemical burns
 Human factors, stress / fatigue
 Structural instability
– Trauma risk, falls, building collapse potential
 Terrain, loose rock, fallen limbs, wet or insecure
footing, risk of falls, puncture wounds and
lacerations from debris.

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Disaster Contamination

 Stagnant surface water

– Mosquito breeding
 Contaminated flood waters
– Sewage treatment system overflow
– Petroleum, industrial, agricultural
chemical contamination
 Airborne contaminant plumes
– Smoke, dust, toxic gases,
– or radioactive fallout.

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SHELTER
 Protection from the elements
 Wind and rain resistant
 Insulation from cold

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 The “Stay or Evacuate” Decision
If evacuation is not mandatory, the same safety rules for
entering a structure apply to using your home as shelter

DO NOT OCCUPY IF:

• There is structural damage (6 sides
of the “box” are not plumb)
• Utilities cannot be controlled
• Structure was damaged in a fire

DO NOT occupy a floor that has been flooded, mold grows fast!
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EVACUATION PLANNING

• It’s usually best to relocate with friends or relatives

who live outside of the affected area
• Don't rely on government-run shelters
• They are an “option of last resort” for those unable to evacuate
• Evacuation route selection is important
• Make sure your vehicle can carry essentials
• A huge “bug-out” vehicle is a handicap on crowded roads
• It uses more fuel, which may be expensive / scarce in an emergency.
• Don't plan on fuel being available en route
• In normal times always keep your gas tank at least half full
• Upon warning an event is imminent, conserve fuel, keep tank ¾ full
• Carry extra fuel containers outside the vehicle
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FROM NATIONAL THREAT SCENARIO
Nuclear Detonation – 10-Kiloton Improvised Nuclear Device
http://iis-db.stanford.edu/pubs/21872/DayAfterWorkshopReport.pdf

An attack may:
•be single or up to a dozen detonations
- on specific or random targets.
•be an act of a non-state
-, i.e. a terrorist group such as Al Qaeda.
•be threatened to trigger a political result,
- bend will of the people.
•involve either a detonation (fission/fusion)
- or release via a Radiological Dispersal Device (RDD)
•occur all in one attack
– or recur over a period of weeks, months, years.
 LOW YIELD WEAPON EFECTS
 Contamination from a Radiological Dispersal Device
(RDD) would cover up to a few hundred acres with low-
level radioactive material;
http://www.bt.cdc.gov/radiation/pdf/dirtybombs.pdf

 A nuclear detonation would affect large areas (10-100 sq.

miles) damaged by direct effects and 100s to 1,000s of sq.
miles with radioactive fallout.
http://www.nti.org/e_research/cnwm/overview/technical3.asp?print=true
 Electromagnetic Pulse (EMP) – a terrorist attack would
most likely be a small device <10 kilotons yield, EMP
effect of a ground burst would be mostly within the
Moderate Damage Radius, but also propagated by
conductors such as power and telephone lines, railroad
tracks, pipelines, etc. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electromagnetic_pulse
EMP Precautions

 Disconnect electronics from conductors (AC

mains and antennas)
 Store small solid-state electronics having Field
Effect Transistors (FET) or other integrated
circuits (IC) in a Faraday Cage (an unplugged
microwave oven)
 Construct EMP-resistant containers
constructed with a continuously sealed metal
barrier (foil covered cardboard boxes)
 Most susceptible to EMP damage are
automobiles with onboard "computers"
which control essential functions.
 EVACUATION

 Feasible only if all personnel can evacuate before fallout

contamination arrives and;
 Essential functions for Continuity of Operations are
transferred to an alternate facility
 Affected area would have to be small and warning time
adequate to execute the evacuation
 Detonation effects (blast/thermal/EMP) will likely impede
evacuation
 Evacuees may be exposed and/or contaminated.
Evacuate or Stay Decision?
Conclusion from FEMA Urban-Rural Evacuation State Planners Workshop Sept. 2006

Given
● Population of the DC Metro area
● Propensity to self-evacuate, overwhelmingly
by automobile
● Wide distribution of evacuation destinations,
● Perceived vulnerability to terror attack,
and anticipation of multiple attacks
Result:
● A large-scale, chaotic mass self-evacuation
should be anticipated.
SHELTER IN PLACE
 Critical facilities that cannot evacuate (hospitals, EOCs) must
continue to operate
 Necessary if fallout/contamination would arrive before
evacuation can be completed
 Fallout Shelters will be needed to protect against high level
radiation/detonation
 Shelter-in-place (not necessarily Fallout Shelter) near
RDD/very low level
 Shelter stay may range from a few days to 2 weeks.
 Authorities outside affected area can organize rescue/evacuation
effort
 Shelter occupants may be exposed and/or contaminated.
SHELTER IN PLACE

 Necessary if operations can not be transferred or

if staff, patients or clients cannot evacuate
 Necessary if needed to support operations of
other response agencies
 Must have Radiological Monitoring & Exposure
Control capabilities
 Critical Facilities may be used to shelter families
of the staff
 Critical Facilities will not be used to shelter the
general public.
DECONTAMINATION after a flood or attack
Start immediately, even if you don’t know what the agent is.

 Sandia decontamination foam (US Patent 6,566,574 B1) sold

as Scott's Liquid Gold Mold Control 500 in hardware stores.
 Is effective against most chemical and
biological agents, including nerve, blister,
anthrax, SARS, Norwalk, avian and common flu.
 Widely used for hospital /hotel sanitization
mold remediation in commercial buildings,
cleaning / neutralizing agricultural sprayers.

 Moderate cost, about $30 at Home Depot.

http://www.sandia.gov/news/resources/releases/2007/moldcontrol.html
EXPEDIENT FIELD DECONTAMINATION
if you are contaminated:
 Remove everything, including jewelry
 Cut off clothing normally removed over the head
 Place contaminated clothing in plastic bag, tie closed
 Wash your hands before using them to shower
 Flush entire body with cool water
 Blot dry with absorbent cloth
 Put on clean clothes
 Avoid use of affected areas, to prevent re-exposure
 If professional help arrives, report to responders for thorough
decontamination and medical assessment.
NUCLEAR ATTACK ISSUES

 Structural damage to shelter from nearby

detonation
 Fire in the shelter
 Dangerously high radiation levels
 Severely high temperatures and humidity
 Oxygen and Carbon Dioxide imbalance in the
shelter
 Depletion of essential supplies
 Disease and injury
 Unrest, anxiety, crime or defiance of order or
authority
Substantial barriers offer best protection

Time - Fallout radiation

intensity decays rapidly;
90% in just the first 7 hours.
The less time you spend in a
radiation field, the less dose
received.

Distance - The farther you are

from a source, the less dose
you receive.

Shielding - Denser (heavier,

massive) materials absorb
more radiation. Greater
thickness of any given material
absorbs more radiation.
 Protection Factors & Mass of Materials
*PF = “Protection Factor” refers to the ratio between the radiation dose rate of the OUTSIDE to that
INSIDE the shelter, for instance a PF = 10 means that the inside dose rate is 1/10th the outside rate.

How Much Protection?

PF* Lead Steel Concrete Earth Water Wood
2 .3"" .7" 2.0" 3.3" 5" 9"
4 .5" 1.5" 5.0" 7.0" 10" 15"
8 1.0" 2.0" 6.5" 10.0" 15" 27"
16 1.2" 3.0" 9.0" 14.0" 20" 3 ft
32 1.5" 4.0" 12.0" 15.0" 2 ft 4 ft
64 2.0" 4.2" 13.2" 19.8" 2.5ft 4.5 ft
128 2.1" 5.0" 15.0" 2 ft 3 ft 5 ft
1000 3.0" 7.0" 22.0" 33.0" 4 ft -
2000 3.3" 7.7" 2 ft 3 ft 4.5 ft -

Outside radiation, divided by the Protection Factor, is reduced in proportion. For example, if the
outside radiation rate is 1,000 R/hr, a person shielded by 3 ft. of earth would receive a dose rate of .
5 R/hr. but a person shielded by 1 ft of earth would receive about 10 R/hr.
IMPROVE HOME FALLOUT PROTECTION
Increase shielding by:

1) Plan / improvise vents, ventilation & 2 entrances.

2) Add wooden shoring supports below each story.
3) Add up to 12” maximum dirt on upper floors/roof.
4) Cover window opening with plywood sheeting.
5) Pile dirt to ceiling height along outside walls &
windows.
Sheltering at Home During an Emergency
For using a building without working utilities as shelter

 Exhaust – candles, camp stoves,

lanterns, generators, heaters, charcoal
grills, all generate carbon monoxide and
must not be used indoors!
 Open flame – above ignition sources
must never be left unattended!
 Fuel – most of the above require
flammable fuels to operate, which
must be stored outdoors.
– Use Fire Marshal approved fuel containers

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 Generator Safety Tips
From the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission

http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/pubs/portgen.pdf

 Carbon monoxide hazard!

– Never use indoors or in attached garages!
– Set up OUTDOORS in well ventilated, dry area
– Away from open windows or HVAC air intakes
– Under a canopy, open shed or carport
 Electrocution Hazard!
– Ground both the generator and equipment!
– Plug only individual devices into generator
– DO NOT connect into household AC!
– UL-rated cords of gage adequate for load
 Explosion / fire hazard!
– Fuel vapors traveling along the ground can be ignited
by switching equipment or appliance pilot lights!
Improvised Emergency Shelters
As in all real estate, most important is location:

 Avoid low spots with poor drainage

 Seek a gently sloped area so that surface
water drains away
 Sheltered from prevailing winds
 Away from bodies of water (attracts
insects and animals)
 Insulated from direct contact with ground,
rock, or concrete, which conducts away
body heat.
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Avoid as shelter
 Areas around downed
utility lines
 In or near culverts
 Within the “collapse
zone” of a damaged
building
– (maintain 2:1 ratio of distance
away to building height)

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Improvised Shelters

 Sheds
 Tents
 Tarps
 Vehicles

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Don’t disable a good car!

 Remove car batteries to power

communications and shelter lighting only
from cars that do not start
– If a car starts reserve it for emergency evacuation, or
– Use it as a “battery charger”
– Salvage lighting, remove dome lights, tail lights, trunk
lights, etc. & with at least 36” of wires.
– Position batteries in shelter; attach wires & lights
– As batteries discharge, replace with new batteries or
recharge batteries.
Emergency Shelter Materials
Salvage building materials from debris or from damaged
structures only when it can be done safely

 TYVEK building wrap

 Plastic sheeting
 Roofing paper and shingles
 Siding, plywood
 Chain link fence
 Lumber
 Carpeting
 Wire, rope, and fasteners
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Build Your Shelter In Layers

 Structural framing, lumber, plywood, fencing, metal

 Fasteners, reinforce structural connections with nails,
wire or rope ties, wooden spikes
 Water and wind proofing, TYVEK, plastic sheeting,
tarp, shingles, roofing paper
 Insulation, drywall, leaves, tree branches, carpeting,
(may also be used as ballast to hold water/wind
proofing layer in place)

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SIGNALLING
 Day
– Mirror flashes – best daylight signal device
– Smoke http://www.bestglide.com/VS17_Signal_Panel.html 

– Brightly colored cloth flag / panel (VS-17)

– ICAO surface-to-air signals

 Night
– Flashing strobe light V Require assistance
X Need medical
– Fire assistance
– Signal flares Y Yes - affirmative
N No - negative
 Sound → I am proceeding
– Whistle, vehicle horn in this direction

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Signal Mirror
 Simple, inexpensive, effective
 Doesn’t rely on batteries or pyrotechnics
 Visible from 5 to 10 miles in daylight

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FIRE

 Maintains body temperature

 Great morale booster
 Deters wild animals and insects
 Boils water
 Cooks food
 Used as day (smoke)
 or night (light) signal

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Fire making methods

 Matches or lighter
 Flint and steel
– Use cotton ball and petroleum jelly as tinder
 Battery and steel wool
 Burning lens

http://www.ehow.com/how_18193_make-fire-starters.html
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WATER
 Minimum for drinking
– 1 gallon per person, per day
 More water is needed for
– Cooking and food preparation
– Personal hygiene, sanitation and
decontamination
 Store a two week supply as minimum
– Food grade containers with screw caps
– Away from direct sunlight
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Emergency Water Sources

 Captive water in household hot water tank and

interior plumbing is OK
 Filter cloudy water to remove particulates, using an
EPA-rated filter with a pore size ≤ 1 micron, then:
 Disinfect with Clorox (6% sodium hypochlorite) add
8 drops of bleach per gallon if clear, 16 drops if
cloudy, let water stand 15 minutes before use
 Or boil vigorously for 15 minutes
 Store potable water in clean containers.

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All surface water is contaminated!
 All natural sources (from springs, ponds, rivers or
streams) must be boiled or chemically disinfected.
 Chemical disinfection or boiling
– Kills bacteria and viruses
– Doesn’t remove particulates or chemical pollutants
 Filtration
– Coffee filters, etc. remove gross particulates only
– EPA-rated filters (pore size is smaller than 1 micron)
are needed to remove bacteria, viruses and Giardia
cysts, but don’t remove chemical pollutants.
 Distillation is the most effective method.

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FOOD

 Lowest of the seven survival priorities

 Need is mostly mental, because we are used
to eating regularly
 Healthy people will do OK without food
for a week or more, if they are well
hydrated
 Balanced nutrition is a more important
health factor for elderly and infants.

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Shelf life of foods stored in the home
 Food in a refrigerator is safe for a day after the power goes off, either
use it in 24 hours or throw it away
 Frozen food is safe if there are still ice crystals, once thawed, cook and
consume it within 24 hours
 Next use non-perishables and dry staples
 Canned foods are best for long term storage (up to 4 years) but are
heavy to transport and bulky to store
 Dry packaged foods are easiest to transport
 Choose foods requiring minimal preparation
 Eat at least one balanced meal daily
 Include nutritional supplements in supplies
 Drink enough water.

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Emergency Food supplies

 MREs, or Heater Meals®

 Prepared survival rations
 Primitive survival methods:
– Fishing
– Hunting
– Trapping
– Foraging

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 TOOLS and EQUIPMENT
 Folding utility knife or multi-tool
– Scout type, Leatherman®, Swiss Army or Mil-K-818
↓
 Manual can opener
 Sturdy fixed blade
– For chopping, digging, or as pry bar
 Shovel
 Hand saw
 Axe

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OTHER SUPPLIES
Each person should have their own backpack of
personal essentials
 Flashlight
 Portable radio
 Extra batteries
 First Aid Kit, (containing a first aid manual)
 Personal medications and sanitation supplies
 Cooking and eating utensils
 Wool blanket or sleeping bag for each person
 Sturdy shoes and extra socks
 Rain gear
 Change of warm clothing and underwear
 Items for special needs, care of infants
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DISASTER FINANCIAL PLANNING
http://www.redcross.org/services/disaster/beprepared/FinRecovery/FinPlan/

 Electronic transactions, account

verifications may be impossible
 Evacuate with enough cash for at least
two weeks of essentials
 Carry account numbers, contact addresses
and telephone numbers for all important
persons and institutions
 Helping one's unprepared friends and
neighbors may prove expensive!
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 SOCIAL IMPLICATIONS OF DISASTERS
Cumulative psychological effects upon survivors
 Evacuate or Stay? – Do you have a plan?
Where will you go? Is it safe to travel? Can you REALLY get there? Do
you have enough resources to make it work?
 Warn friends not to invite others to come and evacuate
with them
– They’ll overwhelm your limited resources!
 Never allow family members to be separated
– Even if it means waiting for later rescue and/or evacuation
 The well prepared may be threatened by those who
weren't – get to know your neighbors NOW for a safer
community later in case of a disaster
– Make plans to ensure neighborhood security/family protection
– Post a guard in rotating shifts, to deter roving criminals or looters
– Keep firearms and ammunition safely secured
– Take a home firearms safety-protection course

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 Lessons from Hurricane Katrina
When help arrives, you may get it
“…….whether you want it or not.”

 Don't believe that all rescuers will respect your

property
 Relief workers from other States often don't know
local laws
 Relief organizations have their own bureaucratic
requirements that may conflict with your needs
 Expect frustration over lack of communication and
empathy by rescuers and local/State government.
 IN CONCLUSION:
 Positive attitude – Stop Think Observe Plan
 First Aid / Sanitation – Maintain proper hygiene, preserve
family health, and prevent illness or injury
 Shelter – Protection from environmental hazards
 Signaling / Communication- be heard / seen
 Fire – Warmth, light, food prep, water sterilization
 Water – Prevent water-borne illnesses through filtration,
chemical sterilization, boiling or distillation
 Food – Eat at least one balanced meal daily, drink enough
water, include nutritional supplements
 Equipment- Flashlight, knife, saw, axe, shovel
 Planning – Prepare a Kit, Make A Plan! www.Ready.gov
 Sources for further information

 http://www.fema.gov/txt/library/f&web.txt
 http://www.vaemergency.com/prepare/planning/index.cfm
 http://www.ext.vt.edu/pubs/housing/356-479/356-479.html
 http://www.dhmh.state.md.us/psa/riskmgt/disastersupplies.htm
 http://solutionsforyourlife.ufl.edu/disaster_prep/
 http://www.dougritter.com/home.htm
 http://www.domprep.com/legacy/dpjournal/DPJournal0607.pdf
 http://www.domprep.com/Resilience/Resilience_Tips/
 http://www.cityofmemphis.org/pdf_forms/dirtyBlast.pdf
 http://www.bt.cdc.gov/radiation/dirtybombs.asp
 http://www.oism.org/nwss/s73p926.htm
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Survival_skills
 http://www.nrahq.org/education/training/find.asp?State=VA&Type=HFS
Acknowledgements
 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
 Fairfax County Fire & Rescue Department
 Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene
 Huntsville-Madison County, Alabama, EMA
 Doug Ritter
 Derek Rowan
 Steve Willey
 University of Florida IFAS Extension
 Virginia Cooperative Extension Service
 Virginia Department of Emergency Management
 Virginia Department of Health
 Virginia RACES, Incorporated