What kind of situation would force you from your home?

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SheepDog

SheepDog

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I am assuming that you are either set up to survive at home or have an alternate bug out location.
What would make it so bad that you would have to leave?
Fire
power outage
wind, tornado, hurricane
flood
earthquake
looters
injury or health consideration

or whatever and where would you go and how would you get there? (please no exact locations just a distance, obstacles, and other difficulties.
 
The first person shows up asking nicely for food, I give them some food, visit with them to gather information about their situation and any other knowledge they may have about what is going on in the immediate area. When they are gone I start packing to fall'back to the first or second fall'back position.

Other thing would be forest fire.

Maybe the Alaska State Troopers inquiring about my removing the "DO NOT REMOVE" mattress tags back in the 1940's
 
If my home is in tact and defensible, I will remain here as long as possible as the situation (whatever it is) continues to unfold and I determine if it is a short term incident or a TEOTWAWKI event. Of course if it appears to be a permanent life changing event I will move more quickly to leave my urban environment. As I am in an environment that is very cold in the winter and very warm in the summer, most people will flee to the South. Which improves my position if I bug in or bug out as people are and will continue to be my biggest concern. Much more so than the natural climate of this region. Pioneers survived here all winter without power, and so can I.

If I bug out I will have to travel approx. 40 miles to the North. I have a year+ worth of supplies at home and a similar amount at my BOL, only my BOL has considerably more options for sustainability such as livestock, large gardens, farm land, multiple lakes, small river, an abundance of wildlife, etc. I would prefer to travel by vehicle, but if vehicular travel is not possible then I have three options. My father-in-law is a pilot who owns one airplane large enough for all of us. If he can make it here he could take us all to the BOL, although I imagine we would have to travel light. Second on the North edge of town is a very large stable with numerous horses and wagons that is part of a university equestrian unit. The manager of the facility lives on site and is a friend of mine. Otherwise I might have to go on foot with my large dogs pulling carts and adults pushing modified 3-wheel jogging strollers. Approx. 9 miles to the North is a state DOT facility somewhat off the beaten path which I have access too and houses a small law enforcement substation. Approx. 21 miles to the North I maintain a storage garage with concealed preps. Approx. 30 miles to the North a close cousin has a large ranch/farm. The same cousin who assists my family in the monitoring and upkeep of our family "farm" & vacation home (aka my BOL). I have made this journey many times in my SUV and on my motorcycle and have mapped out multiple routes, potential shelters, potential hazards, and even a few potential cache locations.
 
We have had to deal with this situation twice since we lived here. Both times were train derailments one to the north and one to the south. Both had chemicals spills of toxic chemicals. Both events had fairly large evacuations involved. Luckily we were just outside the evac zones, first time 1 mile away, 2nd time within half a mile.
First event was across the river near us and at first had the wind blowing the toxic cloud toward our house over night the wind turned and kept it away from the house. Long story goes with this one. The day the derailment happened I was running comms for a bicycle our comm group was supporting. The ride was winding down and only had half a dozen riders left on the course. We found out that the derailment had occured and that the course was within 2 miles of the crash and we had to clear the course right then. Within 15 minutes we had located all the riders and hauled them to the start/finish area (which luckily was outside the zone. Once that was complete, the wife and I headed home and loaded up some supplies since we had been contacted by the local Red Cross to set up comms for a shelter that was being opened for the evacuees. We spent the night at the shelter, that had a grand total of 3 evacuees. There were more folks there to work. Anyway during the night the wind turned and carried the cloud back toward the derailment. That was quite a couple days.
Made me realize I wasn't far enough out. Railways and interstates have a steady stream of hazardous chemicals on them. Any future location we look for to move to will be at least 5 miles away from either one. As well as 5 miles or more from any business that use those chemicals.
 
My main cabin that I live in is not (in my opinion) defendable. So the first sign of trouble I need to be gone. Now there are plans for re-capturing the cabin. But none for attempting to hold this position. Re-capturing would have an extremely high success probability, even if it needed to be done several times over and over for years. What makes it hard to hold, is what makes it easy to re-capture.
 
Fire- A very real possibility.
Volcano- I'm far enough away not to worry about lava or bombs. I'm prepped for roof ash removal, vehicle air filters, masks, etc.
Quake- In the last 3 years a 7.1 and a 7.0 that didn't get me out of my chair let alone my house. If we get another 9.2 that could change.
Wife- One time, "If I kick you you of the house you're not going are you?"
Infirmity- The years could bring that about. We have long term care insurance.
 
On the other hand I'll have two elderly parents, a SIL on disability and a wife that operates on the premise that if she does not accept a SHTF then it can not exist. So I'll die at home with a pile of empty brass surrounding me.
 
My Plan A is definitely to bug in. The only things that would make me leave would be life threatening situations that would make the house and property unlivable; flood, fire, toxic chemical spill. There may be others. Even if there were an earthquake or tornado I would still camp on my property.

I saw this on another website, and it seemed like a pretty good guideline for Bugging In and Bugging Out; knowing when to leave.

The acronym is RED OUT:

R - Resources of lack of
E - Environmental threats
D - Destination - do you have one?
O - Overwhelming Force
U - Unprepared for the situation
T - Threat growing - societal unrest getting closer
 
Structural damage
Extended power outage
Collapse

Fallback location is about 12 miles away. Mostly through farmland. Every possible path requires a river crossing which could be flooded.
 
With adequate warning, the family farm is the BOL. I have multiple plans to go there by paved roads and almost endless options for dirt roads, as my state is mostly divided into square miles by dirt roads. The trip is 1 hr 10 minutes under normal circumstances.

Fire is mostly not a consideration unless there is looting/burning. That's highly unlikely in my little town. One of the busiest rail lines in America is less than 1000 feet from my door though. A hazmat incident from there is certainly possible but in my estimation unlikely. (I work for that railroad, and it is a lower risk area for major derailments. Explaining why would take up a textbook, so you'll just have to trust me on that.)
I'm on high ground, with no major waterways near. If a flood forces me out, I'll need Noah's ark to survive it...
Oddly, my worst concern is a lower body injury. I have to climb a steep stairway to get into my place. It may not be possible if I blow out a leg...I would have to get to the farm until I recover.
 
Retired County Sheriff confirmed what I thought. County can order an MANDATORY evacuation but county has no Constitutional authority to enforce the order. Sheriff also stated that if a person(s) ignored the evacuation order he wouldn't risk any personal to come rescue you at a later date.
 
fteter said:
Heck, I may be forced out in a few years if my county keeps jacking up the property taxes.
Click to expand...
You are not alone. Property taxes have gotten ridiculous. I used to know senior citizens who worked part time to cover health insurance. I think property tax will be another thing that will keep senior citizens doing some work.
 
To answer more seriously, I can think of a lot that would force me from my home. Environmental factors like fire, a tornado or something makes my structure unlivable, an opposing force greater than my ability to defend against, running out of essentials I need to live, family in danger at a different location. Probably a 100 other things I can't think of off the top of my head.

I prep for specific scenarios because it gives me a guide. You can't have a solution without knowing the challenges you are trying to overcome. But that's just for how-to purposes. I prep for the unexpected. For the freight train I never see coming. I hope that my prepping for scenarios applies across the board for that unexpected surprise event.

Evolution favors the adaptable. Those that adapt quickly and seamlessly will survive. That means having a plan b that isnt wandering around aimlessly digging through other peoples refuse for my kids next sustenance.

To that end I don't pidgeon hole myself with words like never. That being said, I am well prepared to stay where I am and also have prepared to effectively turtle out of sight and mind to let brief storms pass over my head.

My bug out plans are not as strong as I would like. They have also been complicated with a wife that probably could not handle some of the plans I had as a younger, single man and we are expecting our first kid this summer. However, my plans are there and are improving. Just like my stay-in-place plans as I continue to improve my property, develop relationships in my new area and train consistently. Not just with firearms but in many subjects.

Never say never. Always have a plan b even if it sucks. Continue to improve. Above all remember that adaptability and your ability to think combined with your ability to gain and store knowledge is the key to survival and "thrival" no matter what comes down the tracks.

Just my morning ramble :)
 
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