Urban Survival

When the subject of survival comes up, people often spend their time discussing how to survive huge natural disasters or long periods alone in the wilderness. There is nothing wrong with this type of thinking, except as more and more Americans live in cities and suburbs there is a growing likelihood a person’s survival emergency will also occur in or near a familiar environment, such as work or home, and the episode may last minutes or hours rather than days or weeks. It doesn’t make much difference because dead is still dead, injured is still injured and your friends will “Monday-morning-quarterback” your actions long after your body is cold.

When I present survival options to people I often ask them, “What is our most important goal?” Most of the answers are about self-improvement: They want a better job, better health and they want to look after their family. While these are all important, I think our most important goal should be to end each day in the same or better condition than when the day began. If we don’t achieve this every day, it means we risk not being able to achieve all the other goals that are important to us.

Proper Mindset

We must begin by developing the correct mindset, which can be summed up in three words: prepared, aware and decisive. Being prepared means we have various simple plans for specific situations. It also means we have the ability to execute the appropriate plan when needed and we know when to act. Awareness means we are actually using our five senses: see, hear, touch, taste, smell and the sixth sense — when you just know something is wrong. Our radar is running and when we get a blip on the screen we focus on it and make a decision to either take action or ignore it.

Founder of Gunsite, Colonel Jeff Cooper promoted a color code system of a human being’s four conditions of mental awareness. Condition White: Unaware of our surroundings or physically asleep. Condition Yellow: Aware of our surroundings, our radar is running. Condition Orange: Alert! Focus on a specific thing and evaluate potential danger. Condition Red: Take action! Run or fight.

In the same way ships and aircraft use radar to scan in a 360-degree sweep to detect other ships and aircraft, we can also develop our own form of awareness radar to detect potential problems before we get a nasty surprise. Being decisive means when we detect a potential threat or problem we already know what to do and when to do it.

Plans should be short and simple. The good news is most of us are already conditioned to doing this when we are driving. On the highway, we are watching for traffic and road hazards (Condition Yellow: Aware). When we see another vehicle getting too close (Condition Orange: Prepared) we execute a plan (Condition Red: Action) change our speed or direction to avoid a collision. We can take those same principles and apply them to other aspects of our lives.

For example, I’m walking along the street (Condition Yellow). I see a bunch of gang bangers walking toward me on the other side of the street. I focus on them (Condition Orange). I decide if they stay on their side of the street and I stay on mine, we can just pass each other. However, if they cross the street toward me, I will step into one of the stores or businesses on my side to avoid them (Condition Red). If they start something, then it’s game on and I’m already in Condition Red. If they ignore me and keep walking, I can go back to Condition Yellow and be on my way.

Some might criticize me for not standing my ground: “Man up! Face those guys down.” If there is more at stake than my pride, then I’ll fight. I’ve taught the NRA Personal Protection class for more than two decades and I’ve carried a firearm for most of that time. I believe honest, upstanding law-abiding citizens have one get-out-of-jail-free card. One chance the legal system could give them the benefit of the doubt based on their good reputation and spotless record. I’m not going to waste my one card on an incident I could easily have avoided if I hadn’t let my ego get in the way of common sense.

There is an old saying when you shoot someone you have two problems to deal with: First, survive the gunfight and second, survive the court case. Let’s look at some ways we can avoid both and still end each day in the same or better condition than when the day began.

Parking Lot Security

Parking lots can present some security challenges for law-abiding people. Large, open-air lots with background noise from passing traffic make it difficult to attract attention by shouting for help. Background noise may also rob us of our ability to hear warning sounds like screams, angry shouting and glass breaking. Underground parking lots typically have poor lighting, which creates shadowy places for criminals to hide. The law-abiding person parks their car and gets out and leaves. They come back to their car and get in and drive away. We have to assume anyone loitering inside a parking lot is either dealing with a car problem or they have criminal intent. People waiting for a ride from a friend will likely wait at the main entrance. Anyone else hanging around a parking lot should be treated with caution. There are some simple things we can do to increase our safety. When I drive into the parking lot I’m looking around to see if anyone is loitering there. If it looks safe I will choose a parking space. I prefer to spend an extra few moments backing into a space so I can drive away quickly if there is an emergency.

Once I have parked, I get out immediately, looking and listening for potential problems. If I hear glass breaking or people screaming I will get back in the car and leave. If everything seems normal, I will walk out of the parking lot quickly. I will look and listen for any signs of trouble. I will walk wide of any corners, dumpsters and other potential ambush areas. I never take short cuts between rows of parked cars and I never walk next to a van. People have been dragged into vans in an instant and it usually doesn’t end well. I constantly look around me and listen. I don’t get distracted by talking or texting on my phone. If the lighting is dim, I will carry a small flashlight in my hand. It helps to guide my way and if someone confronts me, I can give them a quick flash in the eyes and move off the line of attack.

When I return to my vehicle I continue to look and listen for trouble. If possible, I will circle my car at a distance to be sure it’s safe to approach. If I’m carrying bags or groceries I load them into the vehicle as quickly as possible, get in, lock all the doors and then I drive away immediately. I don’t sit in my car with the motor turned off while I check voice mail. Locked doors in a vehicle are an important safety feature. If a stranger tries to open my car door without me inviting them to do so, I will interpret this to be an aggressive action.

Consider the case of Reginald Denny. He was driving a large truck through a Los Angeles neighborhood in 1992 during the infamous Rodney King riots when a gang of youths dragged him out of the cab and beat him badly. Of course, car windows can be smashed, but a locked door will provide the occupants a few moments delay in an attack, which may be enough time to drive away or access a weapon. Faced with a violent mob blocking the street, the average car with locked doors and windows and a steel roof will provide some level of protection while the drivers lays on the horn and moves slowly through the crowd without
causing injury.

Micro Bug-out Kit

The concept of a bug-out or go bag is quite well known. It’s the bag people carry when they have to leave their home in an emergency. A typical bug-out bag will hold items such as important personal papers, a change of clothing, energy bars and other comfort food, prescription medication, a first aid kit and any other personal items to help a person survive away from home for 72 hours. A large duffel bag or backpack standing ready in the hall closet to be thrown in the trunk of the family car is a good thing to have for bug-out situations such as imminent heavy flooding or a local chemical spill. Bug-out bags are a smart idea, but they are not the complete solution to the problem of being forced to bug out. People are often forced to leave other buildings such as their workplace and hotels.

I’ve spent a lot of my career in an office environment and I always carried some form of a briefcase. Inside I kept some spare cash, car keys, pencil and notepad, a mini first aid kit and a multi-tool with a blade, pliers or tweezers, screwdriver etc. Whenever our office conducted a fire drill I always grabbed my briefcase on my way out the door. I was surprised at the number of people who evacuated their office for the drill, but left their personal belongings behind because it was “only a drill.” There is an old saying, “under pressure, training takes over.” In a real fire I was confident I would grab my bag on the way out because I trained to do it that way and I’d have the means to get home.

There are times when even a small bag isn’t practical, so I developed my own micro bug-out kit for everyday carry to give me the bare minimum of items to escape and survive: cell phone, a pocket flashlight, a credit or debit card and at least $20 in small bills. All the items except the cell phone are stored in a small Ziploc bag to keep them dry and together. Also, keeping the cash separate from cash in my wallet prevents me from spending it and insures I always have some emergency money on hand. With these four items I can summon help and notify relatives and friends of my situation, find my way out of a building where the power has failed and signal for help, pay for transportation, lodging, food and water.

Bug-Out Planning

It’s not uncommon for people to get evacuated from their homes for various reasons. A chemical spill on a nearby road may force an evacuation of a few hours. Flooding or forest fires may cause entire neighborhoods to be shut down for days. This is where the full-size, bug-out bag we packed at the beginning of fire or flood season gets deployed. Where do we go and how do we get there? Have a route and an alternate route. In my subdivision there is one road in and out, plus one bike trail as an alternate exit. The road you choose to evacuate on may be blocked. In some circumstances it may be possible to follow a railroad line rather than sit in a miles-long traffic jam. Be careful to avoid trains.

When travelling on foot, be aware of entering areas such as tunnels, alleys, bridges and riverside pathways where there is only one way in and one way out. These are choke points where as few as two muggers or assailants (one at each end) can block your entrance and exit. This applies not only to bugging out, but also to our everyday activities. When people take the same route to work or some other frequent destination they become complacent about their personal security. They also become predictable, which means they may become an easy target for muggers, rapists and even kidnappers.

I think it’s great so many people are prepping for catastrophic disasters like 100-year floods, summer forest fires and the annual hurricane season, but let’s not forget the little, mundane things like texting while crossing the street — it’s far more likely to kill us than a giant asteroid. 

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