What Does "Preparedness" Mean? - Escape Plans

     There are too many reasons why everyone needs escape plans and emergency response plans. With events natural disasters destroying homes and the land we love on a regular basis it is only logical that you should be ready for them. Pretending they don’t exist is stupid but so is not planning for them. Whether it is simply escaping your house during a fire or running for your life in tornado alley there is no reason not to have a plan. I’d like to go over a few different plans that I have in effect and how my family would escape if we needed too. Understand that each family will need different plans in place depending on where they live. Earthquakes may not be common where you live and so planning for those might not be top priority. What I would recommend however is that you still plan for the less likely events regardless but cater them to be specific to your family and what works for you. 

     FIRE - According to the US Fire Administration (USFA), there has been an annual estimated average of “2,495 civilian fire fatalities [resulting] from 360,900 residential building fires. Of the total residential building fires, 1,600 of them resulted in fatalities. The overall fatality rate was nearly six civilian fatalities per 1,000 residential fires.” That means there is always a chance of this happening no matter where you are. It might be something you’re very aware of and maybe even something that you practiced in elementary school when the Fire Marshall visited your school but it most likely is something that needs revising. Is this a plan that you’ve actually practiced with your family? Is it one that accounts for new additions to the family whether children or pets? Each house is different and some might require ladders and alternative exits. My apartment complex had one exit that we could walk out of if there were fire. We need a rope/chain ladder to escape if someone else’s apartment was on fire. I have a dog which makes getting him out more difficult if we have to exit via the ladder. These sorts of specific plans will get you out if you plan and practice them. I recommend at least doing it once a year, especially if you have children. 

     Remember that fire prevention is just as important as planning your escape. Keeping matches and other firestarting items in safe and properly stored locations could spare you these problems. Turning off unnecessary electronics when not in use and keeping an eye on gas and heating appliances will also assist you. 

     EARTHQUAKES/TORNADOES – I group these together because they arrive with little warning. Tornadoes can arrive with more warning then an earthquake but they are still very unpredictable. I’ve only been through three minor earthquakes and I’ve been extremely lucky to have never been through a tornado. These events are the hardest to plan for but what is necessary in planning for these events is how to deal with it as it happens and what to do following the event. Earthquakes and for the most part are a roller coaster ride that you can’t do anything about except ride it out. The concern following the event is where your loved ones are and are they safe? Having a meeting place is necessary when cellphones and even landlines are down. Plan beforehand two safe locations so that if one of those is destroyed or unreachable there is a second that can be used. Know the means of transportation following these events. Roads might be broken or littered with debris and driving to where you’re going could be dangerous. Know the best way to get to where you need to go without the convenience of your usual mode of transportation. 

     HURRICANES/FLOODS – These events normally happen hand in hand and although you might have a flood without a hurricane you almost always have flooding with a hurricane. These events usually allow for some measure of preparation if you are paying attention to your local and national weather services. They might not always get things right but they almost always overcast worse than it really is going to be. Use this as an indication of what is to come and prepare accordingly. Do you have window coverings to prevent broken glass? Ways to store your cars to protect them from flying debris? Do you have proper supplies to ride out the event well in advance of the rush that occurs prior? Many people wait till the last minute to gather candles, matches, water and food stores and if you are caught in this rush you end up with barely anything and a headache from the struggle. Preparation prior to these events will give you peace of mind and safe you an unnecessary trip to the store when you could be preparing your home. When the flooding arrives do you have a way to prevent it? Do you have a way to get sandbags or create a miniature levy around your home? 

Flooding in New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina

     The hardest thing for many people in these situations is to leave. Katrina did not catch anybody off guard but it did catch people who just stayed. Many people said they had nowhere else to go. I do not wish to be insensitive to the struggles of these poor people who lost so much but my question is, why stay when your life is at risk? Weighing whether you should white-knuckle the storm or leave can be the hardest decision but if the storm is large enough, and you’ve prepared your home to the best of your ability then it might be best to just get up and leave. If you can’t go to family or friends then plan to meet at a hotel or motel somewhere out of the area. If you are low on funds and can’t do that then take a tent and find a nice spot off the side of the road. There are always options. Don’t risk your life for your home because your life and the life of your family are so much more precious than your home. 

     SNOW – Most people don’t think of this one because most people live in areas where the snow is manageable. If you live in Colorado, or New York or Minnesota the chances of getting snowed in are even worse. Are you prepared with a sufficient amount of food storage? That must include water, dry stores, a cooking stove, matches, candles and if you can afford it a small generator with some fuel. Be ready to stay a while because with these events you can never know. Lastly, be prepared for the possibility of financial repercussions. Unlike most, I get paid whether I’m at work or not because I’m military but many people work on an hourly basis and if the snow prevents you from working you’ve lost more than just some of your food storage. Having a savings both digital and as cash in hand is extremely when these sorts of events occur. 

     KIDNAPPING – Most people wouldn’t group this in with natural disasters but I believe that having a plan for this possibility is just as important as planning for a house fire. Children are targeted more and more and the pedophiles are becoming bolder. Preparing your children against attack and kidnapping is essential. Rather than speak much more on this I would refer you to a previous article titled “Protecting Your Family”. 

     TERRORISM – This one is similar to the earthquakes and tornadoes because there is little prediction. Law enforcement and intelligence services work tirelessly to prevent these but as we saw in the case of the 2013 Boston Bombing it still wasn’t enough. We can never fully prepare for these but I believe that the best way to deal with them is much like an earthquake. You need to have the same plan in effect but you need an extra step that doesn’t always accompany earthquakes or tornadoes and that is emotion and mental healing. I don’t proclaim to understand much about this because I’m no psychologist. I do see on a regular basis my friends with Post Traumatic Syndrome (PTSD) returning from Iraq and Afghanistan and I understand how that can affect them. I know that getting shot at is different then something like the Boston Bombing but the affect can be the same and can do more damage than the physical scars. This is exactly why it’s called terrorism and why it is so deadly. 

Second plane striking the Twin Towers on Sept. 11th 2001

     Jack of All Spades was created not only on the basis of prepare and prevent but also of dealing with these events. The tragedy of Katrina wasn’t just the physical destruction is caused it was the emotional. People had lost more than just homes; they’d lost family, friends and entire lives. I worked with a wonderful lady who was about to retire to her home in New Orleans that year but had to return to work shortly after Katrina because she lost everything. It changed her life is so many ways. Understanding how to deal with whatever drama life throws at you is just as important as planning to avoid it. We don’t want these events to define us; we want to define these events. 

     The bottom line is that there can potentially be a plan for everything. The detail and level of dedication to these plans depends on you and your families but personalize it; make it your own. Each family has a responsibility to be prepared to act and not let these events act upon us. We can be stronger then Mother Nature and we can prevent these things from tearing our lives apart.

Protecting Your Family

     Becoming a target for a hitman or foreign spy is not a common occurrence for Everyday Jacks. This sort of activity is usually left to black ops operatives, former Special Forces and government agents that don’t really exist. The worst event an average person might encounter is a possible bar fight or a stolen credit card. Even though we might never end up in an international spy incident we can still learn a few tricks of the trade from our covert brethren to assist us just in case. 

     There’s no claim on my part to know every secret that makes a good spy or Special Forces operative successful, but there are a few simple tricks that they utilize that are good to know if you or your loved ones are in danger. Even if none of these steps might ever need to be used, they are extremely simple to plan for and should be at least in place in case they do ever need to be used. 

     The first thing every family should have is a rally point. There is really no excuse for this one because it’s pretty standard for every child that goes through public school to have received the “rally point” speech from their local fire marshal. When your house goes up in flames, all members of the family should evacuate quickly and meet at the predetermined rally point to be counted by their mom or dad. Much like a house fire rally point, you should have other rally points in case something goes wrong. 

     A friend in Law Enforcement was working narcotics on a very large case. The suspects somehow learned personal information about my friend and sent some of their goons to follow his wife. There was no telling what they were going to do. Having been briefed of the dangers posed to her and her children she was always aware of her surroundings. On the day the goons started to follow her she was aware enough to realize she was being followed. She called my friend and he instructed her to meet at the rally point. When she arrived my friend and a good sized force of other officers were waiting for the goons. A little planning on the part of my friend and her wife ensured the safety of their family. 

     We might not be working a case against narco-traffickers but there’s no reason not to have a primary, secondary and even tertiary rally point. Make sure everyone in the family is aware of the rally points and how best to get there. 

     In conjunction with a rally point each family should have a safe-word or phrase. While working for Naval Security we were required to have a safe-word or safe-phrase. We oftentimes used common phrases that meant nothing to everyone else around us but to my partner it meant something deadly. This was only used to give myself and my partner more time to prepare for the danger when we discovered some lethal contraband or weapon. I was lucky never to have to use it but we did have it just in case. We usually changed our phrase everyday but we always talked about it that morning before starting our shift. 

Speakeasy access...mum's the word.

     Each family should have safe-words whether it be a single word that you give to the kids so they can identify a stranger is an authorized agent for their parents or if there’s a dangerous situation occurring and you need to pass a covert warning to a family member over the phone. As a young child my parents gave me a safe-phrase and a safe-number to remember so that if something happened to them and they needed to send someone else to get us then we could trust those people after they gave us the safe-phrase and number.

     In reality the safe-word idea can be modified to meet the needs of anybody who wishes to use it. Have a safe-number, word, phrase, sign, whistle or even a handshake. The bottom line is that there should be something in place to reassure you that the person giving the sign is speaking for the family or to warn the family of a potential threat. 

     Some people have security clearances or work against criminals. Other people have businesses that make thousands and thousands of dollars a day. There’s no shortage to the creativity of the criminal or terrorist mind so don’t think that something dangerous couldn’t happen to you. Your normal day job could easily be a target for people who need what you have. There are too many dangerous men out there with a thirsty desire for all sorts of debauchery. Most military members are just grunts and they lack the clearance or need-to-know when it comes to government secrets but that doesn’t stop foreign agencies from hacking into computers and Facebook accounts just to get some info. You never really know who could be a target. 

     The Jack of All Spades is different than the survivalists and “preppers” of the world in the sense that we don’t expect that these dangerous events WILL happen; rather we know that they COULD happen. An Everyday Jack understands that no one needs to prepare for all these things, but they’re simple enough that there’s no reason not to.