Sep 12 2004
Zombie Survival Manual – Part I (Break-out or bunker?)
The dead are walking the streets, the news has nothing of substance to offer and the authorities seem unable to get the situation under control. Rioting, looting, murder and mayhem appear to be the order of the day. You don’t want to stay put, but trying to get out of this mess ain’t gonna be easy either.
What do you do?
Well, you’re going to adapt, or you’re going to join the ranks of the living dead. This section is designed to give you a basic overview of a zombie outbreak, and allow you to make a more informed decision as to what your chances for survival are, whether you stay put or try to run.
Before attempting to “break out” of an urban area during an infestation it’s important to assess how far the zombie threat has developed, and what your relative chances of escape are. Zombie infestations can be broken into several stages;
Stage 1: Initial outbreak – “Characterized by a few isolated incidents, typically the hospitals are the first alerted to the danger but if not assessed quickly medical personel aid the spread of the infection.”
Stage 2: Explosive spread – “Once sufficient numbers of citizens have been infected (especially those in recognizable uniforms of authority figures) the spread becomes exponential.”
Stage 3: Civil Disorder / Rioting – “Despite efforts by the established authority panic on the part of the citizenry is a standard consequence. At this stage escape from an urban center is near to impossible. The chaos accelerates the infection rates.”
Stage 4: Breakdown of Authority – “Should government efforts to identify and isolate / contain the outbreak fail, this stage is characterizedby absolute chaos. Risk to the individual stems not only from zombies but from criminal elements, as well as escaping citizens.”
Stage 5: Unopposed infestation – “Once organized large scale efforts to contain the outbreak have collapsed, movement is a risky proposition, but opposition is limited primarily to the undead.”
Your escape must be timed correctly, you want to leave before the mass exodus (and subsequent gridlock) of city dwellers begins, but after you have established (reasonably) that it IS an infestation taking place (you don’t want to flee the city everytime something “A little odd” takes place, do you?).
The primary consideration here is that once the general populace becomes aware of the problem (or “a” problem) the exodus will begin, this creates gridlock, civil disorder of its own and exposes those attempting to escape to infection. If the exodus has begun your best bet is to find yourself a good protective location and sit tight (bunkering is another chapter, so we’ll skip that for now.)
Delay in your escape is a killer, grab two or three bags loaded with food and weapons, ensure you are wearing suitable outdoor clothes (there is the possibility you will have to abandon your vehicle), and ensure you and your party have appropriate footwear for a long march, then get going!
You will have to continually re-assess your escape until you are clear of the city proper. Should you encounter massive gridlock, or be unable to circumvent a blockage you must consider whether you are able to return to your residence (or selected location), should your chances for escape from the city drop significantly you should immediately consider it a lost venture and make all efforts to return (traffic will notionally be moving in the opposite direction, however panic will have forced motorists into oncoming lanes and caused more traffic snarls, so do not expect easy going!).
Should you escape from the city push on as far as you can, you will be followed by large numbers of city dwellers seeking exactly the same supplies and shelter as you. Take shifts behind the wheel, and take a carefull stock of the supplies you have taken with you. Acquire food and fuel as often as possible, but do not dawdle.
The rest is up to you.
(more detail will be dealt with in the section titled “on the run”)
a school is a good place. lots of room for sleeping quarters, hospital, security,(could hod surveillance cameras.)etc. private schools are better, as they are bigger, have big fences, & should have good surveillance. fire exits are a good escape route, not only can you escape quickly, but the alarm warns other survivors not to go there for like a couple days or so. put a watch tower on the roof with a sniper rifle,binoculars, signal flare & more. part of the oval can be farmed, provided the grass is good condition & you have seeds. put buckets on the roof to gather rain water. i am an Aussie, so i am more likely to get military firearms like steyrs, m4s,etc. rather than 22s & shotguns. id take a crowbar, machete, or hatchet. shovels are good, but the stuff i mentioned before is the best melee i know of.remember your prep work:head dead & if they bite you, your gonna be one of them!Molotov’s are good, you an stock up on smokes, alcohol,etc. to keep moral high. you’ll need to raid for supplies, though. you might not be able to farm, or you might need medical supplies. also get quick mix concrete or steel to make a permanent barricade design, because i do not not know what kind of force a mob if not horde of zombies can put on amateur board work! so you have about a dozen of armed followers,(or you are an armed follower.)have plenty of livestock & supplies for them, alcohol for moral & have a permanent fort. unless they break through, you can hold out here for years.
I think a supermarket would be a good place to have they do not have many exits or entrances and could be boarded up, they have back up electricity generators, all the canned food you can eat, bedding and so. First aid kits too!