Update: Follow-Up Actions
Now that things have pretty much calmed down, I’ve finally been able to have a good, long discussion with the wife. Since Harvey, her eyes have opened wide! These are what we have discussed so far:
We have developed a three-level plan; short-term, mid-term, and long-term.
We have decided our short-term plan should last no more than our agreed-upon timeframe, but must fall within the following criteria:
- It must be an event contained within the local area
- There must be a negligible chance for follow-on events
- General order must still be maintained within the community
Without giving too many details, we have incorporated strategies for the following into our short term preparation:
- Water
- Food
- Medical
- Hygiene
- Communication
- Defense
We have also decided to conduct drills for the family. This is something we should have been doing anyway, but better late than never (and thank God that we haven’t needed any yet). The following are the drills that we have begun practicing:
- Accountability
- Barricade/Evacuation (natural disaster, break-in, fire, etc.)
- Medical
We have decided that our mid-term plan will most likely be an extension of the short-term. This plan could last for an extended period depending on the situation(s) that caused it.
At present, our mid-term plan must fall within the following criteria:
- It must be an event contained within the local area
- There must be a higher chance for follow-on events
- The community may or may not be stable, but any unrest must be localized.
- The situation has outlasted our short-term supplies.
In addition to the short-term strategies, we have included the following into our mid-term preparation:
- Fuel
- Field Repair
- Secondary Transportation
- Cache
- Cash Reserves
*Note: each plan’s strategies are independent of all the others; i.e. the food strategy for the mid-term is separate from that of the short-term.
We have also built on the short-term’s drills for this one, as well. They include the following:
- Vehicle Loading (passengers and gear)
- Field Refueling
- Field Repairing
- E&E
For long-term preparation, the wife decided to mainly defer to my judgement, but we still talk about it. Even if she doesn’t necessarily want to be part of the decision-making process, I still believe in keeping her in the loop. Being that this is the most serious (to me) kind of situation we’ll face, I have a goal in mind for my plan (I hope that makes as much sense in words, as it did in my head). This one will most likely be the most fluid until I get to the point at which I’m happy with it. Regardless, though, we will still have a long-term plan. Think of this as in case SHTF.
The long-term plan will fall under the following criteria:
- Worldwide, national, or extended-distance catastrophe
- Government functions have ceased or been compromised
- Large-scale unrest and disorder
The following are the long-term strategies in addition to those already mentioned:
- Structure Hardening
- Vehicle Hardening
- Extended Security
- Resource Production
The following drills are those that have been added to the long-term preparation:
- Counter to Raid/Looting
- Extended Medical
- General, Military-type Immediate Action Drills
- Extended Security
As we continue to learn and discuss, we will most likely adjust and tweak; and we will probably add to them all. In addition to what is listed, we have also adopted general health and fitness programs, as well as mindset and “tactical” (sorry, I couldn’t think of a different word) training plans. And In order to accomplish all of this, we have decided to officially budget for it in our finances. Also, this is not meant as an end-all-be-all list. These are just the preliminary guidelines that we have decided to use thus far.
