Hi everyone, Newbie Prepper here!

[TruthStacks]

Hi all,

I have recently become interested in prepping due to probably spending to much time on the dark side of the internet and watching to many doomy conspiracy videos on youtube . But on a serious note it does seem like we are heading toward some sort of major recession or economic collapse or war etc etc so I am trying to prepare the best I can.

I hope it's ok to ask some initial questions here but if i'm better posting them elsewhere let me know. Firstly 'bug out bags' I am slowly preparing a basic one with the little spare cash I have but are we in the UK likely to be bugging out? Why would we be, for what reason? I know everyone's scenario is different but am I wrong to think bugging out is something that is unlikely to be needed? What would be the likely reasons to bug out? I do live on the edge of London so maybe I will need to get away from here if all hell breaks loose. If the system collapses are there going to be armed police/army removing us from our homes for some reason? Is it likely that we are actually going to be without food and water supply with everyone fighting for their lives and to feed their families?

So hoping it is a bug in situation but I will try and be prepared for either scenario. I have some basics covered, such as Berkey water filters, a means to create heat or fire to cook, basic tools and wind up touches etc. I need to start buying some food and storing that away so that is next. I have started buying a bit of silver here and there after reading how it could be used for bartering or actually significantly increase in value if the financial collapse happens although I don't think the tiny amount I have is going to go very far lol.

Thanks for reading. Great forum you guys have here. Any advice would be really appreciated.

[Yorkshire Andy]

Before you go over the top and blow loads of cash stop

Think of the day to day emergency's prep for these and your over half way in case of a big one be it flooding or a house fire or stranded in your broken down car

Sod a bug out bag in the UK theres just not enough open land for every one think more towards a hotel / evacuation bag....


http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-humber-36979441

Oh and welcome

[tigs]

Welcome to the forum

[womble]

Before you go over the top and blow loads of cash stop

Think of the day to day emergency's prep for these and your over half way in case of a big one be it flooding or a house fire or stranded in your broken down car

Sod a bug out bag in the UK theres just not enough open land for every one think more towards a hotel / evacuation bag....

To amplify: if you're going to bug out, you have to have a location to bug out to, which will be more secure (in the general sense) than your normal base of operations. And for it to be above another prep on your priority list, it has to give you more cost (time and treasure count) benefit per degree of risk than that other prep. Situations where the particular excrement/fan speed combination require you to leave your home and hoof it to a new location are low-probability, and prepping for them can be high cost (maintaining a property within a few days' walk that you can retreat to is beyond most people's means).

A "get home bag" is more likely to be useful, though the situations when you'll have to tab home are nearly as improbable as the situations where you might need to bug out. So build the bag around a series of scenarios of descending probability, from "Have to sleep in the vehicle overnight" or "Have to leave the vehicle and get alternative transport home" to "Have to abandon the vehicle 30 miles from home" to "have to walk the entire 200 miles from where you were to where you want to be". Most of the time, getting your finances sorted out and building a small contingency fund will be all the prep you need to "get home" in an emergency, so starting there would maybe be prudent.

A lot of the prepper stuff on YouTube is American-generated and naturally focuses on the problems and potential solutions available to those guys with crappy public transport systems and masses of wilderness. Our challenges and resources are very different on this side of the Pond, and it behooves us to consider that in our preps.

[Arzosah]

Welcome! Yorkshire Andy and womble have said it all

For emergencies, think power cut, water main burst, general flooding, house fire, previously undiscovered WWII bomb, that sort of thing. You need to be able to get out of the house in an evacuation scenario - and you need copies of all your essential paperwork on a flash drive: birth, marriage certificates, house deeds, qualifications, insurance, gas, electricity and water contacts, friends and relatives so you can let someone know you're safe, investments, your employer details and employment history - think about what you'd have to prove if your house burned down and you needed to restart while you were in temporary accommodation. We're always hoping it doesn't happen, but it *does* happen to some people.

If you're a commuter, or travel during work hours for work, a Get Home Bag is definitely necessary, emergencies don't happen neatly when you're at home

You'll see a lot of people getting into growing a bit of their own food at home, learning the skills necessary.

All of the above would be helpful in a bigger situation - but the smaller things listed are much more likely to happen.

[pseudonym]

Hello and welcome to the Forum.