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Thread: What To Do List

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    Administrator Rick's Avatar
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    Default What To Do List

    Like you I'm always checking and rechecking bags and gear to make certain everything is up to snuff. Well, that and it's an affliction. Anywhooo. I ran across this document I put together and thought it might be of value or at least give some ideas. Around here about the only way someone would be stranded in their vehicle is on the interstate in a winter storm and that happens just about every year. Most folks are rescued pretty quickly but some get to spend the night in the vehicle. With that in mind, I put this together, went over it with my wife and placed the document in the glove box of her vehicle.

    Procedures to Follow if Vehicle is Stranded

    1. Remain Calm. In almost any emergency, but especially in a survival situation, it is critical that you first S.T.O.P.

    "S" is for Stop. Take a deep breath, sit down if possible, calm yourself and recognize that whatever has happened to get you here is past and cannot be undone. You are now in a survival situation and that means . . .

    "T" is for Think. Your most important asset is your brain. Use it! Don't Panic! Move with deliberate care. Think first, so you have no regrets later. Take no action, even a foot step, until you have thought it through. Unrecoverable mistakes and injuries, potentially serious in a survival situation, occur when we act before we engage our brain. Then . . .

    "O" is for Observe. Take a look around you. Assess your situation and options. Consider the terrain, weather and resources. Take stock of your supplies, equipment, surroundings, your personal capabilities and, if there are any, the abilities of your fellow survivors.

    "P" is for Plan. Prioritize your immediate needs and develop a plan to systematically deal with the emergency and contingencies while conserving your energy. Then, follow your plan. Adjust your plan only as necessary to deal with changing circumstances.

    YOU WILL SURVIVE!


    2. Determine if the vehicle is in a safe location. Are you stuck at the bottom of a hill where other vehicles might slide into you? Are you stuck in a snow drift in a location where other vehicles are unlikely to run into you? If the vehicle is in a dangerous location then exit the vehicle and take your survival gear with your. Find a safe location a short distance from the vehicle. If the vehicle is in a safe location then stay inside. But STAY WITH THE VEHICLE. It will be spotted from the air a lot easier than you will. Remember, too, that dense fog or blizzard conditions can be disorienting. Attempting to travel even short distances from the vehicle under these conditions could mean not being able to find your way back.

    3. Triage any injuries and use the First Aid Kit in the front console compartment.

    4. Attach USGI VS-17 GVX Aerial signal Panel Marker to the roof of car. Attach it to the roof rack with the provided cordage.

    5. Check the vehicle exhaust to make sure snow or other debris does not block it. A blocked exhaust can lead to asphyxiation from carbon monoxide and/or cause the engine to stop running. Periodically recheck the exhaust if snow is falling to ensure it does not block the tailpipe.

    6. Only run the engine 10 minutes of every hour. Lower front driver’s and passenger’s windows 1 inch to allow for cross ventilation while engine is running. Windows may be closed when engine is shut off. If you are with someone else you can take turns sleeping. If you are alone never go to sleep with the engine running.

    7. If you have cell phone access then call 911 and give the operator your location. To determine vehicle location. Select Map Mode.

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    From the next screen select Compass

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    The Compass Screen will give you the GPS Coordinates of the vehicle. This is your exact location and should be given to 911.

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    As an example, it is read as:

    Lat. : N38°55.23’
    Long. : W76°55.51’

    Latitude: North 38 degrees, 55.23 minutes.
    Longitude: West 76 degrees, 55.51 minutes

    If you do not have cell phone access then you will need to make preparations for survival until you are found. You have a winter survival bag in back along with a get home bag under the rear driver side storage area. You can access both from inside the vehicle.

    You have both food, water and nutrition bars in your get home bag as well as a stove and cup for heating water/snow. The base of the stove will get hot so a metal platform is also included to keep the stove elevated and off plastic material. Make certain the stove is stable. Lower both driver’s side and passenger side windows one inch when using the stove to prevent asphyxiation from CO2.

    Your Get Home bag includes a candle lantern with additional candles and matches. While the candle lantern will not heat the car in extreme cold it can add some warmth in more moderate temperatures. Its greatest benefit will be to provide lighting without draining the car’s battery as well as psychological comfort.

    In addition, you have tools and flares that can be used for signaling overhead aircraft or as a fire starter if you must leave the vehicle and wood is wet.

    There is also an 8X10 tarp that can be used as an emergency shelter if you must leave the vehicle. You also have 8 Timber Nails that can be used as tent stakes as well as 25 feet of paracord. You have a knife in the get home bag and in one in the top glove compartment that can but used to cut the paracord. Here are some easy configurations:

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    If you are forced to leave the vehicle don’t forget your firearm and knives. The knives are the most versatile tool you have. Don’t forget or lose them!

    You can use leaf litter or other organic material to provide insulation in the tarp and a fire can be built at the open side or end to radiate heat inside the tarp. Just take care to keep the fire far enough away to prevent burning or melting the tarp or burning any support poles or overhead cordage.

    If you must gather firewood then gather as much as you think you will need for one night then triple that amount. You will ALWAYS underestimate the amount of wood you need for the night. It’s better to gather too much wood in daylight than try to find wood in the dark or spend the night without fire. Remember, the fire can also attract rescuers.

    In cold weather remember the acronym C.O.L.D.

    C - Keep clothing Cean. While this might not apply here the rest do.

    O - Avoid overheating. When you get too hot, you sweat and
    your clothing absorbs the moisture. This affects your
    warmth in two ways: dampness decreases the insulation
    quality of clothing, and as sweat evaporates, your body
    cools. Adjust your clothing so that you do not sweat. Do
    this by partially opening your parka or jacket, by removing
    an inner layer of clothing, by removing heavy outer
    mittens, or by throwing back your parka hood or changing
    to lighter headgear. The head and hands act as efficient
    heat dissipaters when overheated.

    L - Wear your clothing loose and in layers. Wearing tight
    clothing and footgear restricts blood circulation and invites
    cold injury. It also decreases the volume of air trapped
    between the layers, reducing its insulating value. Several
    layers of lightweight clothing are better than one equally
    thick layer of clothing, because the layers have dead
    airspace between them. The dead airspace provides extra
    insulation. Also, layers of clothing allow you to take off or
    add clothing layers to prevent excessive sweating or to
    increase warmth.

    D - Keep clothing dry. In cold temperatures, your inner
    layers of clothing can become wet from sweat and your
    outer layer, if not water repellent, can become wet from
    snow and frost melted by body heat.

    Don’t Panic! Use your head and take advantage of the tools available and you will be rescued. Think out of the box. The roof bars can be removed and used to cover a snow trench. The tarp can be laid over the top and snow piled on the tarp for insulation. You can cut evergreen bows and lay in the trench so you lay on the evergreens and not on the snow or you can lay the tarp out as a tube supported by the roof bars. That’s just an example. Look around and think, how can I use “that” to my advantage.
    Tracks Across the High Plains...Death on the Bombay Line...A Touch of Death and Mayhem...Dead Rock...The Griswald Mine Boys...All On Amazon Books.


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    Super Moderator crashdive123's Avatar
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    Great post.
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    Senior Member natertot's Avatar
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    Tried to give rep, but I have to spread it first. Very good info!
    ”There's nothing glorious in dying. Anyone can do it.” ~Johnny Rotten

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    Alaska, The Madness! 1stimestar's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by natertot View Post
    Tried to give rep, but I have to spread it first. Very good info!
    I covered it for ya.
    Why do I live in Alaska? Because I can.

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    Senior Member natertot's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by 1stimestar View Post
    I covered it for ya.
    Thanks for covering it while I spread it!
    ”There's nothing glorious in dying. Anyone can do it.” ~Johnny Rotten

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    Default Super Duper Post!

    Mr, B, usually disinterested, sat up and took notice, when I pointed it out to him.
    Thanks, Rick!

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    Senior Member BENESSE's Avatar
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    Another thang:
    Bookmarked...still going over it to make sure I haven't missed anything.

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    Administrator Rick's Avatar
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    Just so everyone knows what a USGI VS-17 GVX Aerial signal Panel Marker it is a red marker used by the military. It's large enough that half can be mounted to the roof of the car and half can hang down the back (she has a Toyota van). The idea is to provide immediate notice of a problem whether rescue is by air or on ground. It might also provide some advance recognition of a problem if someone is coming up behind you in low visibility.

    http://www.ebay.com/bhp/signal-panel
    Tracks Across the High Plains...Death on the Bombay Line...A Touch of Death and Mayhem...Dead Rock...The Griswald Mine Boys...All On Amazon Books.

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    David deafdave3's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Rick View Post
    4. Attach USGI VS-17 GVX Aerial signal Panel Marker to the roof of car. Attach it to the roof rack with the provided cordage.
    What is that?

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    Administrator Rick's Avatar
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    Click on the link in post 8 and it will take you to a list of them. If it doesn't work. Let me know but you should land on ebay. That's where I purchased mine.
    Tracks Across the High Plains...Death on the Bombay Line...A Touch of Death and Mayhem...Dead Rock...The Griswald Mine Boys...All On Amazon Books.

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    Senior Member Solar Geek's Avatar
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    Very excellent post.
    But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD. Joshua 24:15

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    Senior Member hunter63's Avatar
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    Great post, great subject.
    Sometimes it takes gathering, and arranging common sense in a logical fashion to have it become useful.

    Thanks.
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    Simple concise, and precise. Excellent!

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    Administrator Rick's Avatar
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    Thanks everyone. I might also note that I have changed all the bulbs in the van to L.E.D. so she can burn lights a lot longer with minimal impact to the battery. I'm quite certain she can run the dome light all night and still be able to start the vehicle the next morning.
    Tracks Across the High Plains...Death on the Bombay Line...A Touch of Death and Mayhem...Dead Rock...The Griswald Mine Boys...All On Amazon Books.

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    Senior Member hunter63's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Rick View Post
    Thanks everyone. I might also note that I have changed all the bulbs in the van to L.E.D. so she can burn lights a lot longer with minimal impact to the battery. I'm quite certain she can run the dome light all night and still be able to start the vehicle the next morning.
    I can see a u-tube vid now.........lets see how long it lasts.....LOL
    Geezer Squad....Charter Member #1
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    First 50 years...worried about the small stuff...second 50 years....Not so much
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  16. #16
    Administrator Rick's Avatar
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    That would be one boring YouTube.

    "Okay, we just passed 19 hours and no voltage drop yet. While we're waiting I painted this wall. You can watch it dry as we wait for the battery to go dead."

    I always get a kick when someone says, "Hey you left your lights on."
    Then the car owner always says something like, "Crap. Thanks." and jumps up to turn them off.
    Of course, the ever helpful me says, "Don't worry. They will go off automatically."
    To which the owner replies, "I don't have that on my truck."
    To which I reply, "Doesn't matter. They will still go off automatically. Give it about 8 hours."
    Tracks Across the High Plains...Death on the Bombay Line...A Touch of Death and Mayhem...Dead Rock...The Griswald Mine Boys...All On Amazon Books.

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    Senior Member hunter63's Avatar
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    Yeah well, I have seen some u-tubes that would be qualify......LOL
    Geezer Squad....Charter Member #1
    Evoking the 50 year old rule...
    First 50 years...worried about the small stuff...second 50 years....Not so much
    Member Wahoo Killer knives club....#27

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    Junior Member subwoofer's Avatar
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    Fantastic reference.

    Sticky?
    I say what it occurs to me to say when I think I hear people say things....
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    Sticky! Sticky! Sticky!
    (0.0)
    (_ \
    | |

    It's a bird! It's a plane! Nope, definitely a bird.

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    Member Lil K's Avatar
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    Excellent post! Thank you for posting, I will have to make my own now.

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