Northern Raiders PA Scenarios

[northernraider1]

Hi guys, new member here and long time lover of Post Apoc fiction, and coincidentally I also happen to be a survivalist as well.

Over the years I have wrote many articles on survivalism and prepping, and during that time I started penning Fictional scenarios to help explain the facets of survivalism and their applications to the budding survivalists ( preppers these days)

With your endulgence I'll repost some of them here from my preppers forum for your perusal.

Respects
NR

[northernraider1]

Scenario 13
The Patrol
Bagman decided that it was time his small group of preppers got to check out the neighbourhood now they had laid low here for over a week. They had settled into the small holding in North York’s and had deliberately kept as low a profile as possible. But needs must and Bagman wanted to find out what collectables and salvageable supplies could be retrieved from the near by market town but first he had to secure the area around Dales House where the group were staying.

For the first patrol Bagman wanted his most effective group members along so his first choice was to pick Mad Mike (no relation to Mike Hoare) and make him 2nd in charge for the sweep.

Next in the team was Mart a quiet low profile character who just exuded quiet professionalism, the fourth member was Terry because of his very great experience with first aid and expedient medical treatment. Bagman needed people who he could rely an and because this group had only been together a few months his only sources of reference about his teams capabilities was the quality of their own Bug Out Bags, Vehicles and plans plus their reputations gained from interacting with them on prepping forums.

For this first patrol Bagman managed to assemble 4 compasses (Silva type 4), one each, 2 Ordnance Survey Maps 1:50,000 scale of the area they were in. A comprehensive first aid kit provided by Terry to deal with any injuries sustained during this first vital patrol.

Next was food which was basic but filling, a mixture of MOD ration packs, pot noodles and preserves that one of the families had brought with them from home and was donated to the patrol.

Inter patrol comm’s were restricted to talking and very basic hand signals but comm’s from the patrol back to the group were by two modified Intek MT 5050 PR446 radios one held by Bagman and one retained by the group. Should the patrol meet serious trouble they could in theory at least send a warning back to the rest of the group that may provide them enough time to bug out? The people left at Dale house set up a base station temporary aerial to increase the reception range from the patrols MT5050.

Security for the patrol was minimal at least and relied mainly on two 150 pound draw crossbows and two 80 pound draw pistol crossbows with a single air rifle (silenced) being taken along in the hope the patrol may come across rabbits or pigeons.

Bagman gave his little team a short briefing session “ Right guys we are going out ONLY to gather information, we are not looking for contact or conflict, if there is any contact with others its OBSERVE then WITHDRAW any questions? No good.
Next we are not soldiers nor are we trying to be, but the more proficient we are the better the chances are of us getting back safe, We will use a very few basic hand signals to help keep chatter down.
1 if I raise my arm we STOP
2 if I put my arm out horizontal palm down that means get down and take cover.
3 If I put both my arms out sideways that means move into line abreast
4 An arm out to the right means move towards the right and vice versa.

All times are using the 24 hour clock not the 12 hour clock, and as we patrol at suitable check points I will designate that spot as a meeting place if we have to scatter further ahead, so if there is trouble you will try to return to the check point as quietly as possibly. NO one will return DIRECTLY to Dales House as you may just lead trouble straight back to our families.

You MAY load your crossbows when we have left Dales house NOT BEFORE, and your safety catches will be on at all times. Never allow your bow to point at anyone else in the group, and if I see anyone with their finger on the trigger when we are not in danger I will cut it off, ARE WE CLEAR? “

Right Gentleman we leave in one hour don’t forget to check and double check your kit, put your pack on and jump up and down on the spot, if anything rattles repack your bag until it doesn’t, also ensure your not showing anything shiny or reflective.

The radios are set to channel 9 if there is a problem use channel 18 today the base will be “Babylon” and we will be “Triffid”.

And only running 15 minutes late the group finally set out on its first patrol. Bagman was reasonably confident that nothing bad was close to Dales House so to give the guys a bit of practice he put Mart out on point first (also Mart had eyes like a yard toilet rat). After about 40 minutes he rotated the others as point to give them experience and this was matched by moving the point man to the left wing, then rear guard (the guy looking backwards to see if anyone was following) before moving them back to point via the right wing. That way everyone got an idea of what each others role was.

By late afternoon they were heading west uphill paralleling a footpath that headed up towards a cluster of buildings near a reservoir. Bagman had already explained to the team at the last break that in no circumstances were they to SKYLINE themselves, IE Silhouette themselves on a hill top or ridgeline, they must seek ways round, through or under anything that could let people spot them if they move over something like a dry stone wall etc.

Mike was in point and his hand went up to stop the group and immediately went flat palm down and the group went to ground, Mike wriggled back to Bagman and said “Pretty sure I just saw a reflection from that tree with the kids tree house in it, will you take a look?”

Bagman moved forward on his belly and pulled himself under a cluster of shrubs to a point he could take a good look at the tree-house and buildings. He studied the area of interest intently for nearly 10 minutes and in that time he also detected a glint of sunlight reflecting from deep within the tree-house, he also noted just the faintest whiff of almost white smoke from one of the cottages chimneys. Someone was burning very well dried wood and that made Bagman focus on the multiple piles of timber in the yard. At first the wood piles appeared as just well “woodpiles” Then he noted the hand operated hydraulic log splitter, its wedge head was shiny and rust free which meant it had been used recently. Then it dawned on Bagman that not only was the multiple piles of wood a good sized stockpile, but also EXACTLY where he would have positioned them if he wanted to make good firing points from. That was enough for Bagman and he withdrew from his vantage point. The patrol then withdrew silently to the last check point they had agreed on and bagman told his team what he had seen.

“So we know there are people living there, and they are wise enough to keep a sentry hidden in the tree house and in good military fashion the sentry is staying well inside the tree-house not to highlight himself. If the sun had not been right behind us his bino’s would not have reflected the sunlight giving him away. Even so we don’t know their numbers or how skilled they are OR if they are friendly so we will now withdraw but with two of us on point guard watching to see if we are being followed, and we will also go home by an indirect route, have you any questions?.”

“OK Mart &Terry I want you two watching behind us, Mike and I will take point, we will stop at irregular intervals crouch and listen, if we are being followed we may hear them rather than see them and we can take avoiding action.”


With that the group finished its first patrol and with aching feet, aching backs and a feeling of achievement the group’s first patrol wound its way back to Dale house.

[northernraider1]

Scenario 12
The School

“………and accordingly and with the full support of the school governors we have decided to close the school forthwith until the crisis affecting the nation is over. We have phoned, texted and E mailed the emergency contact numbers your parents have provided and hopefully by this evening you will all be safely in the hands of your parents and on your way home. School dismiss”.

With that the Headmaster left the stage and headed back to his office as the students filed out of the hall. On his way through reception he spotted two boys, siblings belonging to the Rourke family “Boys, boys come here a moment please I want a word with you” and Rick Junior and John Rourke ran to the Headmaster.

“Boys I E mailed your family and your father E mailed back and asked me to pass onto you a brief message, quite strange really you father to me to tell you “A B” he said you would know what it meant. Is it a family motto or something?” asked the bemused Headmaster

Yes Sir said Rick, “it’s a motto we use in our family” as he looked at his brother knowingly.

Minutes later the boys were back in the dormitory block and getting changed as quickly as they could. The A B message was one used by their dad as a warning to get ready to leave school in a hurry on their own. It was selected as a tribute and in revered homage to the fictional novel written by Pat Frank. It was a code phrase to tell them to Bug Out of school and head to an agreed location ASAP as instructed by their father.

Minutes later changed into their matching Regatta Cargo pants, T shirts, Sweat shirts and topped off with the DPM combat jackets from their schools Combined Cadet Force they looked ready to go. Next they pulled the Berghaus rucksacks their mum and dad had sent with them to school off the top if their lockers. Using scissors
“Borrowed” from the arts room they carefully split open certain seams inside the rucksacks, seams sewn with yellow thread to distinguish them from the rest of the stitching. Hidden in the linings and padding of the rucksacks the boys found a flashlight each plus spare batteries, a compass each and a laminated photocopy of a 1:25,000 Map of the area the school was located in. They also found a Swiss army knife each, a Blazer PB207 Lighter apiece, two water Purifying straws, and one pre-charged PAYG cell-phone. Finally from within the backing panel of John rucksack they pulled a folded DPM poncho which would provide modest shelter from the elements if needed.

They packed a few items of clothing such as socks, clean undies, toothbrush, hats and gloves back into the rucksacks along with their entire combined collection of sweets and goodies the school allowed the boys to keep.


John walked to the big bay landing window at the end of the corridor, it’s one of the schools most favourite locations, from there boys could see right down the driveway to the main road, and onto the roundabout beyond. And the window also allowed boys to see the dual carriageway beyond the roundabout. John kneeled on the window seat and peered out of the window, he could see traffic on the dual carriage was not moving east or west, it was gridlocked. “I don’t think many mums and dads are going to come that way” he said aloud to no one in particular and went back to the dorm to find his brother.

Whilst 439 pupils lurked around the front of the school in expectation of immediate collection pupils 440 and 441 slipped out passed the junior dining hall, ducked round the back of the sports store and followed the hedgerow until they reached the railway line. Here they settled into the hedgerow to wait until dusk as their dad had taught them.

Once the twilight arrived the boys long boring and very tedious wait was over, John remarked to Rick they should add a Gameboy to their kit so next time they would not get so bored. Soon as it was dark enough the boys set off following the railway line as per dad’s instructions and as shown on the laminated map section. Just before midnight and not long after John had fallen for the fourth time, nettles, cowpat, piece of wire sticking out the grass and a second cowpat they came to where the railway disappeared into a tunnel. This was where the boys and the railway had to part company, using the railway line instead of a road or footpath to guide them had ensured they had travelled completely safely and undetected reasonably far away from the school located on the edge of the city. Here by the tunnel mouth they found shelter between a line-side plate layers box and the tunnel wall, they spent the rest of the night dozing fitfully under the DPM poncho set up to act as a lean to shelter.

When dawn broke the boys used the Puri straws to get a drink of clean water from a puddle besides the path they scoffed the last of the sweets and goodies then packed away the poncho. The time on the cell phone read 5.45 AM

The cell phone showed no signal but it had recorded a text which simply said “On time for first meet” this meant by noon that day their dad would be at the RZ location ready to pick them up. According to the clock on the cell-phone they had they had nearly 6 hours to get to the RZ and according to the notes on the back of the map it was just over 5 ½ miles away, not that far providing they followed the correct route.

Following dads instructions the boys got out their compasses and held them out at arm’s length and they let them settle, they rotated the base plate round until the needle lined up with north on the baseplate then looked for 80 degrees. Looking in the direction that was 80 degrees east of magnetic north the boys spotted the top of the electricity pylon they were told to head for, it was poking just above a clump of trees in the far distance. Keeping the pylon in sight but remembering what their dad had taught them about not covering open ground unless they had to they made their way from hedgerow to copse, to treeline to dry stream bed until they to within 200 yards of the pylon.

Taking a moment to look around and ensure they could see no other people they trotted across the field the remaining distance until they reached the pylon. Looking around they could see no one and no vehicles, just the big and far too wide drainage ditch which was as wide as a canal behind the pylon.
The boys knew they were exposed to all and sundry if they stayed at the base of the pylon so they climbed partially down the reed lined embankment belonging to the drain and settled in to wait. At a little before 11.40 am the boys thought they could hear a motorcycle engine, Rick scrambled back up the embankment and peered around but could not see the source of the noise. Just as he slid back down to where John was waiting he looked along the drainage ditch and spotted their dad puttering along in a 3 meter inflatable boat powered by a tiny but very quiet 20hp outboard motor(for an outboard).

Nosing the boat into the embankment the boy threw their rucksacks to their dad who in return tossed them two life preservers that were once bright day-glow orange but were now sprayed painted matt green, they would still float but did not act as an aiming mark for bad guys. Once fitted with the buoyancy aids the boys boarded the inflatable and the reunited family headed back up the drainage ditch the last 7 miles to where his 4x4 was hidden, from there it was only a 2 hour drive via the network of lanes and c roads to get back to their families bug out location.

[northernraider1]

Scenario 11
The Old Fort

Roger and Chris crested the hill and stopped for a rest, five weeks after sailing from Whitby and creeping ever so slowly never letting the coast out of their sight they visited dozens of likely locations before finally dropped anchor in Cawsand Bay.

They snuck ashore at dusk and rested overnight in a campsite near Millbrook. They had previously spent months travelling across the UK seeking out families and groups of preppers whose details they had collected from the Prepper forums before the collapse. They were the accepted experts on joining up the dots, or more accurately identifying useable and tradable assets that the various groups and factions of widely dispersed survivalists had to offer for barter.

This particular venture came about because the group living in Stainsacre Hall near Whitby had with the help of the folks along the Esk valley managed to get the old Whitby to Darlington Railway line up and running again, they had 6 small steam locos but were currently running a small diesel railcar. It was fuelled by a mix of salvaged diesel from other locos, fuel from Thornaby Marshalling Yard, blended with a whopping great tank of Seed Rape oil they found on a farm. They estimated if they ran one train a day between Whitby up to possible as far as Shildon they had enough fuel to last just over 2 ½ years and this would open up access to a great deal of coal, timber, hill farms and abandoned lowland communities.

When the Whitby group had ventured down to Northallerton to salvage a replacement injector pump from a Pacer Railcar they knew to be stored there. Whilst there they came across a small group from Wensleydale who said if they could get a reliable supply of milk they could start making cheese and yogurt again in largish quantities. Essential nutrition with a good shelf life that is easy transportable was very desirable and the cheese plant they had control of could produce various types of cheese not just the local Wensleydale variety, but it needed milk and lots of it.

Roger and Chris had heard a whisper than some place along the south coast another group of survivalists had survived and had a healthy collection of small animals including apparently a lot of goats. The duo knew dairy cattle would be preferential but so long after the collapse they doubted that there were any cattle left alive in England, so goats would have to do providing they could find them. So over five weeks previously they had set sail in a 31ft Yacht called ENTERPRISE they had found in Whitby harbour. With the help of the Whitby group they got the boat something close to seaworthy and chose to use it to recce the coast for other communities. Chris had roughly painted the letters NCC1701 underneath the boats name in homage to the famous spaceship which earned him the nickname of Scottie of Roger. They had supplemented their meagre supplies with produce they found growing wild along the south coast and from line caught fish caught as they cruised down the coast. For water they used a reverse osmosis Katadyn filter to convert Salt water into fresh water, and they played safe by passing the water through a British Berkfeld filter unit. Four small jerry rigged solar panels bolted to the cabin roof coupled to a small and very noisy micro turbine provided them with power for running a radio, fridge and small sonar unit.

The following day the duo set off west along the coast in the hope of finding a place high enough to give them a panoramic view of the area. Pretty soon they reached the top of one of the cliffside paths, as they paused Roger said “That doesn’t look right” whilst pointing at something in the distance. He got his mini binoculars from his DPM smock and dropped his Eagle Becker Patrol pack to the ground, but kept his BSA Ultra Carbine over his shoulder and focused his attention on a slope about 2 miles away. “Watcha make of that?” Roger said to Chris whilst passing his binoculars to his partner.

Chris peered through the glasses and scanned the area thoroughly then without lowering the glasses said “It’s one of the old Napoleonic era coastal forts I think, yes it must be the old Tregantle Fort that’s listed in the guide book we have been using to seek our places where preppers could be living”

Then Chris froze and turned to look at Roger and said “and if I’m not mistaken that is very closely cropped grass all around the outside of the fort, I can’t see anyone having enough time to be mowing grass any more can you?”

Two hours later they were being introduced to Neil who originated in Exeter who was a long term prepper as well as a noted chef. After a meal and washing up Neil and his people gave the duo a tour of the fort, Neil’s group had managed to get parts of the old accommodation block, offices, workshops and old cookhouse block operational mainly using wood burning stoves they salvaged from B& Q and Machine Mart after the collapse. The forts old well had been uncapped and a wind driven lift pump brought water up for both the humans and animals to use. The animals were numerous and plentiful and housed in great comfort within the forts walls and gun enclosures. The neatly mown exterior of the fort leading down towards the ranges was through the actions of the goats being allowed out to forage during the daytime.

On top of the central redoubt they found solar panels working next to boards with jerky being sun dried on, shortages of sea salt for also preserving meat were not a problem here by the sea.

Next day they all got down to discussing trade, Yes the Tregantle community were more than happy to trade goats, goat meat, goat milk and goat skins with anyone. In return they had a desperate need for stuff like bitumen to repair roofs with, fishing nets (Whitby was awash with new unused nets) medicines vetinarian and human, a working vehicle, a DIY small scale bio diesel plant, new footwear. More livestock were wanted to prevent inbreeding among their current stock. The skills of a Blacksmith and Leathermaker for at least twice a year visits. And especially hay and dried grasses for winter feed.

If they could get enough food for the animals they were willing to make the risky journey over to the Channel Islands to trade the islanders for a few of their cattle to start a breeding program again on the mainland.

Neil knew that there were still quite a few ponies alive on Dartmoor and back eastwards in the New Forest and he had been told by a traveller called Gavin that wild boar were flourishing in the forest. Neil offered some very generous rewards for anyone who could bring him some young wild boars he could start his own herd with.
Neil was hoping that if he could he would catch some ponies before winter to break and train to pull small wagons from the beach up to the fort and to provide mounts for foraging patrols.

Neil’s people also raised the issue about fuel for the stoves and boilers, finding timber was becoming harder and harder as the months went by, They asked Chris and Roger to see if the people in the north east could arrange to ship coal that was very abundant across the north east all the way down to Tregantle. A stock of coal built up bit by bit over the spring and summer would massively improve the quality of life of the Tregantle community and reduce their workload in the long winter.

So the beginnings of new commercial links that would ensure the continuity and security of the preppers communities may be assured providing Chris and Roger returned safely to Whitby.

[northernraider1]

Scenario 10
© 2011Northern Raider

The Convoy

The four vehicle convoy was parked up in a layby shielded from the main road by a crescent shaped barrier of trees and shrubs, the crewmembers of the convoy pottered about doing various jobs such as tightening up straps and tie-down ropes, greasing tow-ball hitches, checking tyre pressures and oil levels whilst they waited for the last member of their group who was out ahead of the group on a trail bike checking the route ahead. As always one of the group stood guard with a crossbow and a pair of field glasses.

Just over 2 hours later the guard first heard the little motorcycle’s engine long before he saw the machine itself, and five minutes later the motorcycle was back with the convoy and its rider briefing the group. This tiny little Honda XL125 trail bike had certainly earned its place in the group’s inventory as it was ideal for scouting and patrolling its tiny 123cc 4 stroke engine was very quiet as was its exhaust note.

“As we thought the main roads are blocked with abandoned vehicles, the smaller ones too, but I have found a way through. We will have to move only one vehicle to get by one blockage and a short cross country trip will get us past the other blockage. Its only 12 miles as the crow flies but the trip meter on the bike makes it a little over 22 miles with all the diversions. The Jimny will lead followed by the F150, I want the van next behind the F150 because I reckon there is a risk its 2 wheel drive system will get stuck when we have to leave the road for a good 100 feet going uphill bypassing the slip on the A68, and before we go across that piece of track I want the F150 set up with its tow rope already attached to the van. There are signs of people still living in the area so I don’t want us getting the van stuck where we may come under fire. The Landy will bring up the rear. We leave as soon as the bike is reloaded onto the carrier on the back of the van.” Crook should be the last of the larger communities we have to skirt before we are clear of the lowland areas.

The Jimny set off followed a few minutes later by the rest of the convoy, conversation over the CB radios (27FM) was prohibited unless an ambush or other serious emergency occurred, the group did not want anyone triangulating the convoys positions or eavesdropping on the groups plans. The Jimny had its pre-arranged route to follow and the other 3 vehicles would follow behind a few minutes later, everyone knew where the agreed stops would be and an alternative meeting place should they have to scatter in a hurry.

Just over 12 miles later the main part of the convoy approached the location of the Jimny, The little Suzuki was exactly where it was supposed to be and its 3 person crew were out of the vehicle. One man had coupled a steel tow wire to the big old Volvo blocking the road, they had tried to push it out the way but either the transmission or brakes (or both) were totally jammed on, besides the near side from suspension was firmly impaled on the remnants of a steel bollard. The two others from the Jimny’s crew were deployed as guards one by the Jimny itself and the other about 20 feet past the wrecked Volvo.

In one fluid motion the F 150 drove up to the guy with the tow wire and the Landy moved to just behind the Suzuki, it took less than 20 seconds for the man with the tow wire to pass it through the towing eye on the F150, loop it back and fasten it with a shackle. Immediately the girl driving the F150 popped it into reverse and slowly took up the strain on the wire. The Volvo was reluctant to move at first but with a few sharp tugs by the F150 the Volvo was torn free and pulled aside.

With equal fluidity the crew of the Jimny uncoupled the tow wire from both vehicles and threw it back into their little 4x4 and re-boarded their vehicle before taking point again. Less than six minutes had passed before the survivors had cleared the blockage and were on their way again.

That evening the 4 vehicles were hidden in an empty and abandoned retained Fire station (retained stations had volunteer crews and were normally unmanned) The survivors took the opportunity to cook a good meal on the gas burning stove in the firemen’s rest room.
The crew of the F150 were especially pleased to be able to cook a meal without it smelling of diesel as up to then much of their food had been prepared by wrapping it in foil and placing it on the exhaust manifold of the van, cooking the food with the heat from the vehicles exhaust. The van crew had benefitted from a tiny 12V microwave oven for much of their journey, but the group as a whole all enjoyed eating a communal meal sat round a table. All water supplies were now considered to be risky so by default the water they used in the fire station was first put through the Berkfield filter that was part of the vans fittings.

They rested overnight in the Fire station with everyone taking turn for 2 hours at standing guard, once overnight in the very distance one of them heard two shots, but it was so distant he did not raise the alarm.

Next morning after repacking, reloading and checking over the vehicles off they convoy went again, by mid-morning they had found one extra hazard they had to deal with, it was a minor land slip from a farmer’s field which has deposited a fair amount of soil and turf to a depth of about 12 inches right across the road. Again it was overcome by the convoy with the F150 pulling the van over the land slip. By noon they were in the upper dales and only had one more problem to deal with which was the issue of an entire chunk of the road had slipped away leaving a gap the full width of the road and some 40 feet long. Luck smiled on the convoy though because not 30 foot to the right of the landslip a forestry track paralleled the road and by knocking down a small dry stone wall either side of the landslip the convoy could gain access to the track and also regain access to the road. The diversion would be simply for the 4x4s but a challenge for the van.

The crews of the Landy and the Jimny went ahead and whilst one of them kept watch the others pulled down the dry stone walling, using a few of the rocks and slabs to help level out the incline that separated the road from the forestry track, Knocking down the wall and breaking a few saplings cleared enough room for the vehicles.
First up was the Jimny which went ahead and re-joined the road north of the landslip, its crew took up all round watch, next went the Landy which stopped just on the forestry track, the Landy was then connected by the steel tow wire to the F150, and the F150 was ready connected to the van as agreed earlier. Polypropylene and steel towropes had definitely earned their places in the preppers vehicle kits. When the signal was given the two 4x4s engaged low gear and set off making easy work of pulling the van up and onto the track, to prevent van from sliding off the track into the drainage ditches the tow vehicles just kept going, they did not pause until all the vehicles were on the other side of the landslip. After everything was re-stowed and checked the convoy again set off with the Jimny still taking point.

By tea time they were just pulling up alongside the part concrete block part steel prefab hill-farmers barn the group had leased some years earlier. Unlike lowland barns these hilltop barns were solid draft proof structures with heavy re-enforced roofs to allow for the build-up of large amounts of snow. The large double door and single pedestrian access door were very close fitting to ensure both snow and vermin could not enter, and being less than ten years old it had a solid concrete floor not dirt like so many old barns. The group went and unlocked the single door and entered the barn, the structure was lit only by the 10 clear triple wall Polycarbonate skylights set into the galvanised and zinc roof.

The group immediately opened the main doors and started offloading the equipment and supplies they had brought with them, they carried the supplies into the barn where the group had store two 36 foot x 9 foot used but still very serviceable mobile homes.

Over the next few hours they washed down the vehicles by the stream near the barn then reversed them into the barn, each one would be fired up and idled until warm at least once every 5 days. Outside the girls set up a selection of radio receiver aerials and a campers portable satellite dish hidden in a clump of gorse, the boys set up a modest sized solar panel on the south facing rear wall of the barn, it was not massive either in size or power but was enough to provide a healthy charge for various batteries.

Inside in the barn was the equivalent of 4 cords of logs machine cut and split to feed the wood burning stoves set in each mobile home (vented through the roof). Almost twenty x 20 litre water containers were filled from the stream, treated and brought into the barn to ensure they had a good supply of stored water.

Last but not least using a gardeners 4 wheeled cart the group hauled nearly 20 potted plants of the same variety and type as those that bordered the B road that the access path to the barn ran from, the group laboriously planted the shrubs across the turn off from the road and spent nearly another two hours brushing, shovelling and locating fauna and flora to disguise the entrance to their retreat. Once closed off the only way out from the retreat would be across the ford and up over the grouse keeper’s track that led its way back to the road but nearly two miles further up the hillside. This group could survive here for nearly four months perhaps seven if they were strict with their food rationing.

Now all they could do was wait and pray that things would settle in time and they would not be discovered.

[northernraider1]

Scenario 9

The Gathering

Darren and Helen had been walking for 3 days now, originally they had been cycling but as they passed through what was once Derbyshire they had been forced to abandon them when they were faced with a river crossing. Already weary from days of walking in their search for other survivalists they were heading through the Peak district with the intention of crossing the river by a small road bridge they had once driven over years before. But as they cycled towards the bridge in the bottom of a steep sided valley Darren decided he needed to pee and called a stop. As he relieved himself by the side of the road Helen noticed something reflecting light from the bridge, so she got her field glasses from the saddle bags and took a peek. On focusing on the flickering light she was astounded to see the reflection coming from the scope mounted on a rifle and pointing at Darren.

“Darren down” she screamed followed by her yelling “Gun” before she dropped to the floor. Looking up she saw Darren reacting instantly to her call and throwing himself sideways to the floor at the same time he was trying to fasten himself up.

Just as he was about to ask her what was up as they peered at each other from either side of the road a shot rang out that knocked his cycle off its side stand. “Oh crap” he said “pull your rucksack and one saddle bag off your bike Hon we are going to have to leg it back to those trees, and stay low when we go”

Five minutes later panting breathlessly and shaking with shock they both found cover in the treeline about 500 yards back up the hill from where their bikes lay.

Pulling out their much annotated Bug out Map they scanned it for an alternative route across the river. Darren could see no more road, pedestrian or rail bridges listed within 15 miles. “Bugger, we will have to backtrack all the way to the other side of Leek the way things are looking, there’s no way over that I can find”.

“Dope, not everything is shown on a map” said Helen as she focused her field glasses again on a point about ¾ of a mile north of the bridge they had wanted to cross.

“Take a look at that about ¾ of a click up the side of the valley just in front and slightly below that small works site” said Helen “I think it’s our way over but not with the bikes”.

Darren pulled his compact monocular from the sleeve pocket on his DPM smock and looked at the spot Helen had seen. “ Yes, I see it it’s a pipe bridge, a steel lattice box section of steel carrying what looks like a 36 inch water main. We can use that, well done darling don’t forget to mark its position on the map for future use.

That night after dark the pair emerged from the woods and used the pipe bridge to cross the gulley and river 100 ft below, and by morning they were resting up in a storm drain a good five miles further south.

Eleven days later the couple were sat on top of a hillock near Warminster army camp enjoying a hot stew from a 24 hour ration pack they had collected from another survivalist called Mal who they knew by a mutual friend. Mal had said they were welcome to rest overnight, do their laundry, clean their kit, and have a good meal. When they left the next day Mal had presented them with a 24 hour ration pack each, some climbing rope, some spare carabineers, and a carrier bag of assorted meals from other part used ration packs. Last but not least Mal had been told to give the pair a crossbow from the mutual friend’s cache of gear he left with Mal. So Darren was now kitted out with an elderly but a still very functional Barnett Wildcat Crossbow with a 4x scope and a small bag with 4 spare bolts and spare two strings.

As they sat enjoying their meal and feeling the sun warm their backs they heard a sound, a very rare sound these days, it was a motorcycle engine. Darren jumped up and using his wife’s field glasses he looked for the source of the sound. Finally he saw the motorbike as it rounded a curve in the road, it stopped and the rider scanned the area ahead of him then he looked up at the skyline, he eyes immediately spotted Darren looking down at him.

The rider swung a pair of field glasses in Darren’s direction stopping briefly on Darren but quickly scanning the rest of the hilltop until he spotted Helen. At that he stopped, waved to ensure Darren and Helen were watching and then produced a large piece of yellow paper with the symbols of ‘RZ=?’ written on it. The rider held up the piece of paper or card so he could be sure Darren could read it.



At the top of their voices Darren and Helen shouted down the hill to the very large and bearded biker “Rendezvous”, but the biker waved to say wait and he leant over and turned off his bike engine.
The biker then took off his helmet and then put both hands to his ears to signal the couple to shout again. “RENDEZVOUS” they yelled and this time the biker gave thumbs up in response.

The coupled grabbed their gear and set off down the hill towards the biker Darren keeping the loaned crossbow loaded and cocked as they approached the biker who was by now brewing a hot drink by the side of the road.

After tense introductions all three realised they were among allies from the same preppers forum and Paul the biker had been hoping to find this couple en-route to their destination as he had agreed with quite a few people off the preppers forum to try and help them the first time they came into Paul’s area for the initial RZ.

Paul asked the couple to camp overnight at the layby and promised to come back in the morning, sure as the sun rises the next morning the couple heard the familiar sound of the bike coming back. As Paul rolled into the layby they were tickled to see his motorcycle was towing a trailer. Paul loaded their rucksacks and a bemused Darren into the trailer with instructions to watch in case anyone was following. Then Paul and Helen mounted the bike and all three rode off to the place Paul and wife Jane had naturally migrated towards in order to set up the southern RZ. Glastonbury was that chosen location a place revered by millions and a place noted since the dark ages as a place that was special. Glastonbury was where the new community in the southwest would do their bit to start rebuilding society.

Next day Darren and Helen found themselves being guided by Jane around the Rendezvous they had set up. Jane was seen by most of the gatherings attendees as an apothecary, she used her years of experience in herbalism and foraging to build up a huge range of potions, lotions and knowledge, and that knowledge was greatly in demand these days.
Helen soon managed to start bartering by trading the climbing rope, carabineers and spare 24 hour ration pack meals for other items they needed. Darren spent the next few days teaching the three R’s to the kids of other preppers and survivalists who were desperate to ensure that even during a crisis their kids got an education. By the end of the week the couple had what they needed and established firm friendships and contacts with other preppers and knew that in 3 months’ time another RZ would be held. The beginnings of a new dawn perhaps?

[northernraider1]

Scenario 8
The Journey

For the third day in a row they followed the river as best they could moving steadily inland from the coast. Far too many survivors and scavengers were gathered along the coast in groups of various sizes. They appeared to be living of what they could scavenge from the ruins of society or catch from the sea. But most of them were not looking any further forward than their next meal, and far too many were still waiting for the government to send help. Four months on from the collapse and they still could not accept that there was no more government, they could not face the thought that either the EU or US would not send help, indeed most refused to believe that the EU and Americas had also fallen.

So this group of survivors decided to move inland hoping for calmer weather, fewer people, more sustainable sources of food and fuel. By lunchtime on the third day they had cleared the rivers delta and moving up into the low level hilly country that the river gained its water from. The SOLAR PANEL snaffled from a Maplins store and fastened to the back of one of the groups rucksacks provided the group with a steady supply of recharged Nicad and Lithium Ion rechargeable batteries, these were used in flashlights, walkie talkies, and a SW scanning receiver used to listen for other groups broadcasting.

All along the bug out route the group had made careful notes about items they could salvage at a later date and the top item was clearly the combined Solar Panel / Wind turbine devices they frequently came across used to power road signs and hazard warning signs along the roads. These devices would be ideal in multiples to provide clean green self sufficient supplies of energy for where ever they finally settled. One of the group had notice a small but well managed woodland where they chose to laager up one night, in the wood they found rows and rows of cut timber and huge piles of hardwood logs they could use to provide heat with. On the edge of the last large town they found a MACHINE MART, it had already been heavily scavenged by other survivors, but it did still have two very useful finds, one being a very nice selection of wood / multi fuel stoves and ranges, the second was a manually operated log splitter. They took time to disguise the stoves and wood splitter from prying eyes before they went on their way.

Another discovery behind a brick wall not far out of town was a FUEL DEPOT with healthy stocks or red and white diesel, heating oil and kerosene. The main tanks had been drained but there was still a total of over thirty 55 gallon drums full of stuff that a diesel engine could use.

Their walking pace was much slower than they hoped they frequently only managed 5 miles in a day as they stopped frequently to rest or check out places that may be suitable to live on or to salvage stuff from, but by day 5 mid-afternoon they were at last well inland and away from major conurbations. The Ordnance Survey Land Ranger maps from the bug out bags had proven priceless. Examples such as listing little used bridges or even simple pipe bridges across rivers helped them cross flowing water without having to go back into hazardous towns seeking crossings. All the discoveries of materials found were marked in notebooks and marked on the maps for future reference.

More places were added as the journey progressed, BUILDERS YARDS for materials to repair and rebuild with, PLUMBERS MERCHANTS to salvage tanks and pipes to make DIY water filter systems, water storage tanks and waste water recycling systems. TIMBER YARDS.

MARINAS & BOATYARDS were given special attention as at some point in time most roads would become impassable and the rivers and canals will be the only viable method of shifting bulky materials. Boats and railways if they can find a place served by a PRESERVED STEAM RAILWAY will be paramount if they are to build a sustainable community. Plus many of the items found on boats were ideal for off grid living. FARM SUPPLIES depots were a treasure trove of tools both mechanical and powered plus they also held stuff as varied as fertiliser and animal antibiotics as well as small diesel powered utility vehicles like agricultural quad bikes and trailers.


One step they carried out at every possible opportunity was to open gates and sheds containing animals and livestock, sadly most of the shed housed animals had long since died, but the odd shed still housed a few live rabbits and chickens which were set free along with cattle, sheep, goats, and oddly enough 27 Alpacas, 16 bison and 50 plus wild boar all duly freed in the hope of re-establishing healthy wild stocks the survivors could call on in years to come. In two neighbouring farms they found huge ponds of well stocked trout type fishes, all the sluices were opened over a period of 24 hours freeing the fish into the local river system. It was staged over 24 hours because different ponds held different sized fish and the fear was if all were released at once the big fish would just feast on the small ones, so many hours were used to separate the releases.
Hunters, scavengers and the coming winter would probably see the end of 99% of the freed creatures, but there was a chance however small that enough would survive until people could start to rebuild.

A couple of sporting goods shops were checked but had been cleared out of all fire arms and ammunition but a couple of new air rifles were found plus ammo for them, they provided 5 fat wood pigeon for tea that night, and two portable fishing rod kits were also salvaged. A quick stop off at a CALOR GAS DEPOT saw the group’s members who used micro butane cookers find some refill gas canisters and notes were made that the yard still held plenty of filled butane and propane bottle both 7 and 15 kg types.

By day 7 they survivors were now caching salvaged materials in safe spots they chose because they did not want to carry so much material with them at this time and equally they did not want to have all their salvaged goods taken off them by another group who may have been better armed.

One final place was checked out before the journey moved further towards the uplands and this was one of the big Discount Camping and Outdoor stores where everyone managed to find themselves more suitable and comfortable walking shoes and boots to replace the mishmash of often unsuitable footwear they currently had, and they also found a nice supply of multi tools, compasses, maps, nicer, bigger rucksacks and better quality water proofs. And luck or good fortune shone on them when they found a ½ pallet of Mountain House freeze dried foods completely untouched in the stores goods in area. These assorted long life freeze dried foods could mean the difference between life and death for the group, they packed as many meals as they could into their new larger rucksacks then they manhandled the remaining packs of food and hid them in the back of one of the abandoned vehicles in the rear yard of the van hire depot next door.

They may be walking into the unknown but they had at least re-equipped themselves and laid the foundations for rebuilding a self-sufficient society at some future date.

[northernraider1]

Scenario 7 (The Rifle)

Dammit, Dammit, Dammit, he muttered under his breath as he searched by flashlight through the dark recesses of the sporting goods shop, there’s almost nothing I can use he said to himself.

"What good is a rifle or a shotgun without ammunition is something I should have paid more attention to years ago" he thought to himself.

The problem was the old one of what is the best choice in times of plenty, is not necessarily the right choice in times of strife. His .338 Sako was a great hunting rifle for stalking red deer, but it is not much use for fending off gangs of displaced refugees, especially as I can not source any more ammo. I should at the very least invested in a reloading machine. The problem was not helped by the fact that the only other gun he had was a pump action 20 Gauge shotgun also in desperate need of ammunition as well. After raiding a chemists shop and a Machine Mart for an assortment of tools including a hand cranked fuel lifting pump he headed back to his vehicle and set off the find a gas station that sill had some diesel he could lift for his vehicle.

After much map studying and endless driving around blocked roads littered with abandoned vehicles he found an agricultural supplies depot that had a huge tank of red agri diesel that had not been pilfered. He quickly snipped off the padlock securing the filler cap with a pair of bolt cutters and set too refilling his vehicle.
A neat find this vehicle was. It was a forestry service IVECO van converted to all wheel drive by Ferguson, and because it spent so much of its time in remote woodland it had also been fitted with twin 90 litre fuel tanks. With both tanks filled to the brim it gave him a range in excess of over 800 miles. But he needed more fuel capacity as much of his time he would be exploring out of the way rural locations looking for somewhere to set up as his new home, and looking for other survivalists to join him. So inside of the van his jerry rigged camp bed sat on top of a row of 12 x 5 gallon Jerry cans plus another four cans chained to the wide rear step at the back of the vehicle. This gave him a good range and safety margin for his expedition. Every time he rested his head he thought to himself “There’s no way on earth I would do this if I was carrying cans of petrol instead of diesel.”

By early evening he was back on the road looking for someplace to laager up for the night, he liked to be parked up before dark in case his running lights gave away his position to people with evil intentions. He also liked to be in place and settled down so he could look for lights from houses and buildings after dark in order to record places where other survivors could be living.

As dusk was falling he had found a somewhat slightly overgrown lay-by on the side of a road about 150 feet up the side of a hill, it was ideal to back the van into as it was almost completely obscured by vegetation from the main road. 40 minutes later after a bite to eat he decided on a quick walk around his rest place for the night to not only ensure it was safe, but in order to relieve himself of the 4 cans of Pepsi he had consumed earlier in the day (he no longer trusted tap water and had yet to find a good water filter).

Walking carefully along the lay-by until it rejoined the road he could see quite clearly that no smoke or fires could be seen nearby, but something was not quite right about the layout of the geography in front of him, something seemed not quite right. Walking along the road edge he realised that the foliage in one spot was different to the rest of the hedgerow, it was not as high and looked as if something had knocked it down at some point in the not to distant past.

Peering through the hedgerow perched about 40 ft down the slope was a power transmission pole, an 11 KV pole to be precise and rammed up against it in quite a bad way was a police car. He clambered through the hedge and work his way down to the vehicle which clearly had been going very fast when it left the road, were it not for bad luck the car would have probably careered down the slope for another 100 yards and got stuck in the hedge at the bottom. But unfortunately for the car and its occupants it had hit the power pole going from 70 to 0 mph in one second, airbags were no use in that crash.

When he reached the vehicle which was once a pristine POLICE 4x4 BMW X5 Estate car he could instantly see the two occupants were long dead, probably been there since the collapse that brought society down. He clambered over and around the vehicle out of curiosity and was just about to give up and go back to his vehicle when he noticed that one of the dead cops was wearing a tactical leg holster, empty but still a leg holster. This meant the vehicle was a Fire Arms Response Vehicle and this offered our survivor the chance of possibly some useful pickings.
Reaching through the side window he pulled the tailgate release then went to see what the trunk contained, he found a large metal locked box bolted to the floor of the vehicle along with other items such as flashlights, traffic cones, radios and assorted tactical kit. Using a flashlight he soon found the keys for the box as they were on the same ring as the cars keys thus still in the ignition.

On opening the box he found to his delight two 9 mm pistols and two 9 mm carbines, the pistols from SIG and the carbines from H&K. He also found 4 magazines for each weapon and 400 rounds of 9 mm ammunition plus cleaning kits. This was the security concern he had for his safety well and truly covered. He transported the weapons to his vehicle along with the tactical flashlights and spare batteries and spent the night getting use to handling his new found tools. He knew he would soon need to find how to strip, clean and maintain these weapons so at some point he would have to seek out the operators handbooks, but that could wait for now.

After a nights sleep he woke thinking that actually the 9 mm pistols were ideal for his close quarters protection but the carbines were actually of limited use ( but still a 100% better than throwing rocks) but the finding of the guns got him to thinking. Cops have 9 MM weapons, Soldiers on the other hand have 5.56 and 7.62 calibre weapons, and those would be ideal for long range security and hunting. What he needed to do was to find TA centres or military bases that were fitted with armouries, but NOT main large scales bases, and also some place that hopefully other survivors had not already raided. Thus with that thought our erstwhile survivor set off again in search of a safe haven to try and rebuild a life for himself.

[northernraider1]

Scenario 6 The Retreat


Is it me or is it getting cold in here thought Steve to himself as he realised he was suddenly shivering, Why has the damn heating not kicked in?

He wandered through the nursery shed to the heater control panel, flicked at the light switch to brighten up this normally dark corner but the light did not come on.
Pulling out his EDC flashlight he peered at the heating controls and realised they were not working, in fact they were not even illuminated. At that he headed for the door.

Strolling across the yard he realised that the house lights were not on, “Bugger” he said to no one in particular, “not a power cut I hope”.

Before he reached the kitchen door he heard the familiar sound of his own diesel Land Rover coming up the track and clattering across the bridge crossing the stream that crossed between the farmhouse and the main road. He could not see the vehicle as the access track and main road was deliberately screened by trees and shrubs so the house could not been seen from the road by passing traffic. A mix of coniferous trees, Ivy, Rhododendrons and other plants of a thorny nature like fire thorn was deliberately planted years earlier when Steve first bought the place.

Soon as the 4x4 came round the corner Steve could see his partners face and it was looking distinctly worried, the vehicle rolled to a halt right where he stood and his partner hopped out.

You won’t believe this” said Beverley there’s a huge great rolling power cut spreading from all the main cities of the south east, outwards and across the whole damn country. The lights are going out across Britain and the rest of the world is as well according to the BBC on the radio.

Steve paused for thought for a moment or two then said “Right we will play safe, I want you to go and get the kids from the play group and bring them home, I will switch over to the diesel genny until the power comes back on, after I have done that I will try and find out more.” and with that Steve dismissed his partner from his mind knowing she was fully capable of assessing the risk herself.

As he strode towards the generator shed he noticed Bev heading back to the truck after collecting her favourite pump action 410 shotgun and her own farm issue PMR radio which she new had the range to reach back to the farm from the village school.


Steve checked the oil and coolant on the generator then pressed the starter , within seconds the diesel / bio diesel generator hummed into life and settled down to a steady 1800 RPM. From there he checked the immediate use diesel tank and noted it was totally full. His young son Tom clearly took his duty seriously in ensuring the retreats back up genny was kept topped up from the hidden twin 500 gallon tanks out the back of the shed.


Five minutes later Steve was running up the extension aerial for the Eton world band radio and listening for news, what he heard left him very worried. Spreading blackouts across the world, little or no useable news from governments was all he could ascertain. Just local news from radio stations that had their own back up generators and what they had to say did not inspire him.

From what he could make out that the lights went out at about 3.30 pm just as the winter sun slipped away, reports of looting rapidly followed as frustrated commuters and opportunist thieves became ever more aggressive in the growing darkness. People it was reported were trying to flee the city by any means possible after only a few hours of darkness. According to Five-Live there were no street lights, shop lights or homes illuminated except for candles. Traffic signals were out as was the power for the London underground. They reported that because of some minor crashes and acts of street robbery all buses were being withdrawn. The Metropolitian Police reported that all patrolling officers had been withdrawn to be deployed on “Special Duties” but no one knew what those duties were; only it was pitch black outside and there were no cops on the streets and no public transport.

30 minutes later Bev returned with Tom and Jordan and she had news “Steve from the bypass I could see towards the town, it was ablaze and in more than one place, Oh and you could see the headlights of the cars on the motorway were not moving either. A delivery van was coming through the village and the driver asked if I knew of a back road into the town, because all the main roads were blocked”.

Suddenly Steve’s cell phone chirped once to announce a message awaited him. He was surprised the system was still working; he knew it could not last long if the cell systems back up power supplies failed.

Checking his phones inbox he noticed that in fact he had two text messages, both had the same brief two word messages , they simply said “AB” and on reading them Steves blood ran cold. “Bev the messages are from Dave and Nick in the Mutual Support Group they both say AB”.
The mutual support group was set up by Steve and six other preppers about 5 years previously; they all cooperated in survivalist planning and preparations. On an average of one weekend a month the group would gather to plan, practise, train and prepare to survive local, regional, national or global disasters, be they man made or natural.

They did not normally use codes of secret phrases as it was all too easy to forget or mix them up. In most cases normal English was fine for most communications, except for one scenario IE a Global social collapse (cause irrelevant) for that situation they adopted the code word used by the fictitious characters in the famous survivalist novel Alas Babylon by Pat Frank. When they sent out the signal AB it meant they feared for their family’s safety and were declaring their intentions to Bug Out ASAP. This meant Dave, Nick and their families were gathering their Bug Out kits, Extra food, fuel supplies and kit and heading as agreed to Steves farm.

Steve said to Bev “ You have better get the hot water on and make up the beds in the guest rooms we have friends coming and they may be hurt or traumatised when they get here to”……….. Before he could finish Steve heard another engine grinding his way up the track and by the sound of it, it was struggling with the incline.
“Tom… Crossbow NOW…. front bedroom, Jordan go with him. Bev get your 410 out of the truck and get over by the kennels, stay out of sight until I call you or you hear shooting.”

Steve stepped across the kitchen threshold and reached above the door where his own crossbow was hung, bolt in place but uncocked. As he pulled the sheepsfoot cocking lever back and readied the cross bow a big silver VW van burst into the yard, Steve was kneeling and aiming before it stopped.

The passenger door of the van cracked open and in a flash out shot a totally demented Jack Russell Terrier closely followed by a flustered woman.

Steve instantly recognised Mary the wife of Nick who had texted him the AB message. “Mary you stupid bloody cow” shouted Steve “You know you or Nick is supposed to radio in or phone from the bottom of the hill.

Mary just looked at Steve and growled “The phones are out and YOU don’t have your damned radio turned on, and Nick is in the van he’s hurt.”

At that she headed towards the drivers door where Nick was trying to climb out of the cab.


Ten minutes later Nick, Mary and dog were in the Kitchen, Bev treating a quite badly beaten Nick and making tea for everyone. Nick explained he was driving home after a trip to Windsor when the lights started to go out and local radio stations along the way reported that the power failures appeared to be total, affecting every system. By the time he was passing close by Ripon he realised that something big and bad was happening, he could not phone Mary but texted her and gave her the AB message. By the time he reached home 40 minutes later Mary had all the BOBs, boxes and bits n pieces Nick kept ready to be loaded into the van. After a quick check and topping up his fuel tank from his spare stocks kept in the garage he was ready for leaving. That’s when the problems started. Nicks neighbour had often talked with him about survivalism and preparations, he had expressed a willingness to become part of the community but like so many other people he had never actually gotten round to doing anything practical. Until now.
The Neighbour saw Nick loading up and quickly realised what was going on. He came over to where Nick was and asked Nick if he could spare some diesel and food as he did not have even enough in his car to leave the town. Nick told him “No, sorry what I have is what I need to get Mary and I to the place we have set aside”.

Immediately the neighbour had suddenly head butted Nick then kicked him violently to the floor before trying to snatch the van keys from him. He probably would have succeeded but for Mary who was just making Nick a quick hot drink before they left.
As soon as she saw the attack happen she grabbed the kettle of boiling hot water, ran out and threw it into the face of the neighbour. That stopped the attack dead, the neighbour staggered off screaming and she helped Nick up into the van. She only paused to lock the door, go to the utility cupboard and turn off the gas and electricity, before grabbing the dog and following Nick into the van.


After a late night of fixing Nicks bumps and scrapes, talking about the crisis and over reacting two or three times to noises outside the motley crew of survivors finally slept.

Just after 8AM the next day the other families began to arrive, by car, on foot, and on cycles, with two on a quad bike and trailer who rode cross country for over 55 miles along the Pennines, the last two were filthy and exhausted but reported that from Sheffield to Barnsley it was total chaos, violence and anarchy.

By noon everyone was settled in kit cleaned, vehicle checked and stored and supplies offloaded. Dave’s collection of eight large portable solar panels were most welcome as they could be used to recharge lots of batteries, power radios and even run a couple of 12 volt lights, energy much needed in the coming weeks.

During the afternoon the women and kids cooked all the meats that were in the freezer, all the open eggs and flour and mixed fruits were converted into cakes and sealed away in wax paper.

The men folk reeled out a few hundred yards of barbed wire and trip flare wires in the hedgerows by the main road before setting to work on the little wood and metal bridge that crossed the stream on the only access road. With a few chipped nails, a bit of sweat and swearing after 40 minutes the timber decking was lifted from the bridge and the steel supports totally wrapped up in barbed wired.

With the preplaced supplies of flour, wheat, pasta, long grain rice, cooking oils, tinned fruit and vegetables , added to this was the rabbits, chickens, goats and miniature pigs, in theory they would be self sufficient for at least a year. And with the stream and land they had enough soil and water to grow crops in the spring. Mary had brought with her a fair sized collection of seeds that she hoped would provide food next year. Steve only wished he had finished making a carp pond, but it was too late for now.

By day four the solar panels had been set up on the south facing roof, more radio aerials set up. A wide band scanner was constantly monitored in the kitchen by the girls for any and all news. They cut even more wood for the Aga which could be easily converted from coal when it runs out to wood burning.

Being only 8 miles from the sea and the area being abundant in surface coal as well as wildlife the preppers at the retreat had the means, teamwork and will to wait out the fall of society and hopefully to slowly reach out to other survivalist communities and rebuild a life for themselves.

As the world grew dark mans inhumanity to man flared up as forecast, the cities became Necropolis’s with the lost and dispossessed fleeing leaving only the feral gangs to fight among themselves for ever declining supplies. In Europe ethnic and nationalist tensions rose up again as the various cultures and races fought not only for survival, but also to settle old scores. In Asia just about everyone turned on everyone else with the exception of the subsistence farmers and fishermen who carried on as before, as if nothing has happened.
It took only a few weeks for Africa to go silent, no one knows what happened in the Dark Continent that had in the last ten years seen a resurgence in tribal warfare, droughts, civil war, epidemics etc.

In Britain the followers of socialism waited in vain for salvation from the government. The supporters of diversity, multi culturalism and appeasement of religious extremists died at the hands of those they tried to help.

In America as forecast the Americans went out with a huge bang. As soon as the lights went out the gangs like the Bloods and Crips kicked off with street warfare, the Hells Angels attacked the Satans Slaves. The white rednecks tried to dominate the blacks but it just spiralled into total chaos. Blacks, Hispanics, Asiatics and Whites all took full advantage of their right to bear arms the carnage was terrible. The gun obsessed paranoia that had fuelled American fears for years finally broke though. Some boarded themselves up in their homes and businesses shooting at anyone who came by while others headed out of town heading for their vacation homes.
Hundreds of thousands had the same idea of grabbing a gun, and sleeping bag and heading off into the boondocks to live off the land. Sadly the country boys, survivalists, farmers and native Americans etc did not want the AR15 carrying urbanites roaming the backwoods and wiped out most of the migrants who could not survive in the new world. Up in Canada where more moderate attitudes prevailed the disaster stuck home but not as quickly as south of the border but eventually they too descended into chaos and anarchy.

As America destroyed itself thousands of Americans tried to force themselves onto the Canadian communities in vane. Of course the Canadians could not contain or absorb the fleeing masses from the south so they took the only option available to them. They retreated north leaving a scorched earth policy behind them. The American arrivals found only destruction and desolation in Canada and died in their thousands from the advancing winter weather. Come spring the hardy Canadians came back and started rebuilding.

No record is known of the fate of the thousands who tried to flee south across the Rio Grande into Mexico and its neighbouring states, but its believed that many old scores were settled and many Americans perished.

One day at a time became the mantra of those who survived those initial long nights, but preparedness not paranoia would be the foundation of all future cultures.

[northernraider1]

Scenario (5)The Cache

John Smith’s wife Wendy a specialist nurse was just finishing off the last of her patients notes before she closed down the clinic for the night when the lights went out, She sat patiently for about 10 minutes under the dim light from the low powered emergency escape lighting system. “Damn it” she thought “John was right I should keep a torch of some sort in my uniform pocket, rather than on the table in the clinic with my other examination equipment”.

Using the dim emergency lighting she retrieved the flashlight from her desk and headed for the locker room. Opening her locker she first grabbed her cell phone to call John but it was not connecting to any cell. Slightly worried about this she turned on the portable radio that sat on the coffee table by the sink. She soon became alarmed at the news about the rolling blackout affecting most of the region. She headed back to her locker and pulled out a small rucksack that John insisted she kept at work. In it she found her spare well worn but exceedingly quiet and comfortable walking shoes, a fleece vest and a waterproof cagoule. She changed quickly as the heating in her work place had suffered the same fate as her husband’s office and it was cooling off quickly. She decided to wait an hour to see if john called before she decided to make a move.

In her rucksack she had a flashlight and batteries, small lock knife, compass, two bottles of Lucasade, three low fat nutrition bars and two tinned energy booster fortified milk shakes. A small radio, two light sticks, a first aid kit and a Leatherman juice multi tool were among the other items she kept in her bag.

After listening to the radio once again and drinking one of the fortified shakes Wendy decided it was time to head home, so of she went to the station at the end of the road,


The station was closed and locked and the lights were out, “Bugger” thought Wendy it’s the bus for me so she walked briskly to the bus stop. When she got there she found dozens of people waiting but no bus. One lady said she had been there since 5.30PM and it was now getting on for 7.45PM. At that point she spotted a guy in a railway workers uniform cycling slowly up the road. She asked him if he knew what was happening as he rode alongside the bus queue.


“Its absolute bloody mayhem pet, no buses or trains are running, traffic jams from here to the coast they say, and those buggers in the city have started rioting and looting, last I heard was there would be no more trains for at least 48 hours and I was told I could go home, So I’m off to find my missus and hopefully get home before midnight” He then cycled off into the darkness.

OK so now what? Thought Wendy, that husband of mine is going to be so smug and unbearable for weeks, his staunch beliefs able how fragile the social infrastructure had become was so right “she thought to herself which in turn made her chuckle“
John Smith you were right and I love you for it” said Wendy quietly to herself and she set off at a brisk walk using her flashlight to light her way as she headed towards the edge of town and the U – Store depot that was sited along the way.

About 50 minutes lady a warm and glowing Wendy Smith arrived at the U-Store depot and went straight to the mini unit John had on long term rent. The security officers were still on duty and were not unduly concerned about the power outage because power failures were so common of late. The space John had leased was not much bigger than her locker at work but in it was cached a folding mountain bike, another rucksack with maps and compass, food, camp cooker , water bottle with puri straw, clean clothes, medical kit, £50 in cash, first aid supplies, more chemical light sticks and a few other bits n bobs.

Wendy assembled the bike and loaded into her rucksack the supplies she decided she needed from the cache, and set off into the night, The route she chose was the old railway which was now part of the national cycleway route system, it was unlit but the moon was out so she chose not to use her bicycle lights in case it attracted unwanted attention. It was getting cold and starting to rain ever so lightly, and the evening was wearing on. She decided that the chances of her meeting anyone along the cycleway at this time were so slight that she could travel fairly safely, besides looking back into town it sounded even from that distance all the loonies were running riot back there.

Wendy mounted the bike and set off home, it took her just over 2 hours to reach the safety of her semi rural home, on arrival after getting her breath back and gathering her wits Wendy set up a string of Cycalume sticks to give her light until daylight returned and John came home, She then started about cooking all the food in the freezer on her Butane powered three ring camp cooker.

[northernraider1]

Scenario (4)The Bug Out Vehicle

When the street and traffic lights went out as she was driving to her next appointment city analyst Lucy Jones was not to worried, "There's a Road Chef café just a few hundred yards away I’ll get a bite to eat and phone the client to tell him I’m running late. I can do a bit of re-scheduling, by that time I’m sure the power will be back and things will pick up". Lucy accelerated her Turbo Diesel GTI along the road noting her fuel level was under a ¼ of a tank, I’ll fill up on the motorway later she thought, its cheaper than this place.

“Oh Heck“ Lucy said as she approached the Road Chef, the car park was full and she could see that there was a big queue waiting to be served inside the building.

At that point her world started to unravel, she decided to push on to the motorway services many miles down the road, she estimated she had enough fuel for at least 50 miles so off she went.
Lucy immediately notice how heavy the traffic was as she joined the motorway, she hoped it would not slow her down or delay her further, she was meeting the girls that evening to go for a meal and a show in the Capital.

As Lucy drove on it began to rain and the traffic began to slow, Just to her left she passed a crash involving three vehicles and a mile further on was another crash. Strangely as she watched a policeman taking notes from one of the drivers, she could see over his shoulder the lights of a town in the far distance simply go out. Lucy shuddered and this made her feel cold so she turned up the cars air con to full as she crawled along the motorway in heavy traffic at no more than 15 miles an hour.

Slightly later Lucy estimated she was at least 20 miles short of the service station when the traffic came to a complete halt.
“Grrr” she thought I’ll have to phone both the customers and the girls and tell them I’m stuck in traffic. But when she tried to call them her cell phone could not connect to the network and that worried her even more. Lucy being Lucy often found that when she got stressed she found she needed to use the toilet, and now her tummy was beginning to tell her she needed to go. “I hope this traffic moves soon she thought, I need a wee and I need fuel soon. She noted the fuel gauge was nudging empty and to compound it the rain outside was turning to sleet.

After an hour or more Lucy began to take notice of the vehicles around her, most had turned off their lights and engines to save fuel. She did not switch off her engine because she only had on her business suit and it was getting pretty damn cold outside. Fifteen minutes later the decision was taken away from her when the engine cut out as the remaining fuel was used up. “Oh Knickers now what?” she said to herself. She tried her mobile again but it was still out, so she hopped out of the car and tottered off in her high heels the 500 yards to the roadside emergency phone. As she was walking along she could see that there was lots of vehicles blocking the hard shoulder as well as all the lanes, she thought to herself “That’s going to make it very hard for the police or garage to reach me when I use the roadside phone” When Lucy arrived at the phone another woman was already trying to make it work. “This is the third phone I have walked to and they are all out, my mobile phone wont work either” she complained.

Lucy turned round and started to head back to her car as she did she noticed more and more people abandoning their cars and trucks and walking off down the road.
She had only walked about a mile in her high heels and already her feet were hurting like hell, plus she was wet and freezing cold from the sleet. She gladly climbed back into the security of her car if just to get out of the wind and sleet, and turned on the radio.

She was horrified by the news coming over the airwaves, riots, looting, crashes, people stranded and the emergency services completely overwhelmed by the amount of incoming calls for help. The radio station she was listening to was fairly distant but it shocked her to hear that many other radio and TV stations were off air because they did not have back up generators or fuel.

She was now cold, wet, hungry and getting afraid, and her bladder was bursting, she had no food nor fuel nor warm clothing, or contact with the outside world. It was dark and very lonely and Lucy at a complete loss what to do.

Suddenly there was a tap on the glass of her car door she nearly wet herself with shock (She was only a few minutes away from having to squat at the side of the road and that would complete her misery and humiliation) Peering through the window was a woman, about 35 years old wearing a parka. Lucy wound down the window about half way. “Are you OK" asked the woman, "Do you need a cup of tea or a bite to eat?” she asked the astounded Lucy.

“I need a wee more than anything” spouted Lucy surprised at herself for her sudden frankness in front of a stranger.

"Well feel free to use the loo in my van" said the smiling woman who introduced herself as Clare “Come with me it’s only to that VW van two cars behind yours” said Clare as she walked back towards her vehicle.

Lucy thought “Well what choice do I have” and quickly abandoned her car and headed after Clare.

Upon reaching Clares vehicle Lucy noted it was a VW like hers but a van not a car, not only that it was the same silver metallic and had the same wheels. “Nice looking van” said Lucy as she caught up with Clare, "thanks" she replied “but I think you will like the inside better” As she opened the sliding door on the side and stepped in with Lucy right behind her.

Lucy was amazed she looked around to see a fully fitted micro kitchen along the side of the van, a full length sofa and what looked like two full length wardrobes at the rear. Clare opened one of the smaller cupboard doors at floor level and pulled out a Porta Potti 165 telling Lucy to help herself while she waited outside.

When Clare came back in she found a wet, cold and bedraggled Lucy with a great look of relief on her face, “My God I was desperate for that, thanks so very much” said Lucy. “No problem” said Clare as she made a pot of tea and knocked up some sausage sandwiches which they both devoured.

Later on after Clare had given Lucy some warm dry cloths to wear she described the contents of the van.

Its my Bug Out Vehicle and every day transport rolled into one said Clare. It does all the things your GTI does and more, Its got air con, plus diesel cab heating, a 174 HP diesel engine, a micro kitchen unit containing two gas rings and a grill, mini fridge, water tanks, and cutlery and crockery storage, and a gas bottle locker, the kitchen is only 18 inches wide four ft long and 30 inches high. The sofa you are sitting on has storage underneath and it converts into a double bed if I get stranded overnight, there’s a toilet compartment and a wardrobe. I have 12 volt and 240 volt lighting circuits and a propane / diesel heater for the living area, there a mini TV DVD and radio unit in the roof lining and long range fuel tanks underneath. I use it to visit my clients and to go camping with my kids, it’s so much more useful than a simple car or 4x4. My van overall is only 4 inches longer than your car and a few inches wider.

“Please feel free to rest here and watch a DVD with me until the roads are cleared.”

Two days later an army patrol that was bulldozing stranded vehicles aside to clear the road came across Clare and Lucy who by now were the best of friends. After they had been freed to go about their journeys Lucy decided the first thing she wanted to do was to have a long hot bath, and the second was to find out how quick she could part exchange her car for a van. When Clare dropped her off at home she gave her a list of useful items she should buy and keep with her at all times. IE fleece jacket, waterproofs, walking shoes, flashlight, food, water, spare fuel can, light sticks, maps, survival guide etc etc. A suggested EDC kit (Every day Carry Kit) and a suggested BOB (Bug Out Bag) list. Lucy swore to herself to get a van as soon as possible if the opportunity arose.

[northernraider1]

Scenario (3)The Bug Out

“What do you mean you have no seed grain” said Rick to the warehouseman.

“Just as I told you Sir, We simply have not got any seed grain, no winter Wheat, no Rye, no Corn, no Barley, nuthin we aint had squat from the suppliers for three weeks now “ said the guy behind the counter.

“Heck I can’t seem to find any at all this year, not even from the wholesalers” said Rick as he walked out.

Rick decided to ponder over his problems with a coffee down at the cantina near the railroad yards, when he arrived his old friend Jim was already there scrawling notes on a lined pad. Getting his coffee Rick sat opposite Jim and asked him why he looked so worried this morning.

“You need ask, you really need ask” said Jim bitterly, “you have been complaining about getting hold of two 25 pound bags of seed grain for weeks, but your problems are nothing compared to mine” snapped Jim.

“Ok I’ll bite, what’s up then”

Jim leaned over the table and whispered “ You know my company supplies 95% of the grain and milled flour for this region doncha ?, Well we are running out, we only have enough grain and flour for another 8 days, the silos, mills and bakeries are almost empty” .

Jim continued “God knows what is going on, I know its been only a modest harvest but the farms still produced millions of tons of grain, but its not getting to me, My opposite number who runs the eastern area reckons he has only four days supplies left. But that’s only part of the problem. The grain company is part owned by the railroad and Northern Oil Inc as you know. What you don’t know is the two refineries in the estuary have not had any crude oil deliveries for 3 days and the railroad only has enough diesel bunkered to last until Friday. Oh and according to the gossip there no tankers due to arrive in the near future”.

Hells teeth said Rick “I wonder what’s going on, I think I’ll ask on the preparedness forums the only sure fire thing I know is just about everything I like from coffee to wine that comes from abroad has nearly doubled in price lately.

That evening Rick found the true value in having a communications link with other members of the survivalist community, these folks picked up news that the mainstream media missed, ignored or were prevented from broadcasting.
Much of the nation’s basic food stock of grain was going overseas to pay for the oil that kept the nation moving and working. Because of political problems in various areas (plus a few anti western governments) the oil producers were not accepting more than a third of the payments for their crude oil in Dollars, Sterling or Euros. The oil producers were demanding payment a third in grain, a third in gold or silver and the last third in ordinary currencies. This was being compounded by the oil producers giving preference to the growing economy of China. We were giving away our food for oil and not even getting enough to keep the fires of industry burning. The worst part of it was the govt was pretending nothing was wrong.

The information shared between the survivalist communities soon spurred them into activity, almost immediately every family or group went out shopping. Every credit card got maxed out as the survivalists stocked up on essential food stuff that had long shelf lives. The survivalist’s pressure canners and vacuum packers worked over time, and the fuel drums and jerry cans at caches, houses and retreats were filled up with fresh diesel and treated with Sta-Bil. Prescriptions were filled and medical supplies updated. Water filters set up, vehicles serviced and defensive weapons cleaned and loaded into BOVs. Vacations and long trips got cancelled, kids who were schooled outside the neighbourhood stopped getting the school bus each day, instead Ma or Pa did the school run in a fully fitted out Bug Out Vehicle. If trouble hit the kids already knew exactly where to go and what to do while waiting for their parents to arrive and pick them up.
While the motivated members of the preparedness community worked themselves into a frenzy in order to best protect their homes, retreats and families, the average man in the street either ignored the warning signs or believed with blind obedience the information being put out by the western governments.

Six days later the government announced that rationing of fuel and food would be implemented immediately as a temporary measure, that same day Jim from the yard phone Rick and told him “Rick you are a friend and I trust you so I thought I would let you know, last night the fast freight from the capital did not arrive, nor did the stopping freight or the bulk oil train turn up this morning. I’ve just seen some reservist troops putting up a barricade by the hypermarket and mall. I may not be a survivalist Rick, but I’m no bodies fool. I’m getting the wife and we are heading up our fishing cabin, I think you………………………………………………….
The phone line went dead, Rick pressed 3 to return the call to Jim and the phone rang but it went unanswered. Shortly after Rick noticed a police car cruise slowly passed his home, pausing only briefly as the driver peered across the lawn towards Ricks house before driving off.

Rick phoned his wife and told her to get the kids, he said “AB” which his wife well knew was his coded warning for her to drop everything and get home now. He then went to his computer and sent a group posting to the people he knew and trusted in the survival community. It simply said “Alas Babylon” in homage to the far sighted author of a book that inspired so many survivalists.

Then Rick got changed into boots, cargo pants, T shirt, leather ranger belt with his knife and multi tool on it. He then put on his old Regatta OS 4 travel vest containing his EDC and his PSK, finally putting on his shades and baseball cap he proceeded to add the last few items of supplies into the van.

An hour later with the gas, electricity and water turned off to his home Rick and his family drove quietly out of the street and set off the meet the other two survivalist families who should be waiting by now at the lay by outside of town

[northernraider1]

Scenario (2)The EDC


Blast and damnation said Chris as the Dodge pickup ground to a halt neatly half way between the railroad freight depot where he had been repairing the staff canteens aircon unit, and the quiet northern town he called home. Chris thought to himself “That will teach me to put off fixing the fuel pump on my truck, I won’t get back to my trailer tonight” with that thought Chris got on with making himself comfortable for the night. It was not going to be any real hardship for Chris to spend the night in the open as he routinely kept his truck supplied with basic but essential survival kit.

15 minutes later he was well sorted, his sleeping bag was laid out over a foam campa mat in the load bed of the truck, his mini butane cooker was happily heating up a can of Chicken and vegetable soup, and Chris himself was sat reading the trucks repair manual while chewing on a protein bar.

As the night wore on to the early hours he realised that this normally very quiet back road to town was rather busy. Not more than a few minutes passed by without a vehicle or group of vehicles speeding past heading away from town. Oddly enough for such a close knit area no one bothered to stop to check over Chris’s Dodge. After a while Chris felt the need to answer a quick call of nature and dismounted from the truck to relieve himself. “That’s Strange” said Chris to himself “I know that I should be able to see the towns lights from here, but its pitch black out there, I wonder what’s going on”, with that he jumped back up to the comfort of his temporary bed. Chris pondered briefly the night’s events before he finally drifted off to a deep sleep.

Dawn came upon Chris when all of a sudden a female voiced roused him from his sleep “Hello, are you all right? I don’t suppose you have a tyre pump? would you like a coffee?, Have you been here all night ? Said the rather attractive lady chattering away excitedly as she peered down at Chris in his sleeping bag.

“Erm Yes to the first, second and fourth” piped Chris and no to the third but I could drink a fruit juice if you have one?” he said quickly gathering his wits and taking stock of the morning.

After the usual platitudes, greetings and getting his stuff tidied away Chris found that the ladies name was Diane and her car was parked not twenty yards away from his immobile truck. Diane had stopped mainly because she did not like driving late at night down unfamiliar roads; she had seen Chris’s truck and decided this was a good a place as any to stop for the rest of the night.

Chris explained his predicament to Diane and enquired as to why she was heading out of town so late at night.
“I’m trying to get to my friends house, her name is Sharon and she lives well out of town and it should be safe from the troubles” said Diane

“What troubles?” said Chris “what are you talking about?”

“Last Night, Last Night” said Diane, The power went off about 4 pm, then there was some explosions, first at the police station, then at the big hypermarket fuel station, then shooting started in various areas. I got my weekend bag together and set off for Sharon’s house, I thought it would be safer there with her until things got sorted. I was OK until I realised my tyre was flat this morning that’s when I came over to investigate your truck and found you.

Within the hour they realised that the trucks fuel pump was not going to play ball, and the tyre of Diane’s car would not hold air, so Chris swapped over the tyre for her spare and agreed to accept a lift back to town from her, even though it meant going the opposite direction to where she wanted to be.

Soon they were climbing the stairs to Diane’s apartment, but sat outside her front door was a mountain bike, a rucksack and a very tired lady, it was Sharon. It turned out that the power was out state wide and trouble was brewing all over the region. Sharon had tried repeatedly to contact Diane, and eventually decided to cycle the 35 miles from her house to Diane’s place. Being cautious she had come down the old cycle way (used to be a railroad track years ago) to avoid meeting strangers, and apart from falling off a few times she had got here in a little over 6 hours and two punctures later.


Sharon was feeling rather chuffed with herself as she had repaired the punctures using the repair kit on the bike, her multi tool and two spoons from her camping kit. She had kept the dust off her face and out of her eyes using the bandana and sunglasses she carried as part of her EDC along with the Leatherman multi tool. She had used her Inova X 5 LED Flashlight to illuminate the stairs and passageway to Diane’s apartment, then cracked off a Chemical light stick to provide the needed light allowing her to save the batteries in her flashlight for later. Being stuck in a lobby exposed to anyone passing through the building she kept her A G Russell Sting 1 A boot knife close to hand,.

Shortly there were three people happily resting and cleaning themselves up in Diane’s pad, Chris set two bring up some pieces of kit he had brought with him from the truck. A Butane camping stove, A World band battery powered radio, Some 12 freeze dried mountain warehouse meals and his portable water filter. The ladies after cleaning themselves up as ladies do set too taking stock of their supplies and preparing a meal.

After everyone was cleaned, fed and rested the trio used their combined intelligence to assess the situation. They agreed that it was best they stay put until early morning and to leave town for the safety of his self sufficient residential trailer. (Composting toilet, PV cells, Micro turbine, own deep well, and thriving vegetable garden) So before settling down to get as much rest as possible they packed everything that they thought would be useful into an assortment of rucksacks and fanny packs. Clothing, Diane’s .38 Ladysmith revolver, the bits Chris had brought with him, Two Silva Expedition Compasses Diane had inherited from a previous tenant, and the travel EDC kit that Sharon had brought on her bike.

Sometime in the early morning Chris woke to the sound of glass breaking and people yelling, Carefully peering through the closed blinds into the street 15 feet below he was just in time to watch a group of about 6 men, clearly drunk and all carrying guns, as they threw three blazing bottles of gasoline through the smashed windows of an apartment below and to the left of Diane’s first floor apartment.

As the 6 men wandered off up the road Chris watched with great alarm as the fire took hold in the apartment below, it only took seconds for the flames to begin roaring out the smashed windows and up the side of the building. By this time the girls were up and peering over Chris’s shoulder.

“ We had better get out of here quick said Diane to none in particular and they all grabbed for the rucksacks and fanny packs, put on their coats and fastened their boots as they headed for the door.

Chris was at the front and his hand was reaching for the door handle when Sharon
Screamed at him “Don’t Open The Door” which made Chris jump back as though the devil himself was walking in.

Before he could ask what was the matter Sharon leaned past Chris and briefly put her hand on the door before pulling it away quickly, “ The door is very hot to touch” she said “ The fire is obviously raging in the hallway, we need another way out” said Sharon as the retreated back to the lounge.

Even in the short time since they tried the front door, the temperature in the lounge had gone up dramatically, and it was getting harder to breath as noxious fumes from the fire came up through the floor. The three of them grabbed their bandanas and scarves and wet them under the tap before tying them round their mouths.

“The bathroom, the bathroom quick” said Diane as she led them across the apartment, down the hall and through the bedroom into the bathroom.

“The children’s play area has a sand pit, and its right under this window, the problem is the window is a sealed double glazed unit that does not open” said a worried Diane.

“It does now” said Chris as he drew his fire fighters Life tool from his belt, and using the tungsten tip quickly smashed through both panes of glass.

Within two minutes of Chris smashing the window the rucksacks and fanny packs were tossed out of the window, quickly followed by three hot and bothered survivors.


After gathering their packs and their wits the three survivors set off on foot as quiet as they could, soon they dropped onto the towpath that ran passed the playground, after about an hours walk Chris found a linesman’s Dodge truck just like his own, and being very familiar with this model he quickly hotwired the vehicle with the aid of his multi tool and flashlight. The trio boarded the “borrowed vehicle” and drove as carefully as they could straight out of town towards Chris’s secluded trailer home.

Many a night over the following weeks was spent round the wood burning grill in the garden of Chris’s place having heated arguments over the merits of various items of essential kit. They agreed to disagree on many aspects but they all agreed that no wise person should venture out without the following.
A good quality fixed blade or lock knife.
A good quality multi tool
A Flashlight and spare batteries
Eye glasses or sun glasses
A compass
A bandana

The rest is they say history.

[northernraider1]

FICTIONAL SCENARIOS
(1)The Bug Out Bag


John Smith the senior manger in a big city company is sat at his desk one late afternoon when suddenly all the lights went out in his office, as he peered over his shoulder out of the window he was taken aback to notice that the lights were going out right across the city like a rolling wave, even the street lights went out. He looked at his self winding watch and noticed the time 4.45 PM

John stood up and turned to view the events unfolding in the world outside, he could see the trains grind to a halt, the guy on the gate of the tube system was using a flashlight to guide out stranded passengers, after he cleared the station he locked the gates and disappeared inside. To his left John could see the main junction that fed traffic out of the city, the traffic lights had failed and a multi vehicle crash had totally blocked the junction. As John observed events unfold around him he could clearly hear the sound of other vehicles crashing into each other as people tried to get through various other traffic light controlled junctions further into the central area of the city.

John returned to his desk and sat down; first he unclipped his key fob from his trouser belt and turned on the tiny single white LED flashlight he normally used to find the door lock on his car in the dark. Peering under his desk he grasped a rather plain looking Uncle Mikes Cordura Attaché case that he always kept at work. Opening the bag he found a small Roberts battery and hand cranked SW radio which he turned on and set on his desk. From the radio he immediately picked up news reports of the total chaos that was affecting the entire region, A total failure of the national grid had caused a cascade failure plunging many towns and cities into the dark, thousands of commuters were trapped on trains and tubes with many more being stuck on buses and in vehicles stuck in ever growing traffic jams.

The police were asking people to remain calm as the 999 and breakdown services were overwhelmed with thousands of calls for help. The fire and rescue services simply could not reach the stranded train and tube passengers because of the gridlocked road network.

John once again dove into his attaché case and produced a bundle of Cyalume chemical light sticks, he opened one and activated it, his office was once again illuminated and as far as he could tell his was the only one in the entire complex.

Clipping his Fenix L2D LED flashlight to his belt, along with his Gerber multi tool he took stock of the contents of his bag, In it he found a pair of broken in walking shoes, a waterproofed fleece jacket, two bottles of water, a Silva type 4 tritium compass and a full sized OS map of his city, He also found four long life food bars and two tins of all day breakfast , soap, hand wipes, cell phone, spare batteries for phone and flashlight, £50 cash, a small medical kit, a sealed packet of five dust masks ( he remembered the images on TV of the dust from the collapsing 911 towers), two Bic lighters, a good quality lock back folding knife and a titanium pry bar, last but not least he had a notebook and pen, a small pair of binoculars, a pair of leather gloves and a spare pair of specs, and a small hexamine camp cooker.

John decided there was no point in hanging around, even if the power came back on it would be tomorrow at the earliest before the transport system could possibly be restarted, besides the office heating had also gone off as it was electrically fired so it was time to leave. On the radio the news reports were coming in of panic and looting along the main city roads that passed through the centre of town and out towards the ring road, John wisely decided that route was no longer suitable.

He changed his shoes and swapped his suit jacket for the fleece, repacking his bag then sliding it over his head cross belt style John headed out of the building, stopping only to use his flashlight to check his route out across the car park and onto the main street. Using his bug out map he selected from one of five pre planned routes marking the best possible way out of town, it was along the old towpath down by the canal.

Access to this old industrial relic which led in an almost straight line out of town towards his semi rural home was gained via a padlocked gate leading down to a water company flow metering station, John reached the gate after a brief walk of about 7 minutes during which time he could hear screaming, shouting and the sound of breaking glass assailing his ears from all directions.

Using the pry bar from his bag John quickly snapped off the elderly brass padlock and slipped through the gate remembering to close it behind him.

As the city descended rapidly into chaos and anarchy John quietly and calmly navigated his way along the canal towpath until it intersected with the ring road, He kept the pry bar in his hand until he was certain he was far enough out of town to not bump into anyone with hostile intent. By now it was 11.25 PM and behind him John could see the flicker of flames from burning buildings, he stopped and heated himself a tin of all day breakfast. John listened to the late night news about the army being called in to restore order and provide help before checking his bearings for one last time then continuing his long walk home

[northernraider1]

Scenario 0
© 2011Northern Raider

The City
The city was huge, a behemoth a massive interconnected and inter-reliant lattice work of career people, families, travellers, traders, migrant workers, and refugees both economic and political.
Wealth creators and wealth users, consumers and producers all kept functioning by the never ending efforts of the utilities and service industries.

The city was like a giant living and breathing entity and it was dying. The massive swings in the global economy coupled to political uncertainty at home had caused the financial sector to take massive calculated risks with billions of pounds of investor’s monies; it had caused much of the nation’s remaining manufacturing base to move overseas seeking cheaper non-union work forces and lower production costs.
The rising unemployment in the nation especially affected the city as its wealth ebbed away on just trying to keep the utilities and public services running, more money haemorrhaged away on the various social welfare and benefits schemes that had flourished during the wealthier times.

The over indulgences that made the city so unhealthy and so vulnerable to the fatal infection was complacency and over confidence. People and systems became utterly reliant on services provided on demand at the moment of need. They became too confident that technology would provide all their needs 24/7/365.
People imported almost everything they needed without giving where those goods and services came from a seconds thought, or as to what would happen if those supplies stopped arriving.

People could and did simply go to the 24 hour supermarkets to buy that days food not giving a thought as to what they would do if the food did not reach the shops.

They turned on a tap and pure clean drinking water spurted out, they turned on a knob and natural gas belched out to cook their food with and to heat their water for washing with. They flicked on a switch and the electricity flowed to power their lights, run their computers, and drive their TVs.

The same people poured waste down sinks, flushed toilets, and put rubbish out and it simply “went away” the people did not know nor cared where all their waste went to. If a problem occurred such as a blocked drain, outbreak of rats or cockroaches they simply made a phone call and someone else fixed the problem.

When interviewers asked many of the city’s younger inhabitants where food came from or where fuel came from they replied most ironically “shops and service stations” and that was as far as their knowledge based reached.

Broken street lights, bunch of young thugs scaring the community, overflowing drains, a fallen tree, failed traffic lights, late running train, protest rally causing trouble, body found behind shops, insects found in take away meal, stolen car racing the streets, stranger enticing children, noisy neighbours stereo, thug with vicious dog attacking people, ethnic gang robbing school kids, overflowing bins blocking pavement, car on fire, light not working, missed parcel delivery, doctors surgery closed because of violent incident, young mum faints in street, anarchists squatting in mansion, illegal immigrants aggressively begging, burst water main, daily paper undelivered, bread delivery late, cash point out of action, fresh bought chicken leg found to be rotten, wheely bin gone missing , fallen tree embedded in shop front. This list goes on and on, and all are either fixed or made better by simply E mailing a department or phoning a help line. People simply relied completely on the “system” to provide for all their needs from cradle to grave.

But what would happen if the system failed or stopped?

8AM
Charles Winstanley city broker pulled up at the ATM to withdraw cash, he needed funds to pay for his daughters ballet lessons at Miss Markova’s that evening. The cash point refused his request for funds, the screen simply apologised and asked him to try again later.

8.10AM Gavin Boyd tried to fill up his car but the guy in the cubicle barked over the speakers to say “CASH ONLY the card reader was not working”. Gavin did not have any cash so had to leave without his fuel. Gavin was heading back to Northamptonshire over 100 miles away he only had enough fuel for probably 30 miles, He wagered himself the Bug Out kit in the back of the car would almost certainly be needed, some instinct confirmed by the radio news made Gavin very cautious about the day ahead.

8.10AM 3E27 was the train’s designation, 10,000 tons of prime coal for the power station, it is part of a never ending set of trains that continuously supply the power stations with the coal they need. They are called Merry Go Round trains because they follow a circular never ending route from coal mine (or docks) to the power stations. Day in day out they keep feeding the ravenous furnaces with the coal that is burnt to heat the water that is turned into high pressure steam that is used to turn turbines that in turn spin the generators. The generators that keep the city supplied with its electricity.

This morning was different though, Driver Ackland saw a yellow light followed by a red light in the far distance and slowed his train right down, when he finally got the green light to go ahead he was baffled to find himself being routed into a very long siding, and in that siding he found the sister coal train that was supposed to be 2 hours ahead of him. Driver Ackland could do nothing but sit and wait and took the opportunity to drink some piping hot tea from his flask. About two hours later Driver Ackland was startled to see that the route signalling lights were not showing any lights at all. So he decided to walk to the line side phone and check with the control room as to what was happening.
When he reached the little grey box he found the other coal train driver chatting with the driver of a local commuter train also held up on the southbound side just out of sight at the junction. They told Driver Ackland the phones were not working! The trio waited five hours before shutting down their engines off -loading the few passengers from the commuter train and setting off on foot for the next station.

8.35 Ali Saddiq of the village bakery tried yet again to phone the big regional bakery to find out where his supplies were he now had less than 4 hours to prepare enough bread, rolls and cakes for a 1200 place school and an 800 place sixth form college with whom he had contracts with. The lady on the other end said she could not help him and told him he had to phone another number which was a government agency number, not as he expected another department of the grain suppliers company.
The problem was the government number was permanently engaged. With little food available the schools were forced to close at noon and call the parents to come collect their kids. But by 7PM that evening nearly 300 kids were still uncollected from school.

9.08AM Tom and Louis stood open mouthed in awe and surprise they looked at each other in amazement. Roughly two minutes ago the entire control panel of the pumping station that they were in charge off went silent and dark. Normally the room buzzed with the sound of hundreds of dials, meters, printers, hydrometers, pressure monitors etc. The noise was normally compounded by the high pitched whine and rumble of multiple high and low pressure pumps and their associated electric motors. But two minutes ago the pumps and motors slowed down then stopped, the gauges fell and the dials and lights went out. The water supply for nearly two million people and businesses that they controlled had stopped flowing. A minute later they got a call from their sister plant at the other side of the city who reported that their pumps had also stopped, they also got a call on Link Net the emergency radio system that ALL of the areas effluent and sewage plants had stopped.

9.35AM “They are nearly two bloody buggering hours late” growled a furious bus depot fleet maintenance manager to his foreman, “Where the hell is my diesel delivery, last nights did not come and now my bloody buggering morning fuel delivery has not turned up. I don’t bloody buggering well need this, at this rate I will be pulling buses off the road just before lunchtime and head office will kill me if I do”. At 10.30 AM when his foreman went to meet his manager for coffee he found him dead on his office floor, He dialled 999 but the operator said it may be a while before help comes because they ambulance service is struggling to find fuel for its fleet.

12.02 PM Gladys Mabel Arkright stood at the bus stop and wondered where had all the buses gone to, 73 years old with a dodgy hip she now faced a 14 mile walk back to her village.

15.40PM Ross Carr was feeling light headed and sweaty, her hands were trembling and she felt suddenly very tired. Ross was a type one diabetic as well as a teenager. And like many teenagers she took silly risks with the control over her condition. She had missed her morning shot and noon shot and was now paying the price for her folly. She got back to the tower block where she and her mum lived on the 5th floor. She found the main entrance door open which was unusual because it’s an electromagnetic card operated door system. She would tell her mum when she saw her. She hopped the elevator and pressed 5 but no sooner had the door shut and the lift started climbing it stopped dead and the lights went out. Using the battery powered back up light she found the emergency call button and pressed it, but no one answered it. Nor were they likely to either the microwave radio link to the control room was without power and its back up battery was defective. For 15 year old Miss Ross Carr, type one diabetic no one would find her until it was too late.

18.00PM a radio, phone, cell phone, text and pager message went out ordering all police officers to report for emergency deployment. Many officers look out the window and listened to the radio news about the developing problems and decided to stay at home with their families.

20.20 PM a group of commuters whose trains had not arrived and who could not get a straight answer from the few remaining railway staff were walking through Lake Valley Gardens the lowest point in the city, the street lights had faded out nearly an hour earlier, and as they walked in a group led by a guy called Adam who had a street map, flashlight, compass, light sticks and radio in his rucksack (someone asked if his nickname was Rambo the survivalist, he replied the name was wrong but the title right). The group reached the bottom of the gardens just as it reached the new executive housing estate that had been built on the old marshland five years ago. Adam paused and asked “can you smell that and what is that noise it sounds like running water?”

Playing his FenixLD20 flashlight out ahead he could see water or liquid percolating up out of the gullies and drains ahead of them. It had formed a growing pool across the full width of the path and was flowing very freely and quite fast into the streets of the executive housing development.

Sewage, neat untreated sewage, plus other effluents and waste water was pouring out of the drains and sewers, this was the lowest point on the drain and sewer network and pumps were supposed to carry the effluent from the underground Victorian built storage chambers and pump it to the treatment works outside the city limits.
The pumps had stopped and now the raw sewage was following the easiest route that gravity would allow, straight towards the homes of 30,000 city workers.

22.00PM , Chaz,, Kam, Dodger, Davie, Chris, Wayne, Akim, Paul, George, Wallace and Carl were all sat in the lounge of the regional secure unit for young violent criminals. All were guests of the state for carrying some of the most horrible and depraved crimes you could imagine. Our young products of broken homes had already noticed the night shift of prison officers had not turned up for work and in the last 90 minutes they had not seen nor heard from the remaining members of the day shift. Suddenly the lights flickered and went out and the emergency lighting kicked in. This made the boys laugh as it was a change from the drudgery and routine they were used to.

Then a few minutes later Kam noticed the electromagnetic door locks to the secure lounge were clicking like mad. Kam went to the door and pulled at the handle, nothing it stayed locked. So being a typical teen whilst he was about to tell his friends that the door lock was “doing his head in” he leaned back putting his weight onto the door just as the mechanism clicked again as the power supply to it was briefly interrupted. Suddenly Kam found himself sat on the floor staring at a now open door leading out of the lounge, and no prison officer was on the other side to remonstrate with him.
By midnight with much pulling, prying, kicking etc aiding by an intermitted power supply the boys found their way to a fire door just off the library floor. From there eleven of society’s greatest failures, sadists, thugs and perverts found themselves outside in an unlit city with no sign of any authorities anywhere. It took them less than 40 minutes to rob their first late night store and to rape and kill the two girls running the store. From there the eleven melted into the night to add to the spreading anarchy and chaos that was devouring the city.

The next day

06.35
Adam the survivalist with a heavily bandaged left arm struggled to clean and re-cock the crossbow he had recovered from a cache of survival supplies he kept in a U –Hire 24 hour access Storage Company on the industrial estate. His crossbow was from the Barnett stable and was the RC-150 compound bow, it was chosen for its lightweight but powerful 150ft pound capability. With him was a numb with shock, bruised and battered but very much alive was a young nurse who he came across during the night.

He had heard her scream just about 3AM the night before just as he passed an access road to the wine shop. He looked into the access road to see a group of young men clearly drunk to the point of almost collapse, totally inebriated but desperately trying to drag a young woman further up the access road.

Adam shouted a warning to the thugs to stop but just got verbally abused and a half empty bottle of vodka thrown in his direction. He had already seen enough over the last 18 hours and heard enough on the radio to realise no cops were likely to arrive any time soon. That is why he had elected to draw on his cache of survival supplies before trying to get out of the city. Boy was he pleased he had decided to collect his reserve Bug out Bag and crossbow.

Adam shouted again and two of the thugs turned to face him, one held a large bread knife and the other a Stanley craft knife. That was enough for Adam and he shot the guy with the breadknife with his crossbow, immediately reloading he shot the second before he was able to respond. Adam started to advance on the pair of which only the second one was still standing and screaming abuse in Adams direction. As he passed the vocal thug he brought his telescopic baton down hard across the thugs head and he fell like someone had turn off a switch, but not before the thug slashed Adams arm with the craft knife. The baton was one of his tools chosen for its near silent operation and because it telescoped down so small, it was an ideal item for the Grey-man survivalist philosophy he believed in.

The noise, swearing, screams and sight of a bloke in a combat jacket carrying a crossbow and a baton advancing on them certainly got the attention of the rest of the gang, they could see very clearly their two chums were down and out, and before they could decide what to do the biggest member of their group suddenly doubled over with another crossbow bolt embedded in his lower abdomen. This was not the sort of “Agro or Bovver” they liked, they preferred defenceless opponents and as they saw the guy with the combat jacket raising the crossbow to the aim again they decided discretion was the better part of valour and they fled leaving the young lady on the floor.

It was a good ten minutes later before Adam managed to persuade the young nurse she was safe from the gang and that he would not harm her, her eyes kept flickering between him, the bow and the two original thugs laying still on the rubbish strewn access road. It did not take her long to persuade Adam to help her get home which fortunately for Adam was not too far off his own route home.
But first she used Adams first aid kit to bandage the knife wound in his arm.

10.00AM The BBC news reports that her Majesty her family and the ministers of her government had relocated to Balmoral and Winsdor for the duration of the temporary crisis. A state of emergency was also declared. Also the news reported that many police and emergency services staff along with many UK based soldiers had not responded to the emergency order to report to work.

The news also said the government was implementing a curfew from dusk til dawn and ordered that people stay at home and don’t go trying to leave the city, emergency supplies would be brought to the people but they must be patient.

A final comment noted the arrest of some people found hoarding stocks of food they had stolen from an abandoned warehouse.

7 days later without power, water or sewage the first reports of dysentery and cholera were reported, numerous apartment blocks had burnt down as people tried to cook and light their flats with improvised tools like candles.

21 days later people who still had the energy and strength started to leave the city by any means available.

23 days later a very sick, heavily coughing refugee who was originally from Kazakstan arrived in a refugee camp that had spontaneously formed on the downs outside the city. He was a former deck hand on a scrap metal carrying ship that came from the Black Sea to the UK twice a year.

He was coughing badly, sweating profusely though complaining of being cold. A first aider gave him Aspirin to try and get his temperature down. They placed him with hundreds of others in a huge circus marquee tent where he lay down on the blanket he had brought with him. Four hours later someone realised he was dead and as they carried him out they noticed large black blue pustules around his neck and on his face. The camp was desperate for warm clothing for the survivors so they pulled off the seaman’s Norwegian army shirt and put it in a pile for giving to the needy. It was then some else noticed that those black blue pustules were also prominent under the sailors arms, and realised it looked like plague. They burnt the shirt the sailor had been wearing but not thought about the wool blanket he had worn when he arrived. At that very moment a family of four were just settling down for a few ours rest on the sailor’s blanket.

35 days later the survivors abandoned what was left of the camp and spread out in all directions, many of the survivors scratched at flea bites as they walked away.

Are cities just necropolis in waiting?