For years I’ve been referring to “when the zombies rise” as an amusing metaphor for any disaster or emergency where The System breaks down — hurricane, earthquake, blackout, terrorist attack, etc.
What I did not realize was that there was an entire online community, the Zombie Squad, built on that concept:
Our goal is to educate the public about the importance of personal preparedness and self reliance, to increase its readiness to respond to disasters such as Earthquakes, Floods, Terrorism or Zombie Outbreaks. We want to make sure you are prepared for any crisis situation that might come along in your daily life which may include having your face eaten by the formerly deceased.
The amusing tongue-in-cheek zombie element makes the whole subject more palatable — and it strips the right-wing crazy element out of hardcore survivalism, while borrowing some its useful ideas, like the bug-out bag, or survival kit:
A “Bug Out Bag” or BOB is a pack you can carry that contains various items you will need to survive for a short period of time. It should be designed to grab and take with you if you have to leave modern your conveniences behind in the event of an crisis.
Some suggested items:
1) Food and Water for 3 days
2) First aid kit
3) Weather protection
4) Flashlight and extra batteries
5) Radio to know what’s going on around you
6) Knife or Multi-tool
7) Source of fire
The folks at Equipped To Survive have a really long list of recommended items. The folks at Wired have a few suggestions too. You can also find an Amazon List or two of things to buy. You might not have immediately thought of plastic sheeting and work gloves, but I suspect the people who went through Katrina did.