I am a fiction author. You probably already know that. I'm currently working on a couple of zombie novels. Zombie Apocalypse and survival-horror are a couple of passions of mine. I love it, I can't get enough of it.
So this awesome obsession of mine leads me to think about what I would do in a Zombie Apocalypse scenario. It's an interesting topic of discussion and debate, especially among my family and friends. I have heard the most bizarre ideas from friends and family alike - the most insane one so far being that one of my friends suggested strapping dynamite or IEDs to his party and putting them on dead man's switches so that if that party member was ever compromised or in an inescapable situation, they could suicide-bomb themselves and save the group by taking out their own infected self and hopefully a horde of zombies at the same time.
Insane, but interesting. I for one am not going to be on that team if I can help it.
Ideally you would be prepared for the Zombies and you would have a base and provisions and whatever else, just like they did in the wars. But despite that ideal situation, most of my friends have decided that they would scavenge after the fact. There's no debate among most of my friends about what weapons are the best or where they would go. They're all about the melee, blunted or sharp, doesn't matter, and no one I know of has ever actually shot a gun. Except me. Everyone seems convinced that nomadic lifestyles are the best in the Zombie Apocalypse.
And I guess that if I was going to be honest, I'm not well prepared enough (as of this posting anyway) to survive a Zombie Apocalypse if it were to happen within the next month. If it happened tomorrow (and with the way the news stories have been reading lately, I wouldn't at all be surprised if it did) I would be pretty screwed. For one, I'm not at home as I'm writing this. I'm on vacation and I don't have my weapons with me. Except for my brand new slingshot and my pocket knife. While I'm relatively good with them, I'd still prefer to have my other things as well. I don't have a tent or sleeping bag or any other camping gear with me. I have running shoes, but not hiking/camping/steel toed boots. I'm very ill equipped here.
But for me, that would be all right.
In case of a Zombie Apocalypse, I certainly wouldn't be out looting and shooting in the first 72 hours. I'm all about the dig in deep mentality. My first act would be to fortify my house.
I'm building a 72 hour emergency kit with enough food and water to last the first 72 hours of any emergency. The CDC and all other agencies similar always tell you to have one ready, in case of any emergency or natural disaster. Dried food, water, candles, flashlights, blankets, medical gear etc. are all supposed to be inside these kits. And I think that is a damn good idea for anyone to have! Even if the Zombie Apocalypse doesn't happen right away, if it does, then you've got enough of a stockpile for 3 days. And if there's a fire or earthquake or something else and the power goes out and you're stranded, at least you have the emergency kit to get you through the first 3 days.
I know that a lot of people will go insane when the Zombies start showing up, there will be riots, and a mass Exodus and people fighting and killing and getting eaten. The military will show up, things will essentially go to Hell in a handbasket. So why not sit still and gather your thoughts? Make a plan to move out AFTER the initial insanity. Then meet up with your family if that's what you feel you need to do. But if that's who you're going to go find, make sure that they are also provisioned well enough for at least the first 72 hours and that they are able to fortify their own place, or have an alternate safe house set up in advance so you can meet up there after the craziness dies down a bit.
Then, by all means, set up a supply run or six and get the looting and shooting out of your system.
Really though, shouldn't we all be preparing ourselves to dig in and stay fortified in one place as best as we can? Ammunition runs out eventually.
Good luck.
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Kai Kiriyama is an author working her way towards publication. She writes fiction for books, film and television. Kai currently lives in Alberta, Canada with her pet snake Rhaegar, her pet hedgehog Odin and enough caffeine to kill a small horse.
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I have a weakness for post-apocalyptic fiction, especially Zombies. I love the way such stories take normal (mostly) human beings and twist their society into knots and how they deal with it. I think that the 'turtle' option is the best bet, too, at least in the short term. I wonder how many people are going to follow the CDC recommendation?
ReplyDeleteThat's why I'm a fan of The Walking Dead above and beyond most zombie movies. Of course, there's always the awesome classics and stuff, but I'm all about the drama. I'm all about watching these people have to fight to survive, and to decide how to behave when all the rules of society have been lost. The scene in Season One with Andrea and Rick in the shop and Andrea doesn't wanna steal because Rick's a cop and he says go ahead because society is dead now? Yeah, that's my kind of thing.
ReplyDeleteI highly doubt that a lot of people are going to follow the 72 hour thing. The only places I've ever seen actually have emergency kits are the group homes for the severely handicapped I've worked in.
I think that society really believes that it'll go on forever and that someone else will come and magically solve the problems. (power's out, snowdrifts etc.)