Many preppers have plans to bug out in the event of a natural disaster or social upheaval. But for some, that isn’t always feasible. Especially if you live in an urban area or the suburbs of a large city, bugging in may be more practical than bugging out. That may be because you don’t have a bug out location, or because evacuation orders have caused exit roads to become hopelessly clogged. If you make the decision to bug in, here are some steps to take to make sure you remain prepared.
Protect Yourself and Your Family
Your first duty is to protect yourself and your family. If you’re put out of commission for some reason, your family may not be able to survive. Wait until the natural disaster or social upheaval is over and done with and no longer a threat to your safety before you think about helping others.
Make Sure You Are Well-Prepared
You obviously need to make sure that you have plenty of food and water stored up, but take the time while others are bugging out to make sure that you are caught up in last minute preparations. Fill up containers with water, both for drinking and for cleaning. Make sure that guns, flashlights, batteries, matches, first aid gear, and any other tools you may need are ready and available.
Make sure you have plenty of ice on hand and coolers to store food from the freezer and refrigerator in case the power goes out. Start preparing for alternate means of cooking food in case your oven and stove stopped working. Get any clothes together that you might need to protect yourself from the weather.
Protect Your Home
In the event of a hurricane or other natural disaster, make sure you protect windows as best you can. If you can’t board them up from the outside, ensure that you have some protection from broken glass and strong winds. If you expect social upheaval, lock doors and put heavy pieces of furniture behind them to keep people from breaking in. Get bathrooms or other interior windowless rooms ready as retreat locations in case of strong winds, tornadoes, or attacks on the home.
Have a Plan, and Backups
Make sure that you have plans together to cook food, purify water, and heat or cool your house in case power goes out. Then make sure you have a plan B in case your first backup plans fail. Can your backup plans survive three days with no electricity? A week? Two weeks?
Prepare Mentally to Hunker Down
You may end up spending a few days or more isolated indoors. Make sure you’re prepared not to do too much. Have plenty of books, board games, or other activities ready to while away the time and keep from getting bored.
Keep an Eye on the World Outside
You may not have electricity or be able to access the Internet on your phone, so you’ll want to make sure that you have a radio or some other means of being to access the outside world and find out what is going on and when it’s safe to come back out.