ironraven and aussie have added great insight. think creatively and keep your options open.

nice kit Paul!

That was me, not TeacherRO. Mine is an XPal Harry II, which is a 2000 mAh LiPo battery. Energizer bought XPal, so the current model is the XP2000.



Sure, me too. But if I'm stuck on the train I can use it to charge my phone, post to ETS, and otherwise occupy myself.

Carbonite is awesome. For encryption, I use TrueCrypt.

Inspired by the video I saw last night, I listed all of my concerns and under each of my concern, I listed everything I could possibly need to address that concern. In the situations where an item can address more than one concern, I have it listed under each respective concern as a reminder that this item can be used to address more than one concern.

As it turns out, most of these items are apart of my EDC or sometimes apart of my EDC. In the situations where an item is sometimes apart of my EDC, it will now be apart of my permanent EDC. I will get the lacking but needed items for my EDC today.

Jeanette Isabelle

$.02 for you working in a highrise...fire/smoke threat

dedicated rescue hood and filter canister for hydrogen cyanide and particulate matter.... fireproof blanket to throw over you

gas mask (military surplus masks are typically many years out of date, but an option with a new filter)

GI pilots Nomex gloves, GI Nomex balaclava or from race car fire suit with tight fitting Lexan goggles and industrial respirator

battery alarm as you might not be able to blow a whistle

high intensity light... high intensity light sticks

section of "follow me" cord,non melting

window breaking punch, Wonder bar, insulated wire cutters, hacksaw to remove interior metal wall studs

depending on height and training... throw bag with Kernmantle rope, figure 8, Swiss seat, carabiners, double thick gloves

Keep in mind that if you work in a high rise, you may spend a significant portion of your day away from your desk. At a minimum, keep a flashlight, your phone, car keys (if you drove) and your wallet on your person. You may not be able to return to your desk to get your gear. Even if you think you can go back to get your stuff, it's almost always better to beat feet and get out of a burning building as quickly as possible.

Having my car keys has enabled me to be comfortable during cold weather fire drills on several occasions. In a real fire, I'd have had access to warm clothes and my emergency gear.

In that situation, the purpose of my EDC pocket carry is to help get me to either the office kit or to my car kit. If I can get to the car kit faster by leaving the office kit behind, so-be-it. The car/truck kit including the truck itself is much better for long term survival. The office kit is much smaller and more limited.

GREAT advice! it always surprises me how many people get caught unprepared during a fire alarm. what the heck do they think would happen in a real fire. oh wait. that kinda stuff only happens in the movies.

I see this all the time. Keys and wallet in the desk drawer.

I forgot to mention an additional EDC on my keyring is a Res-q-me tool. http://www.resqme.com/what_is_resqme.html (no affiliation). I think there are a few other brands around if you look).

No matter if you are in a car, bus, train, or even in an office, its always nice to be able to safely break a window (in an emergency). There have been numerous situations especially in a buses and trains where exists are blocked or unreachable. So being able to make your own exit makes sense.

I've had the situation (once) where I was walking past a car accident. A lady was trapped in the car and the doors / windows would not function. Fortunately the rescue teams were only a few minutes away, but the ability to break that glass would have been very useful. Those hammer style rescue tools are not really suitable for me to carry on me, but the keyring tool is acceptable.

I guess most people on this forum realize that often our preperations will benefit the muggles in the community, rather that us needing them ourselves !

Just on a side note, if you do have to use a tool like the Res-Q-Me to break a window, make sure you've got some sort of protection on your hands/arms. I've used one a few times and it's really easy to slice the heck out of your bare hand/arm in the heat of the moment. (With the one I keep in my car, I also keep a pair of simple work gloves in the same spot.)

Also, if you aren't wearing glasses, it's best to either close your eyes or turn your head away while using the tool, as glass can (and does) fly into the air. (It might also be necessary to tell someone on the other side to do the same.)

Finally, keep in mind that some glass can be laminated. This can typically be somewhat tough to get through. Therefore, one might need to be prepared to potentially have to fight their way in or out through this type of glass. Kicking around the edge can often dislodge it from its mount, however if that doesn't work, you might have to be prepared to cut through it or look for another method of entry/exit.

All in all, Each time I've used one of these center-punch style rescue tools, I've found they work great. However, as a potential rescuer, you always want to make sure to keep the situation as safe as possible for you. That way, you can avoid becoming another person that needs medical attention or, worse yet, needs to be rescued. A good way to do this is to practice. See if you can find some car windows you can (legally) break and run through a simple scenario of what you would do if you had to get out and get in. If you can get some legitimate training, even better.