Your priorities in a survival situation...water is not #1.

Shelter is.*

Hypothermia will take you down long before dehydration.

Teacher

*shelter from cold, sun, wind, etc

IMHO - water is way down the list. This is a general list. Don't get wrapped up in arguments about fine details.

3 SECONDS - Major arterial blood loss, gun shot, knife wound, being crushed, a fall, other accidents.

3 MINUTES - Suffocation, drowning, avalanche, heart attack, cave in, gas poisoning, serious blood loss.

3 HOURS - Hypothermia from cold, wind and rain. Heat stroke from sun, desert, exhaustion and drought.

3 DAYS - Die of thirst, some water born diseases, food poisoning, snakes, severe infection, tick paralysis.

3 WEEKS - Starvation, bad water, general infection, strong radiation.

3 MONTHS - Starvation, disease, loss of shelter, general health deterioration, weak radiation.

3 YEAR - Poor diet, vitamin deficiency, lack of exercise, despair, chronic illness

Well, it depends. I realize hypothermia is a problem in a lot of places, but where I live, it hasn't been below freezing during the time I've been here (15 years), and I've never had air conditioning while I've lived here. (It gets hot enough a couple of times a year that I may go to a mall or store with A/C, but it's never been a consideration to get an air conditioner here).

I agree that shelter is a top priority, but I wouldn't rank it over water where I live - I could go a long time without a formal shelter, but I'd definitely need formal water. :->

well dehydration will increase the chance and speed you get hypothermia, so they both mater.

I really don't care what in "theory" is the priority. In real life, it depends on the situation. Since nobody can 100% predict a emergency, you can't predict your priority. It is however gooed to know why certain things are importent (shelter, water, food, first aid, singanlling, etc)

Every situation is different.
Yes there are times when shelter and warmth are the #1 priority but there can be other scenarios where water could be a #1 priority.

I have been "be-nighted" on a long backcountry rock climb that had a big approach. It was the middle of August in Tuolumne Meadows (Yosemite) and nightime temps were balmy.
I had no worry of hypothermia due to my bringing a balaclava and light jacket. But we ran very low on water during the climb and had to ration. During the descent we were totally bonking because of lack of water. I wound up syphoning some water left in a small puddle in a creek using my Camelback hose.
If we had been forced to bivy I would not have required much shelter but we were already in serious need of water. We didn't bivy but it was 18+ hours car to car.

I know some are thinking "why didn't he take more water?"
Well you cannot climb with a lot of weight so you have to limit you gear and supplies. This is one of the cool things about alpine rock climbs; you need survival gear and supplies but you can not take everything you will need without going too heavy; you need to rely on your skills.
Wearing a big pack or hauling it up will slow you down too much.
Fast and light is the rule and that forces you to be a little spartan.


Later that night we stumbled upon the freshest and cleanest spring seep. It ran out of a crack in the hillside ran into a little catch puddle and then disappeared again into the ground.
We laid on our bellies and drank really deep. It was one of the most refreshing drinks of water in my entire life! No I did not treat it and never got sick but that is another subject.

The rule of threes has a lot of flaws; I don't really think it is of real use.

your priorities are going to change from situation to situation, your best bet is be adaptable with your training and ensure what you carry is as adaptable as you are. Don't get stuck in the mind set if TSHTF I have to do this. Stop and gather all the information you can safely otain then make your plans to deal with the situation.

I have to disagree with this. There are many situations where dehydration is a far greater and more pressing problem than hypothermia. The 3 days for water from in the rule of threes is based on minimal activity and a fairly temperate climate. When engaging in vigorous physical activity in a hot, dry, environment, dehydration can easily occur in a few hours.

I agree, the rules of 3 are great... except when they don't apply.

Can you "live" for 3 weeks without food? Sure. Will you be so weak after 10-14 days that you won't have the strength to do anything for yourself in a rough situation, thus expediting your doom? Yes.

Good lord people, its a suggestion of "3"s then.
Obviously if you are lost in the desert you may put Water before shelter. Just as if you were stuck above the tree line in a Blizzard then you would put shelter before water, it's common sence. The senerio is going to dictate what the most important surival factor is!
If an armed intruder comes into my home, I don't need to go get my tent, or my camel back, I need to reach into the night stand and pull out my .357 mag.