OK - apparently, a shelter is a place that's off-limits for tools and weapons now. I didn't get the memo on that one, but from what I've read, they confiscate, airport style, any "weapon" they want. I wonder WHERE the stuff ends up? In the pockets of the guards to some extent, no doubt.

But this raises an interesting issue. If they are taking lighters and tobacco as well as hammers, crowbars and anything "pointy" like a knife (not to mention shotguns and handguns) upon entry to a shelter, I can assure you that I want no part of such a shelter. Which leads me to the idea of alternative sheltering through a local network of like-minded individuals who share an ethos of personal responsibility, equipment mania and a strong belief in the right to self-defense.
After looking at the shelter options I'd need to use here in Bucks County, which would (most likely) be in the event of a large forest fire or major chemical release, I've decided that I'm not going to use them and instead I've found freinds in other parts of the country who will serve as a shelter location. Similarly, I've invited freinds along the river to stay here. .