Urban Preps / NYC Ideas

Urban Preps / NYC Ideas

I thought it might be interesting to lay out my thoughts on urban preps, particularly with regards to what I am doing in New York City. As you may have noticed, we seem to have had our share of practice in dealing with the unexpected over the last few weeks! I'm by no means an expert, though I've lived in NYC my whole life and have given some thought to the matter based on my experiences. I'm hoping to provoke a discussion, so please chime in!

I began my thought process by trying to identify the scenarios that I am trying to prepare for. In no particular order these include:

- Hurricane Strike
- Winter Storm
- Pandemic
- Terrorist Attack
- Blackout
- Random Disruption (such as the recent steam pipe explosion, transit breakdowns, or perhaps a civil disturbance / riot)

It is worth noting that in my 35 years of living in NYC, I have survived all of these except a pandemic, so I must be doing something right! (OK, so the hurricanes were near misses by relatively small storms, but you get the picture) I am also purposefully not thinking about the general urban annoyances, such as ordinary street crime – if you live here, you have your strategies for dealing with that.

My primary concern is for the safety of my immediate family: my wife and one year old son. We live in Park Slope, Brooklyn, and wife and I both work in midtown Manhattan near Grand Central Station, about ½ mile apart. We both commute by subway, though usually not together. Additionally, my parents, brother, sister, and in-laws all live in NYC and eventually we'd want to coordinate with them in a longer-term disruption. Of course I'd want to be helpful and charitable to my friends, neighbors, synagogue community, etc., but my family comes first.

Bugging Out

I do not think that bugging out of NYC in a reasonable timeframe is realistic. I have a car, and places to go to on eastern Long Island, the Catskills, and Columbia County (and even a family farm in Eastern Tennessee, if it came to that), but with the limited routes out of the city that are mostly clogged during a regular rush our, I have decided that in most contingencies my family plan is to head home and bug in (I do, however, keep the car fully gassed and ready to go). Additional options for getting out of town include walking and bicycling. I have the ability to transport my son using either option, but it would severely limit the other supplies I could carry, and my wife is not a strong cyclist, so I don't think that's particularly realistic (any thoughts on a tandem bicycle with a child seat and pulling a trailer full of gear? It's an idea I've been toying with).

Any thoughts on this issue? My home is on high ground, and the city OEM does not consider it to be in a flood zone even for a category 5 storm. I can envision some terrorist-related scenarios where bugging out might be needed, but I just can't figure out how it would work. I don't own a boat, and have other things to devote my limited resources to.

Bugging In

I have devoted most of my planning and resources to having the ability to be self sufficient in my home for an extended period of time. In light of the difficulties of getting out of town, I think this is our best bet in most situations. My wife and I can even both work from home in the event of a pandemic. Thus, I've divided my preps into:

Get Home Bags: Things my wife and I can carry or leave at work to help us get to our son and get home to our major stash of supplies.

Stay Home Preps: Supplies that I keep in my home to make us self-sufficient, hopefully for up to 30 days.

I'll post further articles in the coming days detailing my Get Home and Stay Home supplies. What do people think of my thought process so far? I don't claim to be an expert, so I promise not to take offense at any constructive criticism. I'm hoping these posts will start a discussion useful for all of us who live in cities and are concerned about disaster preparedness.

Re "bugging-in", it seems to me that a broad scale pandemic could shut down a lot of utilities. With the workers that keep the cogs greased and turning not showing up, a lot of utilities that a city like New York and others rely on could fail -- electricity, water, sewage. . . How are you set up for living "off-grid"?

One question that popped immediately into my mind is where is your son when you and your wife are at work? There are a lot of situations that can seriously delay you getting home for hours, or in serious situations, maybe for a while. Just wondering who would be taking care of your son if you and your wife both couldn't get home.

After spending a couple years living and working in the NYC area, I have to conclude that the biggest issues to think about are:

Public Transit failure (Amtrak line broke again, arrgh!!!)

Blackout (Someone fell through another broken grate and blew the Con Ed xformer again, arrgh!!!)

What the heck is that smell? and how am I going to eat while it stinks like that? For Christ's sake, I can taste the smell, Blecchhh!!!!

Are they ever going to get that POS FDR Gondola ride across East River fixed?

Where is the nearest gym so I can go work on losing all the weight I'm gaining from eating all this wonderful pizza, without getting jacked up on the way there or back?

I wonder where I can find a whole body profylactic like they used in that Naked Gun movie so I can walk through that Times Square crowd at the end of the day without fear of catching some disease?

Where do I put the pocket pistol so that it doesn't imprint and Mr. Officer doesn't catch me with it, or the Train Gestapo either for that matter?

When the building elevator where I work tanks and I get stuck for an hour again, what games should I download on my blackberry to pass the time with?

and probably the biggest one:

How can I avoid getting run over by those crazy insane bicycle couriers?

I set my bike up just like the couriers. 2" city slickers on a mountain bike frame. I can take pot-holes, gravel and curbs, but when I get on asphalt it's fast and smooth. Not as fast as a pure road bike, but much less fragile.

Longstaff cycles can build you a custom tandem trike to your specification at

http://www.longstaffcycles.com

A tandem bike with a trailer is a long piece of gear, longer than most drivers are used to dealing with. You've heard of those accidents involving a semi hauling double boxes, and as they're passing, some impatient fool in a car pulls left behind the first box.

If you were to create/find such a thing, I would make sure that there is some kind of visual warning that you have a "long load".

And I have absolutely no idea what it would be. Maybe a row of those triangular car-lot flags from high point in front to high point in back???

Sue

Hi Jesselp,

Greetings from Bay Ridge, Brooklyn! and yes the tornado hit just 2 blocks from my house, no damage though, just turned over flower pots. I share your concerns and have spent considerable time thinking about preparation since 9/11. I also am most concerned about my wife and children and have set up a full bug-in supply set. For work, my wife has a complete go bag to get home and I am fully prepped as well. It's great to see fellow Brooklynites prepared.

A few thoughts for you to consider:

1. Include your son's caregiver in your scenarios. They should know exactly what to do and how to manage things for you at home until you arrive (assuming you have in him cared for at home) If he is cared for in a daycare setting, know exactly what they will do. We have an AuPair and she is completely on board with what I expect in an emergency situation.

2. Stock your get home from work bags well. Depending on what you wear to work, be sure to include a full change of season appropriate clothing and comfortable broken-in walking shoes. I still think of my friends who had to walk back to Brooklyn in wingtips on 9/11 and during the blackout - biggest blisters I'd ever seen.

3. Even though I see that we are not in a flood zone either (thanks to the recent mailing from the city) my wife and I think we'd bug out for a hurricane. If we had a days notice, it would be a traffic jam from hell, but I think we could get to my upstate relatives. I just wouldn't want to face blown out windows and flying debris with the kids at home. I don't have anything to back up my reasons why other than I just think it would be better to get out if we had some notice.

4. I don't know about the bicycle bug out idea. Imagine trying to bike down Atlantic or Flatbush to reach the Brooklyn Bridge and some desperate guy thinks he needs the bikes more than you do. It would be difficult to physically defend and you'd have both your wife and baby to watch out for. I know that sounds extreme since my personal experience on 9/11 found lots of helpful people, but it would worry me.

Good luck in your preparation planning and please keep us updated.

As I've said in other posts - Water and sewers would probably still run in NYC - our water is all gravity feed - unless the disaster is something that breaks water mains - and DEEP ones (aka 200 ft down) NYC will keep gettin water - a particular neighborhood might not, but...

The NYC sewer system is also designed that if the plants get overloaded - it just spills into the river - the EPA would not be happy, but..

How much pressure does the system have that water from the deep water mains gets to homes which are above them. There's gotta be a pump in the system somewhere.

I agree with your plan of getting home, hunkering down and heading for the hills only if really necessary. This is our approach also. A couple of thoughts.

On getting home. I assume you and your wife will have to walk. As part of your get home prep, have you considered using the small personal wheeled shopping carts I've frequently seen on the streets in Brighton Beach? Even the small ones hold a lot, would not attract attention on the street, and are more comfortable than a heavy back pack, especially if you are not used to a backpack. Also, you may end up walking in the dark. An LED head light would be better than a hand-held flash light. Two hands are better than one.

You mentioned you will post more info on your at home prep. It will helpful to know if you are in an apartment or single family, and if there is a secure place for your car. A single family house may have some resources you might not consider. For example, the hot water heater is a good source of clean water even if the water supply goes out: they have a drain plug at the bottom, and usually hold about 40 gallons of water. If you have natural gas heat/stove, these are other resources that can be used. I have run our gas heat from our portable generator during a mid-winter 3 day power outage, but some advance prep with the help of a friendly electrician was necessary. If you are in an apartment, there are still solutions, just different ones.

I look forward to more discussion of your approach and plans.

I totally agree with this suggestion. If you need to haul some things a long way, a cart would be superior to carrying it on your back. It's not like you need to navigate trails or anything. I made the same suggestion in this post a while back.

The added benefit of the cart idea in NYC is, as bws48 points out, they are already a familiar sight that doesn't attract much attention. Well, if you were pushing one in a business suit across the Brookly Bridge, that might seem odd, but otherwise, I doubt it'll get much notice. In this summer heat and humidity, just being able to carry a decent supply of (heavy) water with you on your trek home would be a big help. Sure, you may be able to buy bottled water from a deli or bodega on the way home, but maybe they'll already be sold out because of the thousands of other thirsty people hoofing it home, or maybe there will be price gouging or maybe they'll just be closed.

It's the source elevation at the front of the pipeline that sets the pressure head of the line above grade. It doesn't matter how deep the pipe goes, so long as it doesn't have a vent anywhere below grade to break the siphon with. I believe most areas of NYC metro have a natural flow pressure unaided up to about 15 to 30 stories, depending on localized elevation. Above this, it usually requires a booster pump to keep the head up.

FYI, these may be resources worth checking out: http://www.nyc.gov/html/oem/html/home/home.shtml and http://www.nyc.gov/html/oem/html/ready/hurricane_guide.shtml . They are links to the Office of Emergency Management for NYC.

You have 2 basic scenarios to consider.

First is no warning disaster. This would fit the Bug in plan. You don’t want to be stuck in traffic. The exception would be a terrorist with a dirty bomb. You simply won’t be able to shelter from the amount of or type of contamination involved. Your only real choice is to run.

Second is with a warning. This would primarily be a storm situation. . Usually you will have a day or so of advanced warning. Don’t wait for the official evacuation order. Since you have the ability to work from a remote location. Use it. Arrange with your employers to use this capacity for a couple of days. Get out before the crowd. Pick your time of departure to miss rush hour traffic jams. You don’t have to go far. Just enough so that you have more options of going farther in the situation warrants.

If you have Bugged in and the situation changes you may have to take it on the lam. Hopefully this is after the major panic subsides and the massed exodus has passed. But at this point any major city especially New York most of the routes out will be impassable. This will be due to abandoned vehicles. Knowing alternate routes may get you passed these. But it is doubtful. Walking or biking may let you slip through the cracks. Be aware of the danger of bridges. No not of them falling down. The fact that they are natural choke points may lead some unsavory types to setup a toll collection station. They may want a little or maybe all you got. Observe the situation at as great a distance as possible.

As for bikes tandems they may look nice but if some thing breaks it is gone. Go with two bikes. If one goes down you still have one. The adults of the family can then alternate riding and walking. The child carrier and a supply trailer can be set up with one on each or moved to be attached to a solo remaining bike if need be. Even without a trailer a bike can be pushed while carrying a large amount of supplies along with a child. Pushing a loaded bike is a whole lot easier than carrying it on your back. Also the amount you could carry will be much greater. You might want to think about equipping a bug out bike with airless tires. I know that most purists will scream bloody murder about this. In the case where it is used for emergency transportation you don’t want the extra problems of having and needing to deal with flats.

If you still want the option of driving out. Keep an eye out and at least a mental list of construction sites and municipal depots. Any place that holds heavy equipment. Bulldozers and the like would be very useful in removing blockages.

As for stocking supplies and equipment would be much the same as those of your country brethren. The basics of living don’t really change with location. They might differ slightly because of specific individual needs but the basics are the basics.

Apartment living will require you to be a bit more creative in storage. Renting a house has drawbacks also. You are not allowed to make structural changes. Owning lets you change and add on if needed. If you own you might want to study up on safe rooms and storm shelter designs.

Maybe I should start a new thread, but I think the following ideas apply to the present thread :

For a Bug-Out situation :
Some forumites have explained they have pre-positioned BOB at friends'or parents' houses.
What if you don't have friends along your probable/preferred escape route ??
How about using this kind of storage to help in a Bug Out situation. (or any other self-storage provider... I just found this one as an example)
One or more small room(s) rent along a pre-planned escape route, just out of the supposed dangerous area, may help you to rapidly escape the big city with a minimum kit and replenish easily on your way to your final BO location, whatever it is. Some kind of urban geocaching ...

And how about leaving a (prepared with water/food/gaz...) vehicle (old/cheap/...) someplace out of town (friends/rented garage...), so you could escape more easily on bicycle (with a light kit), without being detained by the congested streets of your town.
Some other poster said long travel on bike is difficult for untrained folk. But if you only have one or two days of travel on your bike... and then get abord your car ...??

Or this idea could apply to folks living in a flat, without possibilty to keep motorcycles with trailers full of food/water/etc... ready to get out of Dodge. For parents with two young kids : two simple bikes are easier to store around the flat; little kids can be transported on rear seat of each bike. No obvious goods tempting would-be thiefs on your way out of town.
Arrived a your self-storage, get your motorbikes/trailers/car and more substantial kits and you're good to go further, faster..


P.S. : I don't remember seeing this idea developped on the Forum ... but maybe it has already been suggested....

IIRC, this topic has been volleyed a few times, but not recently. Obviously if this sort of planning is a feasible part of someone's prep, then it would follow that a diverse collection of off-site storage opportunities would be the most preferable. In some cases, keeping a box or two of secured items at a friend's/relative's house along a possible route would be the most economically sound approach, while in other cases where such convenience may not be available, one would be compelled to lease the space needed to maintain that route as an option for future use.

I guess my biggest concern of course is the level of security needed to assure that such a cache would not be vulnerable to scavenging by others before I could get to it. For me, the most ideal stash would be one no one else knows about and is highly unlikely to discover, yet relatively easy for me to access should the need arise. In a big city, such locations could be quite plentiful, depending on to what level you are willing to investigate to find such locations. In rural areas, it is simply a matter of grabbing a shovel and making a midnight stroll in a general location I want to stash for, along with a gps with information that will later be transposed to a map (Captain Kidd approach).

Ultimately, I suppose a good deal of my equipping effort during bug out will likely consist of scavenging other people's stuff, should I need it. Macgyver meets Escape to New York I reckon.

"...rented garage..."

Keep in mind that many "mini-storages" use electricity to get you into and out of the place. No power, no get in to grab your goodies. I guess you could always hop the fence, but that might look kinda bad of someone sees you...

plus you can only get in during posted hours (legally). And if you're looking for a place to keep out the "roving bandits", be aware that this same security will keep you out. Mini-storage lockers are not like your or your friends house where you can drop by anytime or in any situation to pick up your stuff.

In a real emergency these places will shut down the same as any other business. To get to your stuff, breaking in would need to be part of your plan.

A note about the u-haul ministorage, they require two locks. One, which they provide and keep the key to, and one you provide, and you keep the key. To get to your locker you need to sign in and get the key from an attendant. I don't know if it's the same everywhere, but the one I used had the smaller room storage inside of a building.

It has been a while since this idea was last discussed. I'm not sure if this is the most recent thread, but here's one thread on it.

Similar to the recent comments, I think the usefulness of the idea depends on whether the nature of the disaster and whether your storage location would be inside the affected area. E.g. if a hurricane suddenly turned and was heading your way and all the roads are jammed with people trying to evacuate, then any storage facility within bicycling distance would definitely be in the affected area. The staff there will be locking it down and getting the heck out of there along with everyone else. Even self-serve locations where you use a key or key card to open a gate and then drive up to your storage "shed" will be locked down to prevent theft while everyone is gone, assuming that power is even available to power the lock and gate.

So, I think prepositioning has merit if you can reasonably be sure that you can access the supplies. A hole in the ground will always be accessible, but vulnerable to theft and damage from being buried. A friends house will generally be safe, but you may not necessarily be able to count on access, particularly if you're delayed and your friend wants to evacuate. Anyway, it's a good idea, but there are a lot of practical obstacles to overcome to make it work reliably.

Your plan seems sound. Even during a dirty bomb or pandemic scenario, bugging in for a time might be preferable. Those situation would seem more likely to lead to panic. We keep plastic tarps and duct tape with the bug in supplies for just such emergency.

Looking forward to your thoughts on get-home bags and stay-home preps.

Pal, it is evident that you are interested in being a survivor. I would suggest that you do a hazard analysis together with what the likelyhood is for each hazard to occur. Make plans for what is most likely to happen, and don't discount street crime. Its a real hazard, and is more likely to occur than a hurricane.

Don't waste time and resources pre-positioning gear and other supplies at locations away from home. You will probably not be able to get to them anyway. If a significant event occurs while you're still in the city, then you are most likely screwed! You'll be at one location, your wife at another, and your children at yet another in a sea of paniced humanity, all of whom are trying despertly to get out to......somewhere.

The best way to ensure your survival is to get out of the city (and Brooklyn) BEFORE a catastropic event happens. Good luck.

Hi Jesselp,

I was thinking again about how I created my basic set up at home and what I carry with me at all time. One of the best urban related articles I ever read was written by another member here, who goes by the name Schwert. His article can be found at:

Part 1
http://outdoors-magazine.com/s_article.php?id_article=171

Part 2
http://outdoors-magazine.com/s_article.php?id_article=172

Once you read it, you will think, boy have I got a lot to do. Now this guy is ready!

-Derek

I agree with you Derek,

I found the same article, printed it and read it like a book before bed. Very educational.

You are correct, "Schwert" has his act together and I am playing catch-up for sure.

Mike

As a New York commuter (Clinton NJ to Mid-Town), and a former Manhattan resident, I have also given lots of thought and come to the same conclusion - you can't get out, there's really no way.

Until you've experienced what it's like when, say ONE lane of Rt. 495 is blocked, or, say, ONE subway car looses a 3rd rail shoe, or ONE STREET is closed due to, oh, a steam pipe rupture, a water main break, or some such, you really don't know how incredibly sensitive the entire mass transit matrix is to disturbances, and more importantly, how incredibly fragile the entire transport infrastructure of New York really is.

There are only 3 direct connections to the mainland from the west, more from the north and the east, but to the east, you're talking about an island - a huge, crowded ISLAND.

For me the idea of a "Get Home" bag is, perhaps, a fantasy. If I was stuck on Manhattan Island, my "Bug In" is the office, a friend's place in Tribeca, or into Brooklyn. None of those places can be reasonably expected to be able to facilitate housing people for any length of time. So I'd have to consider an 80 mile walk home, through Jersey City, Newark and some less-pleasant places, hitch a ride on something, or perhaps steal a boat and head out somewhere south and then work my way inland.

What scares me about NYC in the event that, say, we loose TWO major roads in/out (Lincoln and Holland Tunnel come to mind, obviously, as the softest and least defensible targets), commerce grinds to a halt. It's fairly reasonable to expect that they would use any means needed to bring food and medical supplies into the city, including airlifts to Central Park, and the sheer volume of intelligent, well-heeled people in Manhattan will make things a bit easier to tolerate in a serious emergency.

Consider that on the 9/11 attacks, NYC told FEMA that it wasn't really needed, they had the resources they needed already, and in the blackout of 2003, while is was fairly miserable for some, anarchy didn't descend on the city. Heck, even in the Washington Heights and Thomkins Square Park riots, the rest of the city was too busy making money to notice.

So, in the end, I don't worry too much about NYC, beyond, of course, being hurt or killed in some random incident.

I'm more worried about keeping my heart healthy and blood pressure down, to be totally honest.

Well I for one WOULD consider bugging out of NYC if I thought bugging out was the way to go....bugging in as we all know on this forum quite possibly the smartest thing to do. But back to getting out of Dodge if one had to. Consider a sea kayak! OK, I've been paddling 25 years and though not a master (is anyone truly a master of anything?) I am confident enough to escape NYC via the ocean route. Of course if it was a hurricaine one might wait a bit eh.
I remember reading a story about some Germans who lived in northern Germany during WWII...they wanted out...and the only way to pass easily without border guards was the sea. So they build their own skin-on-frame kayaks (out of readily available materials) and paddled to freedom at night.
Our own military trains in very stealthy kayaks-evidently great to sneek up on an adversary (same quietness that helped the Inuit hunt kinda thing).
So maybe this is not for you but for some trapped in big cities that are on bodies of water a canoe or kayak may be an alternative method of circumnavigating (no pun intended) the masses.
Once I had an intern off to Memphis for graduate studies. She agreed an obtained a kayak, stocked it like you would a BOB and found a place adjacent to the Miss. River....if something big goes down you can imagine trying to get out of Memphis or any other big city for that matter via the Interstate system...the rivers may just be the way to go.

You know that all this stuff goes to the incenerator if it happnes to be a HAZMAT incident? You will get a gown, blanket, wallet and your wedding ring. I'm just saying...

A member by the name of Frenchy mentioned a folding kayak in another post, it could be filled with supplies and folded shut and ready to go, perhaps.

We've got two folding kayaks, each made by Feathercraft....the Wisper is my favorite kayak of the 18 we have...it can do anything and as you mentioned its greatest asset is its ability to be put into a backpack. That would be nice to have the kayak/backpack and your bug out bag contents in a cubby hole at a marina or wharf if in a city on big water. After I posted last night about using a kayak for escape (canoe for that matter) I looked at a map of Memphis....wouldnt be a long paddle at all to get to the woods and away from the crowd....if one were planning this well ahead of time you could go to areas 'down' river and hide/bury some goodies in 5 gallon buckets.....

A sea kayak, and go where?...

Martin is about right. If you were to bug out of Manhattan afoot, well, the movie "Warriors" comes to mind. I hope you are well armed if your gonna hoof it back through Jersey City, Seacaucus, and Newark. Going into Brooklyn, Queens, or the Bronx by foot via outbound Manhattan routes won't be any more pleasant. If I were in Manhattan when the bubble popped, I would be inclined to stay unless:

A: I could commandeer one of the helicopters at the south end

B: I could comandeer one of the yachts and make my way upstate via the Hudson past the Tappan Zee

C: The radioactive fallout is such that I probably stand a better chance getting off the island and facing the hoodlums than hanging out at the local pizza joint.

Taking a kayak out along the Hudson or the East or Harlem rivers will most likely result in you getting run over by one of the above mentioned yachts bugging out. Going out via Southport you will have to be mindful of the jumpers trying to get off the Brooklyn Bridge to evade the marauding hordes streaming in from Brooklyn.