S.W.A.T. December 2007 - McKeesport Police Department

AGAINST ALL ODDS
helicopter evacuation should someone
get bitten by a poisonous snake, break a
leg, or decide they want to go home. So,
having the right skills, the right mindset,
and the right kit will be the keys to
the survival and learning experiences.
Since this class has the participants going
into a remote area of Peru and living
for a week with bare-bones essentials, I
thought this would be an appropriate
time to discuss survival kits.
Over the past year or so, Against All
Odds has covered several commercially
available survival kits, with most of these
being geared toward specific scenarios
or individuals such as hunters, vehicle
survival and small pocket kits that can
be carried every day by a businessman.
For the newcomer to “survival” who’s
Jungle man gathers
cordage from bark of
sapling to make rope.
looking to gear up for that just-in-case
scenario, this can become overwhelming,
since there are so many variations
available on the market. What’s worse is
that many times an uninformed person
will buy a kit that’s not really suited to
their environment or lifestyle, and think
they’re now protected simply because
they bought something labeled “survival.”
Before you get yourself all wound
up trying to buy the perfect kit, why not
experiment and make your own?
A kit can range in size from an Altoid
tin stuffed with basic essentials to large
backpacks with tents and a food supply.
And while any kit should be built for the
area you operate in, I suggest that every
kit cover the following survival requirements:
fire, shelter, water, navigation,
signaling and first aid. Most of the necessary
tools can be found at your local
Wal-Mart. As a basic reference, I’ll break
down what I typically carry in my travel
kit:
FIRE
A small Ferrocerium rod, a Bic lighter,
a couple of alcohol prep pads and a few
military Trixoane heat tabs will get a fire
going in any location—no matter the
weather condition.
SHELTER
Fifty feet of 550 cord (para-cord), a
military grade, full-length poncho and
a space blanket. I’ve spent many nights
sleeping comfortably under a poncho
wrapped in a space blanket. Ponchos
also work well for taking away immediate
chill or hypothermic conditions.
Simply spread a few embers or hot rocks
from your campfire onto a clean spot
on the ground, then huddle over them
with your poncho and the rising heat
will warm you quickly. With just a poncho
and a space blanket, you can properly
shelter yourself in any climate from
temperate to tropical. Couple these tools
with other techniques such as simple debris
shelters, elevated sleeping platforms
built from the wilds, or fire beds, and
you can handle much colder climates.
Simply put, military grade ponchos are
worth their weight in gold in the wilds.
Not only do they make good shelters,
but they also make good stretchers for
hauling out injured victims.
WATER
For water procurement, I carry a
one-quart collapsible water bladder. I
like these better than hard canteens or
Nalgene bottles for kits because they
take up little room for storage and they
can also be blown up and used as an
emergency floatation device if needed.
Cheaper containers that I sometimes
carry include Ziploc bags and condoms.
A condom packs up small and will expand
to many times its size. When first
unwrapped, they’re somewhat difficult
to get water into, but once they stretch a
little and get some water weight in them,
they will just keep expanding. One note
on condom use: If you ever have to use
one as an emergency canteen, use a sock
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