Prepping For: Civil Unrest
This is the first of a series of posts covering different scenarios you might want to be prepared for and what you can do now to increase your safety later. Not every scenario will apply to you - it’s up to you to determine what risks you face given your location, lifestyle, and needs.
Examples include the Rodney King riots of 1992, the Ferguson riot and related events in 2014, and more. Civil unrest usually begins with a protest that gets out of hand, often when people who were not initially involved in the protest see it as an opportunity to get away with stirring up chaos or who use existing chaos as cover for looting and other illegal activities.
Civil unrest can be isolated to a neighborhood or city center, or it can happen in multiple locations around the country or even around the world at the same time. The nature and intensity of the unrest will influence your response.
Note: The advice in this post also applies to a situation like the Boston Marathon bombing where the cities of Boston, Watertown, and Cambridge were under a “shelter-in-place” recommendation for several days after the initial terrorist attack while law enforcement searched for the suspects.
Why prep for civil unrest?
- It can prevent you from going about your normal activities if it is occurring in your neighborhood or near your place of work. Streets may be blocked, stores may be closed, and in some cases it may not be safe to go outside.
- It can begin with very little warning. Protests and rallies happen all the time; it is difficult to predict which ones will turn violent or chaotic. In the case of the Rodney King riots, protests began within 30 minutes of the verdict and violence and looting began about an hour after the verdict. Someone who was at home and not paying attention to the news may not have known what was going on until after the full-scale riots and looting began within 3 hours of the verdict.
- It’s difficult to predict how long civil unrest will last. Some riots can be de-escalated within hours. The Rodney King riots began on April 29, 1992 and lasted until May 2nd with some incidents occurring on May 3rd, but the last National Guardsmen didn’t leave until May 27th, almost a month later.
Who should prep for civil unrest?
People who live or work in a major city (especially near the city center) or people who visit a major city center often (for instance, going out on the weekends). Since unrest can happen quickly, you don’t want to be caught off-guard while you’re enjoying dinner and drinks downtown.
Also, if you see indications that suggest national-level civil unrest may happen soon (such as a certain upcoming election that may ignite protests should a certain candidate win again), you should prepare regardless of where you live.
How to prep for civil unrest:
Preps that apply to multiple scenarios:
- Store 2 weeks of food and water at all times.
- If you are on medications, make sure you always have a couple of weeks’ worth. For most people, that simply means getting your refill when you still have 2-3 weeks left, but for some it may involve a conversation with your doctor if your medication is highly controlled (aka high risk for overdose or abuse). Explain that you are trying to follow guidelines for emergency preparedness. Caution: Do not change your medication routine (taking a smaller dose or taking medicine less often) in order to save up extra.
- Keep a first aid kit well-stocked, and consider getting a tourniquet kit in case the chaos spreads to your neighborhood.
- Keep your car’s gas tank at 1/2 full or more at all times. In a disaster, gas pumps may be broken, gas stations may be crowded, and shortages may occur.
- Keep an inventory (with photos) of valuables in your home, as well as photos of your property. If damage occurs to your home or property from any disaster event, you will want these photos to make your insurance claim. Update the inventory often. Keep this inventory on paper and digitally.
- Keep the paper copy with your other important documents (Passport, birth certificate, social security card, marriage license, property deed or rental agreement, and so on). Have these documents in a folder or binder that you can quickly grab if you have to leave home in a hurry.
- Take self-defense classes and consider taking firearms classes and buying a firearm you can safely and reliably use. You should be prepared for both armed and unarmed combat.
- Plan a bug-out location (BOL) outside your city. This may be a friend or family member who lives in another town or in a rural area, it may be property you own (like a cabin), or it may be public land or a state/national park. The important thing is to know where the location is and how to get there if your gps or smartphone is not functioning. Consider having one location that is accessible within a day on foot, and one that is further away that can be accessed by car. Depending on the disaster, roads may be impassable, you might run out of gas, or your car could be damaged or stolen. Note: Make sure that if it is a family member or friend’s house that you discuss your plans with them in advance - you don’t want to show up unannounced during a disaster!
- Identify at least three routes out of your city by car (only one of those should use a major highway, the other two should use side streets) and two on foot or by bicycle. If unrest gets severe and seems like it will be prolonged, you may want to bug out. If everyone else has the same idea, major streets and highways will get congested, forcing you to seek alternate routes. You do NOT want to be stuck in traffic if riots are happening in the streets.
Specific preps for civil unrest:
- Review the entry points to your home (doors and windows) and identify the best ways to secure them. If possible, keep plywood in your garage/shed that could be used to board windows and doors if severe unrest reaches your neighborhood. Alternatively, identify large, heavy pieces of furniture that could be moved to barricade entry points. If you choose this option, consider practicing how you would move furniture to ensure you can do so quickly and safely.
- Consider closed-circuit security cameras (I do NOT recommend internet-enabled ones for privacy reasons). These can also be generally useful if you live in an area with a high crime rate.
- Keep an eye on the news and identify events that could lead to civil unrest, such as controversial court cases, elections, and racial tensions. If you see signs that unrest may be coming, review your preps (or consider planning a vacation to the countryside). The unrest may not happen, but it is better to be prepared.
- Avoid the city center on the day when you believe unrest may occur. If you work in the city, go directly home after work with no unnecessary stops.
If unrest occurs in your city:
- If you are outside the city, stay away. Avoid all trips into town. If you have prepared, you’ll be able to go at least two weeks without visiting the grocery store. If you work near the area where unrest is happening, contact your supervisor or office and ask if it is possible to work from home or if they are closing the office in response to the event. Indicate that you do not feel safe going into town given the ongoing events. Don’t go in if you don’t feel safe - it’s better to be fired for skipping work than to be killed or severely injured in a riot.
- If you are in the city but not near the riots, stay home and keep an eye on the news. If you need to go to work, determine whether your commute will take you through the affected area and identify alternate routes.
- If the unrest is happening in your neighborhood, shelter in place and barricade doors and windows. Make sure any firearms you own are accessible and loaded in case looters try to break into your home.
- If the unrest lasts more than a few days or you believe it is moving toward your neighborhood, consider bugging out. Review the five routes you identified (three by car, two on foot or bike) and determine the one that gets you far away from the unrest as quickly as possible. Even if you have to go the opposite direction from your bug out location, it’s better to get out first and then go the long way around than to drive through or near the impacted area.
- If unrest is widespread or happening on a national scale, and especially if the military/national guard is involved, consider getting away from town completely and seeking out either your BOL if you have one in a rural area or a campground or other public land where you can stay temporarily.
- Use caution in determining when the event is truly over. Officials may prematurely call an end to the unrest in the hope of calming the public, but there may still be people on the streets looking to keep it going. Return to your normal routine, but avoid unnecessary time spent in the area where the unrest occurred.
- If you had to leave your home, use caution when returning. If you suspect your home was broken into, call the police and ask them to check it for you before you enter. Only clear you home yourself IF you have training to do so. Watching actors do it on TV does not count as training.
- Take pictures of any damage immediately to submit insurance claims if applicable.
- No prep is 100%. Things may not go as you expect, so always have a Plan B and a Plan C.
- Be vigilant. Your chances are best if you see disaster coming and act before it strikes, rather than reacting afterward along with everyone else.
- You might have all the preps in the world and then live to a ripe old age with no disasters happening to you. There’s no guarantee that any particular disaster will happen. Don’t be so consumed with prepping that you are not prepared for the possibility that nothing happens.