So last night I woke up to a 6.3 Earthquake!

It was a 6.3 that affected Malaga and most of the south of Spain. I’m further west from the more sismic area but still it woke my wife and I up. It kept shaking for a couple seconds then stopped. I found no damage of any kind in the house. Walking around town this morning there was zero damage as well so that’s good.

I talked with some folks here, who lived +40 years in the areaand have never seen anything like it. Supposedly there was a big one last week but I honestly didn’t notice it at all.
Just goes to show, be prepared, prepare for the small things and repare for the more serious, less likely ones as well. Do your homework. I did mine before moving here and I discarded some of the more active areas. Basically if a lot of people have died in the last 500 years I probably don’t want to risk it myself. The construction is of course much better these days than it was back then, so that helps. I can see how last nights earthquake could have easily collapsed some older buildings. Keep in mind that in Europe you can’t throw a dead cat without hitting something that is 1000 years old, so places like old churches or historic buildings can be dangerous.
Talking to people this morning it was clear that most simply didn’t know what to do during an earthquake. Many ran out of their houses to the sidewalk, which isn’t a good idea at all. It’s in the sidewalk and streets where most people get injured or killed due to collapsing materials on the front of the building. Unless the structure is at risk of collapsing, you’re better off staying inside.
FerFAL
Fernando “FerFAL” Aguirre is the author of “The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse” and “Bugging Out and Relocating: When Staying is not an Option”.

East Coast Storm: 7 Tips to Keep in mind

http://edition.cnn.com/2016/01/22/us/snowfall-records-winter-storm-washington/index.html
So the big East Coast storm is causing the expected problems. I hope everyone stocked up on the winter basics, food, water, fuel, batteries, gas, generator, medicine, etc and you’re reading this while warm and cozy at home.
How are you dealing with the storm in your area? Any thoughts, experiences or lessons learned? Feel free to leave your comments below.

Now its time to apply some good old common sense:
1)Dear God do NOT run your generator indoors. Just don’t. It’s the kind of mistake you get to make only once. Last year an entire family, dad and kids, died because of this.
2)Same goes for heaters, propane and kerosene or any other combusting heaters you may be using. Have a CO detector and make sure to open a window an inch or two just in case.
3)Don’t travel if you can avoid it. Traffic accidents are the main cause of death during storms.If you must travel, have supplies for several days, food, water and warm clothes.
4)Careful when walking too, even short distances or just around the house. Slipping on ice is the most common cause of injuries. Overestimating your capabilities may leave you stuck in the middle of the storm, even if you think you can walk short distances.
5)Take it easy if you have to shovel snow. The cold temperatures may trick you into not realizing how much effort you’re doing. 5 minutes at a time, then rest. Every year several people die due to heart attacks while shovelling snow. By the way, this should also remind us all of the importance of staying fit.
6)Keep your cell phone charged. Charge that little battery bank as well (this one works great btw). It’s a waste of fuel to use your generator just to charge a phone or tablet.
7)Check on your loved ones daily. If you have neighbours on their own or older folks check on them too. Even better, send your teen son to lend a hand. They can use the exercise and practice of face to face social interaction. Really, if you have never done it before give it a try. Even if you never said a word to that old couple down the road, trust me they will REALLY appreciate if you or your kid drops by to see if they’re doing ok.
So that just few tips. Try to make the most of it. Even if you have power try playing some board games and spending some time with the family engaging in actual conversation or doing something together.
It’s my first winter here in the Costa del Sol in Spain and while I do see the practical advantage of not having winter(there’s people sunbathing on the beach here as I write this), I do miss having a bit of snow. I’m still wearing flip flops and 5.11 shorts. I’ll probably walk to the beach after lunch.
Take care folks, enjoy the rest of your weekend.
FerFAL
Fernando “FerFAL” Aguirre is the author of “The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse” and “Bugging Out and Relocating: When Staying is not an Option”.

RZ M5 Emergency Filtration Mask Review

Water Crisis: Flint, Michigan Declared State Of Emergency

Remember when I talked about how in Buenos Aires you still needed a water filter to be used for tap water? That the water treatment method and the grid itself is of awful quality. Like for most other services, due to years of lack of investment and constantly budget cuts the poor water purification methods leaves you with some horrible tap water. They just throw a lot of bleach into it to kill whatever is in it and that’s basically it. Other contaminants such as heavy metals, etc, those you better have some means of filtering it yourself.
We’ll, as the slow slide into a devaluated version of their former selves continues for most countries around the world, Flint, Michigan is having problems with water of their own and have declared State of emergency.
No simple fix: Infrastructure, health issues loom large in Flint water crisis
Folks, two bullet points:
1) I said it a thousand times and I'll say it again, store as much water as you can!
2) Have a water filter (check our Sponsor The Berkey Guy)
FerFAL
Fernando “FerFAL” Aguirre is the author of “The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse” and “Bugging Out and Relocating: When Staying is not an Option”.

Inspecting an Old Survival Kit Tin

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I went through an old survival kit tin that I put together a few years ago. I suppose others have the same feeling when going through kits they once put together, checking what they considered important back then, if its still relevant and also important, if it still works!
Here’s the content:
A good Geber knife, paper, pencil, two scalpel blades, razor blade, firesteel and striker, compass (working so so), flashlight, hooks, sinkers and line, wire saw, strike anywhere matches(one failed when tested), large ziplock bag, alcohol pad, wipe towelette, lighter, 3 ibuprofen (expired?), needles, tea, two packs of sugar.

FeFAL
Fernando “FerFAL” Aguirre is the author of “The Modern Survival Manual: Surviving the Economic Collapse” and “Bugging Out and Relocating: When Staying is not an Option”.