How to Survive the Apocalypse

Gather the essentials needed to survive for 90 days. Surviving after a worldwide catastrophe isn’t a short-term process, as an entire nation or even the world might collapse – that’s inevitable. However, with the right supplies for three months, you’ll find it easier to adapt and make do with what you have. The more time you have to prepare, the better. When organizing your essentials, think about two categories: critical survival items and daily essentials. These will be covered in the next two steps.

Buy and stockpile the most essential survival items. Consider the following suggestions:

• Water bottles
• Canned food
• Vacuum-sealed food
• Blankets and pillows
• Medications
• A weapon you're familiar with
• A knife (to complement the weapon)
• Warm, long clothes (depending on your local weather)
• A bag with straps (for easy movement and/or escape)

Stock up on daily survival items. Consider the following items based on your needs:

• Batteries
• Flashlights
• Matches
• Cooking pots (for boiling water or preparing food)
• Plastic bowls, chopsticks, spoons, and forks
• Rope or twine
• Maps
• Permanent markers (for writing)
• Spare clothes
• Can opener
• Lighters
• Portable stove and gas canisters
• Axe
• First aid manual
• Sunglasses
• Duct tape
• Glow sticks
• Boots
• Spare pants
• Smartphone
• Water filter
• Earplugs
• Comfort items

Prepare an emergency survival kit. Whether you're facing the aftermath of an earthquake, a meteor strike, or a global pandemic, your health should always come first. Here’s a list of essential items for your emergency survival kit:

• Band-aids
• Gauze
• Medical bandages
• Antibiotics
• Antiviral medications
• Ibuprofen (NSAID)
• Acetaminophen (over-the-counter painkiller)
• Antihistamines
• Aspirin (over-the-counter painkiller)
• Laxatives
• Iodine
• Potassium iodide
• Hand sanitizer
• Candles
• Multitool
• Solar-powered phone charger
• Firewood
• Towels
• Life jackets (if you live in a flood-prone area)
• Warm clothing as a backup
• Toilet paper
• Solar-powered rechargeable batteries
• Pet food (enough for 30-90 days)
• Tweezers
• First aid tape
• Sewing needles
• Thermometer
• Super glue
• Toothpicks/needles

Always maintain your physical health before anything else. You'll need to deal with cuts, illnesses, and conditions like dysentery. Hospitals will be nonfunctional, so even simple issues will become more complicated. If you or a loved one has a specific medical condition, stockpile the necessary medication now.

Plan for long-term hygiene management. Everyone needs to use the bathroom. To avoid making this a significant issue, pack the following items:

• Toilet paper (a few rolls are enough)
• Feminine hygiene products
• Toothbrush and toothpaste
• Plastic garbage bags and ties
• Shovel or small digging tool
• Bleach
• Soap and shampoo

Set up a communication system. Everyone in your household, as well as relatives and friends, should have a system in place to stay connected. Discuss secret meeting points with your loved ones using radios.

• Always carry spare batteries with your radio. Don't assume that everything is fine. If you're caring for a loved one, make sure they also have a radio rather than you carrying both.
• If that's not possible, plan how everyone will communicate. This is when you need a permanent marker. When disaster strikes and you've left home, mark down where you're heading, when you left, and when you plan to return, if possible. You can write on a wall, a nearby rock, or a vehicle.

Use a diesel-powered vehicle. Stockpiling gasoline won't be useful, as the chemicals in it degrade over time. After about a year, gasoline is no longer usable. Gas stations might run out of fuel, but diesel could still be available. Furthermore, military-grade diesel engines can run on alternative fuels, from kerosene to fermented leaves. It's a good idea to invest in a vehicle that can run on various fuels.

• While in the vehicle, you could get trapped when disaster strikes, so make sure to carry an emergency tool kit. Better safe than sorry.
• If this isn't possible, having a functional bicycle is a good backup. There will be times when you'll need to travel long distances in a short amount of time.

Become proficient with firearms. Depending on the situation, knowing how to handle a gun could save your life, especially when you need to hunt or defend yourself against violence.

• If your area allows firearms, buying a gun and becoming proficient with it is a smart move. Always prioritize safety while practicing shooting. If you're a beginner, always point the gun in a safe direction, unload it when not in use, and treat the weapon as if it's loaded (even when you know it's not). Store the gun out of children's reach, ensure you know the target and what's behind it, and regularly have the weapon inspected by an expert.
• Whether you're facing a person or something else, being able to use a firearm may increase your chances of survival. Avoid hostile entities at all costs. No matter who or what the enemy is, your survival chances are higher if you can use a gun to defend yourself.
• Unless the disaster is caused by airborne bacteria, in which case, get a gas mask. Bad people/zombies/evil forces might still consider you a threat.

Learn how to hunt.

• Master using snares. If you're not familiar with this, be prepared to accept whatever nature provides you.
• If you're by the sea or any water sources, learn how to fish or use artificial flies to catch fish. The food you stockpile won't regenerate on its own.
• Take inspiration from Katniss in The Hunger Games and practice archery. Afterward, learn how to craft your own bow.

Read extensively about disasters to mentally prepare. Spend time reading articles on the topic of disaster preparedness on Mytour. Also, read non-fiction books about surviving disasters and essential survival skills.

• You might also explore some post-apocalyptic novels, but don’t rely on them for exact advice, as the authors may not have put much effort into research. Books like The Road (translated to Vietnamese as 'Cha và Con' by Cormac McCarthy), Lucifer's Hammer by Larry Niven, Alas, Babylon by Pat Frank, Earth Abides by George R. Stewart, The Stand by Stephen King, and The Day of the Triffids by John Wyndham are great starting points (though an apocalyptic event is unlikely to happen soon). You’ve probably seen the movie The Hunger Games, right?)

Connecting with Others. Honestly, how do you manage when we are not physically together?

• For most people, we can't do much. Can you turn a lemon into a battery? Or transform a potato into a clock? Or even simpler, do you know how to tie a knot?

Finding Ways to Generate Power. Car batteries connected in series can be a good power source, but you need a method to generate electricity. A wood, gas, or diesel-powered generator can work, but it's best to use renewable energy by crafting a wind turbine from PVC pipes and a car generator, or perhaps finding solar panels by the highway. If things turn for the worse, at least you'll have power to use at night and some electrical devices still functioning.

• Having electricity in your shelter helps keep lights on and essential tools running. It's crucial for devices like drills, lathes, welders, water/fuel pumps, radios, or other rechargeable equipment you need to operate.

Bring Long Sleeves and Some Pants. If you're lounging by the pool with no clothes on, wearing just your headphones and holding your iPhone (and that's how you're reading this), it's time to put on some clothes. Even though meteors crashing to Earth will emit intense heat, you should still carry clothes when you run.

• No matter the disaster, long and warm clothing is essential. Long clothing will protect your skin from predators, the sun, and rough terrain. A cataclysmic event is not the time for a tan.
• If you have time, grab a pair of boots. If there's none nearby, tennis shoes will do. You might have to sprint, so ensure you're dressed warmly and wearing proper shoes to run.

Plan Your Escape. If, for any rare reason, your home becomes unsafe, you need to evacuate as quickly as possible. Grab a map and get moving fast. Can you survive in the wilderness? Is there a water source nearby? Do you worry about privacy and escaping from others, or are you alone? Your situation at that moment will determine where you should go.

• However, if you can stay in your house, do so. Having shelter is ideal, and friends and family will know how to find you. Assess the situation now. The more rational and logical your decisions, the better. You may want to stay, but is it the best decision for you and your family?

Seek Shelter. Even if it's not a nuclear disaster, it's wise to get away from dangerous weather and avoid detection by predators. If it's an explosion leading to human extinction, you should avoid radiation as quickly as possible.

• The basement is an ideal place. A 40.5 cm thick brick wall can block radiation, so you'll be fine down there – not to mention, there will be plenty of supplies for you. Steel that's 2.5 cm thick will also block radiation, but only if you're living on the USS Enterprise.

Find a Food Source. Your food supply should come from a place of civilization rather than a patch of strawberries or a pond of fish. A grocery store or an abandoned house are perfect choices. While you're gathering supplies, grab a candy to eat – you definitely don't want to worry about hunger right now.

• Stock up. Don't expect things to last by the day, think in terms of weeks. Grab some bags and start collecting. What can you carry and use the longest? Consider both expiration dates and weight. Canned goods work, but they're heavy. But if everything else has been taken, don't be picky, just take what you can.
• Water. Stockpile plenty of water. Otherwise, you'll soon be drinking your own urine.

Prepare for Self-Defense. At this point, it's safest to assume that everything out there is hostile. Find a weapon you're familiar with and stay alert. When it's about people, intellect and culture have no place – do whatever it takes to survive.

• Don't flaunt your gun like it's a BMW. Keep it hidden. You’ve probably seen a scene in Die Hard where Bruce sticks his gun on his back (though tape doesn't easily stick to sweaty skin) and pulls it out to shoot bad guys played by Jeremy Irons or Alan Rickman, right? You should do the same. No one can outsmart you. You, yourself, are a weapon.

Find Other Survivors. Now that you have food, weapons, and shelter, it's time to form a group like in The Walking Dead – but of course, they need to be more useful. When considering who to invite, think about what they can contribute to your survival (after all, more people means more mouths to feed). Do they know anything about plants? Are they a sorcerer? Do they bring their own food?

• Maybe you just want to have some company, so don’t be too picky. If you’re not judging them by what they have, at least consider their personality. Do you trust them?
• If you're alone, pay attention to lights and fires at night. If you spot one or more light sources, head towards them and make new friends – but only if you think the result is worth it. How far is the light from you? How quickly can you get there? What risks might you face by heading out? Are there predators or obstacles along the way? Perhaps being alone right now is still the best choice.

Stay Positive. This might be the hardest task, especially when you're alone or injured. But it will become easier if you try to think positively. If there are children with you, that's another reason to stay optimistic.

• Don’t let morality overshadow your true nature. The rules have changed. Just because you decide to leave a slow person behind while the group rushes doesn’t mean you're cruel. Adjust your morals to the situation, but also understand that the world has changed, and you must adapt to survive and thrive.

• Buy a survival guidebook. With the internet gone, you'll need a book that covers survival techniques for when disaster strikes.
• Hide vehicles (if any) under trees or beneath bridges. You never know what or who might pass by overhead.
• Always stay hidden. Don’t reveal your shelter by putting up an SOS sign. If possible, head to abandoned areas to avoid drawing attention.
• Strength in numbers. If you're alone, consider finding companions. Assess your current situation.
• Don't let your guard down until you're absolutely certain you're safe.
• Don't rely on tech products as there's no guarantee you'll find power sources.
• Don’t be greedy, share your supplies.
• Never hand over weapons to others.
• Carrying too much food will slow you down.
• Dried fruits last longer than fresh ones and are a great source of vitamins.
• Don’t trust anyone, even those you’ve known for a long time – they may still stab you in the back.

• People will form groups to search for essential resources, so the more, the safer. Be aware of this psychological state.
• It’s highly likely you’ll witness or experience cannibalism due to food scarcity.
• Don’t disclose your survival plans to colleagues, friends, or distant relatives. They might be unprepared and, when disaster strikes, will either depend on you or, worse, attack you to steal your supplies.
• Don’t waste ammunition. You’ll need it for when you have to use your gun. If you squander it, you might end up dead during an attack.
• Prisoners who were once incarcerated may break out and flood the area. It’s best to prepare for the worst case scenario involving people at this point.
• Security forces, whether real or fake, can’t be trusted during a catastrophe.
• Rivers and lakes might become polluted due to human waste from water treatment plants and broken pipes. Diseases like typhoid and cholera could break out on a large scale.

• Water bottle
• Canned food
• Vacuum-sealed packaged items
• Blankets and pillows
• Medications
• Weapons
• Ammunition
• Knife (to complement the weapon)
• Warm clothing (depending on weather conditions)
• Storage bags (for easy movement and quick escape)
• Batteries
• Flashlight
• Matches
• Cooking pot (for boiling water or cooking food)
• Eating utensils (plates, cups, spoons, forks)
• Map
• Spare clothes (must cover the body and be comfortable)
• Can opener
• Portable stove and fuel
• Axe
• First aid manual
• Duct tape
• Glow sticks
• Walkie-talkie or radio
• Lighter
• Water (enough for 30 to 90 days)
• Food (enough for 30 to 90 days)
• Survival guidebook
• Signal mirror (or CD disc)
• Rope (about 6 meters long)
• Sunglasses
• Hiking boots
• Bulletproof vest
• ID papers
• Backpack
• Toilet paper (a few rolls will suffice)
• Menstrual hygiene products
• Toothbrush and toothpaste
• Trash bags and ties
• Shovel
• Bleach
• Soap and shampoo
• Comfort items
• Bow and arrows
• Compass or GPS