To flee or not to flee- that is the ?

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   If you are reading this website, you are a leader in your community, family or tribe-whether you think so or not . You will have a significant impact on others if for no other reason than you researched Pandemic Flu. You also are self reliant and self motivated. Otherwise you would just be watching tv. This is a great website, I have learned a great deal. 

Should you flee your home or shelter in place? 

I will discuss the variables I considered, and explain why we will shelter in place in a suburb of a metropolitan area. 

I invite your comments, I could always change my mind should circumstances dictate.

I.  Fleeing to a rural refuge

This is recommended by Dr. Grattan Woodson, whose text I highly respect. It is in the "Avian Information" portion of this website in PDF filed by mondegreen.

We have relocated during several hurricanes.The last several we started to shelter in place for the following reasons:

A. Travel hazards

   Do not assume (even subconsciously) that travel will be as usual. I saw Interstate 10 backed up as far as the eye could see. In Houston evacuees ran out of gas on the interstate.

     Your family is most vulnerable to  armed attack while driving. Someone stranded due to car breakdown may believe it is perfectly reasonable to kill you and take your SUV. Plan for this, consider night evac.

     Are you prepared to camp out is roads are blocked?

     Will there be quarrantines or road blocks (Legal or vigalante)?

     If you do travel, the following helped me:

     Evaluate travel choke points. Merging Interstate, bridges, etc.  

     If you are more than one tankful of gas from your destination, pre-plan. Store gas with someone you trust enroute (Giving them half is the normal payment). If you carry gas, refill as soon as possible then discard the plastic 5 gallon jug which is extremely flammable when empty.

      Beware someone may have taken your cabin and will defend it with deadly force. 

      If taking more than one car, be sure to have CB radio, FM radio or some other non cell phone communication if separated. Also have meeting points if all else fails.

        Secondary roads are preferable in mass evacuations for speed, but more likely to ambush or security problems. Realize many people can not read maps, and always travel the same route. Some communities may set up their own quarrantines by armed roadblocks along rural roads. This happened in 1918.

B. Known destination

      Do not leave home unless you have a known preplanned destination. This is not the time to shop for a site, unless you are very capable at survival and travelling alone.

C.  Supply limitations

      You will be limited to what you can load in your car, truck or trailer
and what has been prepositioned at your destination. Everything else is left, so you should give some of it away to neighbors who will stay.
If you stay home you can store more, and not be splitting your assets between two locations. Remember, you must always have enough supplies at home in case  your family contracts Pandemic Flu prohibiting you from travelling despite all your great plans for the country cabin.

D.   The sick do not tolerate travel- what if your family gets sick enroute?
Sanitation en route will be thrid world standards at rest areas etc.

E.   Pandemic Flu will not be a single discrete event. Any Pandemic will continue over  a long time. Unless you permanently relocate, how long will you stay?

F. Social support-You know people in your community, your kids have friends, you are familiar with the area. You know the danger zones.

G. Psychological factors-Didn't Dorothy say "There's no place like home". Do not underestimate this psychological factor if you get the Pandemic Flu.

H. Economics- How long can you abandon your business or job?Will you flee, come back, then get the pandemic flu?

I. Fuel- you save all the fuel in your vehicles. This can be siphoned for your generators, although I like the solar system I saw on this website and want to get one.

J. Criminals can travel anywhere you can-

I attended a citizens Police class. We went for several classes to the various operations. One participant asked the officer which zone was the most dangerous. I never forgot the officer's reply- "You can get killed in any zone. Anywhere you can drive to, so can the criminals"

Many criminals fled New Orleans and terrorized rural areas of Louisiana, until the residents responded in force. 

I read the quote yesterday on this site from a Government official in Iowa "A pandemic, by definition, means you are on your own." We will shelter in place, unless the Pandemic is specifically limted to our geographic area.