This post has little to do with gardening so if that is why you are here...sorry. I'm going to have a little fun with this and do a little play by play as the events unfold during this SHTF scenario. That is what T-Rex is all about, practicing to see if you are ready for a disaster or whatever may come along to mess up our comfortable lives.
Warning in advance: This post seems to have turned out a little long so if anybody actually reads the whole thing...Thanks for sticking in there!
For more information on T-Rex visit AmRRON
The following is based on fictions news reports and radio messages.
I repeat this is all only an emergency preparedness exercise.
This is not based on real events (not yet...).
Monday August 2, 2015
Being a part of the AmRRON and Radio Free Redoubt family has it's perks. We are notified of world events that never make it into the main stream media, yesterday and today I received messages that showed a potential to turn bad.
Saturday, 1 Aug
(RFR) The government of Puerto Rico announced this morning all banks will be
closed on Monday until further notice in order to conduct
“an orderly restructuring of its $73 billion in debt”.
It reassures all Puerto Ricans that“planned and simple” measures will have
little impact on most and urges everyone to carry on with business as usual.
POSTED: SUN 20150802 2110Z
Sunday morning, 2 Aug: Reports of panic buying and scattered looting
are reported in the Puerto Rico capital of San Juan.
Sunday afternoon, 2 Aug:
Reports of widespread looting in the upscale San Juan neighborhoods of
Miramar and Condado. Governor Padilla orders the Puerto Rico State
Guard into San Juan to restore order. Troops are seen arriving in San
Juan within 30 minutes of the order. An 8pm to 6am city-wide curfew is
imposed effective immediately.
Wednesday August 5, 2015
Amazing, not a word of the rioting, looting or unrest in Puerto Rico until... it affected the US and global stock markets. It started off with so little information that things quickly spiraled out of control with so much bad information and speculation our country was sent into a panic. I thank God for AmRRON and the faithful operators who passed vetted information via the internet as long as it hold out and over radio if that fails.
Sunday night in U.S., 2 Aug (Monday morning in China):
In the China Stock Market, the Shanghai Composite Index drops 65% within
the first 30 minutes of the Market’s Monday morning opening. Trading is
immediately halted for the day. In Japan, the Nikkei Index loses 45% of
its value before trading is halted.
POSTED: MON 20150803 0430Z
Sunday late night in U.S., 2 Aug (Monday morning in Europe):
European markets announce they will not open today. Other markets,
including the Dow and Nasdaq quickly follow suit.
POSTED: MON 20150803 2000Z
The Puerto Rico government announces the details of their debt
restructuring plan, which includes various austerity measures and a
“bail-in” strategy involving the expropriation of funds from bank
deposits and pensions.
POSTED: TUES 20150804 1300Z
Tuesday 6:00am PDT, 4 Aug:
Global stock markets remain closed today. Reports of very long lines at
banks and ATMs in Greece, Italy, Portugal and Caribbean neighborhoods on
the east coast of the U.S.
POSTED: TUES 20150804 1730Z
Tuesday 10:30am PDT, 4 Aug:
In San Juan, Puerto Rico, protests become increasingly violent.
Store fronts are smashed and fires break out throughout the city.
Hundreds of State Guard troops desert. Those who remain in San Juan are
openly challenged by the rioters.
POSTED: TUES 20150804 2315
Tuesday 4:15pm PDT, 4 Aug:
DHS changes the Terror-Alert Status level from Elevated (yellow) to High
(orange), citing a marked increase in communications traffic among
undisclosed terrorist organizations. Puerto Rico Governor Padilla
appears unexpectedly on live TV from the CBC News studio in Toronto. In
the interview, he makes a plea to his people for peace. He has also
asked for military aid from the US Coast Guard currently stationed at
the former Ramey Air Force Base.
POSTED: WED 20150805 1300Z
Wednesday 6:00am PDT, 5 Aug:
Global stock markets remain closed again today. Bank holidays are
declared in Italy and Portugal. Cuba announces it is ready to deploy
troops to Puerto Rico to aid in restoring peace.
POSTED: WED 20150805 1930Z
Wednesday 12:30pm PDT, 5 Aug:
DHS changes the Terror-Alert Status level from High (orange) to Severe
(red), citing “credible intelligence” of unspecified but potentially
imminent attacks by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) “against
members of the military, law enforcement, the U.S. Government and the
American public”. The alert stated this attack may be a destabilizing
action to take advantage of the current global financial crisis.
POSTED: WED 20150804 0600Z
Wednesday 11:15pm PDT, 5 Aug:
Localized but intense rioting reported in the urban centers of Seattle,
Portland, Oakland, Chicago, St. Louis, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, Atlanta
and Miami. Many of the masked rioters are noted to be wearing identical
red or black shirts. Many others appear to be members of Organized
Criminal Gangs (OCG).
Thursday morning August 6, 2015
Wow this is getting serious! Rioting and looting only a few
hundred miles from here in my quiet small town. We have been so spoiled here in the Pacific Northwest, we
have so few disasters in our area we just have no experience preparing for them. I'm 55 years old and I remember only two occasions we were without power for more than an hour or two, a fluke wind storm that blew through in the early 60's and a snowstorm in February of 1969 that dropped 3 feet of snow, and our town shuts down with 2 inches!
Society in the US has been civil for as long as anyone alive can remember, couple that with the comfort
technology has brought and well we just are not ready for anything like what is going
on all over our country right now.
Time to stop and think about what would happen if this gets close enough or serious
enough to affect us. In case of power failure I checked the gas in all the vehicles,
propane, gas and water in the RV storage tanks, made sure the "no power" cooking
appliances were in working order and filled all the water tanks. Just basic stuff
because who knows this could all blow over tomorrow.
POSTED: THURS 20150806 1525Z
FLASH MESSAGE:Thursday 8:25am PDT, 6 Aug:
Bomb detonations occurred in the downtown areas of several US cities,
all within the span of 10 minutes of 11am EDT. Cities include New York
City, Baltimore, Cleveland, Charlotte, Houston, Kansas City, Denver,
Phoenix, San Diego and Sacramento. Number of casualties is unknown but
is expected to be high. Eyewitnesses in several cities stated it
appeared to be a delivery truck stopped in a busy intersection which
detonated.
POSTED: THURS 20150806 1545Z
FLASH MESSAGE: Thursday 8:40am PDT, 6 Aug:
A large bomb detonation occurred on the Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge on
US Route 93 near the Hoover Dam. The center span was destroyed causing
the bridge to collapse into the Colorado River. Eyewitnesses stated
they observed a white semi-trailer truck abruptly stop in the middle of
the span and then detonate.
POSTED: THURS 20150806 1630Z
FLASH MESSAGE:Thursday 9:30am PDT, 6 Aug:
The president appears on national TV and, at the advice of DHS, orders
an immediate nation-wide shutdown of all long-haul, short-haul and local
delivery trucks with a gross vehicle weight rating of 10,000lbs or
having 3 or more axles. Furthermore all railroads are ordered to shut
down all routes which pass within the city limits of any city having a
population greater than 100,000. He acknowledges the disruption this
will cause to the timely delivery of goods to market, but he makes an
assurance that federal, state and local agencies will provide relief in
a timely manner, and these necessary transportation restrictions will be
eased as soon as the threat subsides.
POSTED: THURS 20150806 1900Z
Thursday 12:00pm PDT, 6 Aug:
Gangs organize and join forces. Estimates are that four very large
gangs have formed from Olympia to Bellingham. Similar gang coalitions
are formed in the New York boroughs. Police and any other perceived
authority are openly attacked. Very little presence of Law Enforcement
or National guard. Multiple prison and jail breaks.
Thursday 4:30pm PDT, 6 Aug:
Reports of violent Organized Criminal Gang (OCG) activity increases and
becomes more widespread. OCGs seizing stores and other ‘supply’ points.
Expansion into suburban neighborhoods with multiple firefights reported
between citizens and gangs.
Thursday evening August 6, 2015
So much for the idea that this would all blow over. It's late afternoon, the news keeps getting worse and I need to do something... think I'll start canning a bunch of the stuff in my freezer. I've been putting that job off far too long anyway.
Thursday 9:15pm PDT, 6 Aug:
Action paralysis is apparent among most local and county governments.
Many sheriffs vow to protect their citizens, but have limited manpower.
Sheriffs asking for volunteers to form posses. Some sheriffs are
asking local militias and state guard for assistance, but very localized
response.
Friday 3:15am PDT, 7 Aug:
Reports of brownouts, explosions, gunfire, and general rioting coming in
from dozens of cities, mostly on the eastern seaboard, the Pacific
Northwest, California, Arizona and Texas. Organized Criminal Gangs
(OCG) have taken over news agencies in the metro Seattle, New York,
Houston and Phoenix areas, claiming operational control of those
regions. Warnings are issued to citizens to join them or face
consequences. Enforcement of orders given to surrender all food and
weapons to the organized criminal elements. Citizens are promised food
as reward for joining them.
Friday 4:40am PDT, 7 Aug:
Reports of several power failures now in much of the country. Scattered
reports of citizens fleeing Organized Criminal Gang (OCG) controlled
areas. Gangs pursuing and overtaking vulnerable evacuees attempting to
leave the cities. Heavily armed and organized criminal elements engaged
in firefights with National Guard, Police and citizens.
Friday morning August 7, 2015
On battery power now, electricity went out at 9am this morning so I'll keep the updates short with only a few pictures. With the internet down and the way things are going I may never get to post this but I'll keep it up as best as I can anyway.
With prompting and education from Radio Free Redoubt and Partisan Radio podcasts I built a solar powered battery back up station for my radio and laptop out of a couple of almost new power wheelchair batteries, a plastic bin and a lot of the "make due with what you have" mentality from my Grandmother who lived in Oklahoma with my Grandfather and their 6 kids when the depression began. They ended up in Oregon after working their way through California. Anybody see Grapes of Wrath? That could have been my family's story. Rabbit trail....back to the subject...
The battery box, radio station and cook station are pictured below.
Better go get some more of the freezer stuff canned using the rocket stove before it starts thawing out and cook some yummy venison back strap with gravy in the sun oven.
Thank God again I listened and built the battery box. It enabled me to receive updated information on events nation wide via Ham radio. AmRRON put out a SOI (signal operating instructions) so that everyone knew when and where to tune to get the latest information.Wouldn't you know it, right when I wanted to hear what was going on the atmosphere conditions interfered with radio reception and I wouldn't have head anything but static if I had to rely on voice communications. During practice nets we learned how to connect using digital messages and a software that can receive and decode even under very bad conditions. I became hooked on digital last year during the AmRRON T-Rex 2014 when I was able to receive messages using only a portable shortwave radio and my laptop. Today with a multi band ham radio, a good antenna and a little more experience as an operator it could turn out be a real live saver, without digital Ham radio I would have been in the dark.
Friday 9:36am PDT 7 Aug:
Radio message received from a station in Missouri: Unconfirmed reports of looting in Houston, TX area. Armed Dallas shopkeepers exchanging gunfire with looters with casualties.
Friday 9:58am PDT 7 Aug:
Radio message received from a station in Idaho: Reports of widespread power, internet and cell phone outages across eastern and central time zones.
Friday late evening August 7, 2015
What a day! Mediocrity has been rampant in America but I can say this - when something big comes along we usually do it bigger than anyone else and hope to get it right. Well looks like when the **** hits the fan we can do that in a big way too!
National update:
News reports from the AmRRON network have been coming in all day even with the poor radio conditions the Hams have been doing a splendid job of getting information out. I've received reports of a Sheriff in Northern California asking for assistance from local militia to protect from the criminal gangs pouring out of the cities, persistent power, phone and internet outages, a truck exploding on the freeway near Chattanooga Tennessee and a sizable force of organized criminals flying the Islamic flag in Arizona. I received a few more messages that were pretty garbled but the gist of them was the same, when Americans fall apart they do it in a big way.
National news isn't the only news, there is local. Along with keeping in touch with other members of our church via 2 meter ham radio I've been monitoring the local emergency agencies and it isn't good. Our area hasn't had the widespread rioting and looting, just a few unhappy that their state debit cards don't work gathering at the court house and state offices causing a bit of trouble and trouble finding a place for all the travelers seeking refuge from the interstate freeway that runs right through the middle of town. The imminent danger here is with the wildfires. There are two very large fires in the county and when everything started spiraling out of control first the support people left to take care of their families, then a few firefighters jumped ship leaving the dedicated to an impossible and dangerous task, then the helicopters and planes stopped flying and now the fires are monsters. With the current wind direction we are directly in the fire's path so I better get busy loading the van and trailer and get ready to evacuate. Keep our country in your prayers, only God can save us now.
Saturday afternoon August 8, 2015
This morning was crazy to say the least. I have been helping with an emergency communications training course at a local church with about 12 scheduled for every Saturday morning in August. We decided to go ahead with the class this morning as we were sure there would be a lot of questions due to the circumstances. I pulled into the parking lot an was astounded by the number of cars, there must be something else going on, maybe a prayer meeting? As we walked in the "class" had grown to almost 150! Radios of every kind were in the hands of would be operators who had no clue how to use them in a real life disaster and were desperate for a source of communication. We took a minute to regroup... The two of us couldn't teach that many how to operate their wide variety of radios in a couple of hours so our previous students became the teachers aides. We sent someone who lived close and owned a portable generator to fetch it so we could power the church copier to copy as many frequency list handouts as possible, broke up into small groups and proceeded to help as many as we could in the short time we had. We grouped the newcomers into radio type, there was everything from the walkie talkie like FRS radios, handheld 2 meter ham radios, shortwave to antique tube type armature radios. Splitting them up and pairing them with appropriate teachers made it much simpler to field questions and get some real practical operating instructions in their hands. My partner in this class is the brains of the group, a real teacher and experienced ham operating and working on radios since a kid. Me well I'm still just getting my feet wet but I found out a little knowledge is way better than none!
Saturday evening August 8, 2015
Atmospheric conditions continue to mess with radio reception, few messages today were complete but still able to copy enough to know things are not getting better on the national scene. Along with the bad conditions someone thought it would be funny to interfere every time someone tried to send a message and others sending bogus messages. Sometimes ya just gotta shake your head and trudge on, too much to work to do to waste time fighting against every jerk that comes along. The messages from non reliable resources would be hard to spot if you don't practice and get to know the procedure and details in the messages. Kind of like spotting a phishing email, there is always something just not right if you take the time to look.
The fires in our area continue to advance out of control and it's looking more and more like we will have to evacuate. If it wasn't the fires it would probably be the criminal element that seems to be invading from the interstate freeway. Today's radio reports confirmed my suspicion as Lake Tahoe, Nevada was taken over by gangs. Arizona is having much difficulty along the freeway with criminal gangs. Add that to the previously reported activity in other parts of the nation and we will probably evacuate soon before the violence makes it here from California or the Portland area.
Saturday late evening August 8, 2015
This is it, we have received confirmation it's time to initiate plan B and Bug Out.
Radio messages confirmed that FEMA and the United Nations are taking administrative control over the United States.
***WE ARE THE GOVERNMENT AND WE ARE HERE TO HELP***
And if you believe that I have a rain forest in Death Valley to sell you.
Pray for guidance from above, the fight has only begun.
The end
This has been a test of the God fearing, Liberty loving, Patriot
emergency radio operators community.
I repeat this is only a test .
Thank you to all the AmRRON operators and support personnel for this year's T-Rex, personally I really enjoyed it and to JJS - "the lady from Oregon" is almost a real Ham operator now!
Although the scenario is purely fiction enough reality is built in to get a person thinking on how events could really play out given today's real life news.
On that thought Its time to get busy, I've got things to do.....
