Surviving an EMP/Solar Flare catastrophe.
The terrible truth.
Surviving an EMP/Solar Flare catastrophe. Is that possible? Possibly for a very few. For the vast majority, no. Not probable, not possible. That is the horrific truth.
The vast majority of the Earths population is concentrated in large urban areas. Places entirely dependent upon functional infrastructure for Water, Sewer, Electricity.
Regions Entirely dependent upon the extensive trade networks to ship in food and basic supplies. In most cases, these supplies would be exhausted within ten days with no means of resupply.
In the case of a coronal mass ejection- Solar flare event that affected the entire planet.
The death toll would be, I contend in the Billions within the first year.
Those areas of the third world nowhere near large population centers capable of growing their own food, are the most likely contenders for survival.
The vast majority of the Northern Hemisphere won't survive the first winter. Those with wood stoves, wood to burn. Shelter, stored food and located in secluded inaccessible rural regions have the only chance.
The dependence of the industrial world on world trade for food supply alone would guarantee mass famine death. Winter, with no manner of heating in urban areas would guarantee mass death. Non functional hospitals and medical infrastructure would guarantee mass deaths.
All of that without accounting for the violence, rioting etc that will be occuring.
How does one prepare for that scenario?
You cannot.
In the case of an EMP attack.
The conditions listed above, can in the best case scenario be much more local to regional events.
Provided the EMP attack does not include an nuclear exchange, your chances for survival increase, out side of population centers.
There will be no functional infrastructure, no electric grid, no electronics. Modern vehicles , built after 1973, with computers and or Electronic ignition modules will not function.
Old points style spark distributors, and Mechanical Magneto systems will work.
My recommendation would be,
Avoid population centers.
If you can,
Run like hell to third world warmer regions.
If you cannot, establishing a community with survivors is your only hope for long term survival.
Pray for the grace of GOD.
Have real skills. Medical, IE EMT, emergency medicine, military medic training, midwifery, herbalism. Skills strangers will need and be willing to accept you into their community for.
Black smithing, Veterinary training.
Agriculture skills.
Nothing else from our modern world would be relevant with the
Possible exception of some skills with mechanics, steam engines etc.
I would not be surprised if eighty percent of the over all population perished within two years in the case of a global Carrington event.
It would make the walking dead look like a vacation.
More akin to 28 days later in urban regions as desperate starving people did terrible desperate things.
References and Recommended reading.
(1) https://www.swpc.noaa.gov/phenomena/coronal-mass-ejections
(2) https://solarscience.msfc.nasa.gov/CMEs.shtml
(3) https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fspas.2020.00043
(4) https://earthsky.org/space/how-likely-space-super-storms-solar-flares-carrington-event/
Regarding preparing, surviving such catastrophic circumstances;
This is by no means a comprehensive list!
(1) https://idoc.pub/documents/us-army-soldiers-manual-of-common-tasks-warrior-skills-level-1-k6nq6511d9lw
(2) The Ranger Handbook
https://irp.fas.org/doddir/army/ranger.pdf
(3) Long Range Surveillance Unit Operations.
https://archive.org › details › FM3-55x93
(4) The U.S. Army Special Forces Medical Hand Book
https://archive.org/details/milmanual-st-31-91b--us-army-special-forces-medical-handbook
(5) Survival Evasion Resistance Escape manual
https://archive.org/details/AFH10644SurvivalEvasionResistanceEscapeSERE
(6) Back To Basics , basic skills.
https://archive.org/details/abigail-r.-gehring-back-to-basics-a-complete-guide-to-traditional-skills-third-edition
(7) Boy Scouts manuals.
https://archive.org/details/boy-scouts-books
Excellent post.
I would predict many of those initial deaths - within a week - would be from the suicides of those thrown into fatal depression spirals over loss of digital lives/social media.
Not to mention those SSRI addicts, that will spiral, when existing stockpiles are exhausted.
While there's no way to prepare for/prevent this type of event, you can (as you pointed out) prepare for the aftermath. One thing that can be done is learn to be comfortable with discomfort. This is a skill our ancestors not only understood but lived- one that has all but been erased in todays screen tapping, soft doughy societies.
If the thought of voluntarily subjecting yourself to being cold, hungry, thirsty, sleep deprived or devoid of tech, then you have a higher risk of perishing, than those 3rd worlders, who live that way on a daily basis. Likewise many of us vets have been through one or more survival schools/training courses and are - on the whole - mentally primed to deal with total loss/failure better, because we've experienced it multiple times.
As with most things, we have created the circumstance of our own demise and when it happens will blame anything and everything else, for it.
Too pessimistic. You forgot cannibalism. At least 75% of cannibals would survive.
I’m ☘️ so I get to say this.
See 1847.
Stop being so negative and look on the bright side.