The 7 Day Challenge: DAY 3 (THURSDAY)

Welcome to the 7 Day Challenge. For 7 days, we are testing our Emergency Preparedness and Food Storage Plans. Each day will bring a NEW mock emergency, or situation that will test at least one of the reasons “WHY” we strive to be prepared! REMEMBER: No going to a store, or spending any money for the entire 7 days!

Your country has just suffered a severe terrorist attack. A series of nuclear bombs were fired off simultaneously, causing an Electromagnetic Pulse (EMP). This has rendered all electricity and electrical devices in your entire country to be useless. This includes lights, cell phones, computers, vehicles with electrical ignitions, generators, and most municipal water pumps. Today is going to be rough … READ THE TASKS AND LIMITATIONS CAREFULLY but adapt where work and family situations require if needed..

Today’s Tasks:

Cook and clean up all of your meals without power or water (powerless cooking ideas)
Walk or ride a bike anywhere you need to go today
Entertain yourself (and your kids if applicable) without electricity the entire day
Keep your family warm (or cool) as furnace blowers and A/C will not work without electricity
At some point today (make it a surprise for your family) you see a pack of looters making their way through your neighborhood. You have fifteen minutes to collect your grab list items (things you wouldn’t want damaged or stolen) and one meal worth of food to eat (72 hour kits would be great for this). Evacuate on foot to a nearby park and stay away from your home for at least 2 hours until the looters have moved on. (Even if you think you can defend yourself, this is a practice exercise to use your kits and evacuation plan)
Jot down some ideas on how you would live and function in a sustained post-EMP environment

Today’s Limitations:

For this day, and ALL days of the challenge: no spending money, no going to stores, and no restaurants.
Your fridge food has gone bad already, but the freezer food is still ok.
No electronics. This means iPods, cell phones, laptops, ANYTHING. They are all fried, even generators are destroyed. You may only get online to discuss the challenge 😉
You can only drive if your car has a non-electric ignition (i.e. 1960’s or older) … unless you are going to work and it’s too far to walk
You aren’t able to communicate with your family, did you have a family plan in place?
Remember … toilets require water to “flush”.

Advanced Tasks:

Grind wheat by hand and use it in a recipe today.
SUPER ADVANCED (for those who think this is too easy): Your neighborhood is in ruins, stay away from home the entire day without your car, with all of your grab list items, and eating only out of your disaster kit. (If you do this one you get 5 bonus points)

REMEMBER, TOMORROW’S CHALLENGE WILL BE DIFFERENT.
How long would you have lasted under these conditions?

Make sure your fill out today’s Report Card to see how well you did, to keep track of areas you can improve, to remember things you need to do, and things you need to buy. Use the data to make a game plan to take you to the next level of preparedness, whatever that may be.