The Walking Dead: Urban Survival Scenario

How To Leave The City In An Emergency

You are in the city either visiting, living, or working there. Something happens that makes it impossible for you to stay where you are currently at. Maybe it is civil unrest, a natural disaster, or a riot. You need to get out fast.

Driving out of the city has become impossible due to everyone trying to leave. So you are stuck leaving by foot.

What do you do?

Considering recent events, this isn't too far out of the realm of possibility. Either way, it is always best to be prepared for whatever scenario comes your way. The first rule is to understand your environment. This will supersede all other rules if the environment dictates it.

Tactics will change based on the situation, whether it be a natural disaster or a civil unrest type situation, that you are trying to escape from. Each scenario is unique. Escaping from a flood will be different than escaping from societal collapse. Tactics will also change if you are being targeted or hunted, have other people in your group with you, have small children with you, or whether you are on your own. Take what you need from this and adapt it to fit your needs and individual situation. Also never travel without water and a paper map.

NOTE: This substack was co-authored and signed off on by a former SERE instructor and survivalist, Colonel Tim Kirk.

The Hard Facts

Most likely, you will never see societal collapse coming until it has already happened. Like cooking a frog in a pot, it will be done in gradual degrees until it is on your doorstep.

Fact #1 Most people are unprepared for any type of emergency. People who don’t have will target those who do have.

Fact #2 When crime is legalized, criminals are no longer criminals. What wasn’t permissible before has suddenly become permissible.

Fact #3 Eventually the drugs will run out. This means that both legal and illegal drugs will become scarce. Most people are on some type of medication or drugs, especially those suffering from severe mental illness.

Fact #4 As one link in public services collapse, so will others follow. Our world is so interconnected. We no longer have stand alone systems. So if the power goes out, people stop going to work. They need to protect their homes and families. Services will stop quickly and the effects will cascade fast.

Fast #5 Local gangs, groups of criminals, and cartels will thrive in this environment. Be prepared for both organized and random violence.

Fact #6 We have ethnic divisions in this country as well as political ones. These will spark racial and political wars. Historically, when social order collapses, people divide into tribes and sadly the color of their skin becomes their uniform.

Fact #7 People will seek to gain power, resources, and influence during this time... no matter how temporary they may be.

The solution to most of these issues is having a strong local community.

Urban Navigation

The Blocking Effect — Blockades that are placed to stop you from passing through an area or going a specific route.

The Funnel Effect — The structures and layout of a city that will funnel traffic into specific areas or regions. Many cities are built like this specifically. Atlanta and Chicago are good examples of this.

Spot Map — A map that shows you high traffic and high crime rate areas.

Having a good paper map of the city will help you navigate blockades and funnels effectively. If you can get your hands on a spot map, this will help you navigate through the city and any number of danger zones which have high crime rates. Also be aware of construction zones before you set out. These can cause obstructions to your route (like a bridge being out).

City Layout

City Core — This is the area where all the main streets intersect. High-rises and skyscrapers are centered around this area.

City Perimeter — The area surrounding the city core. These are usually non-industrial businesses and shops. This is a good place to quickly find food and water supplies. Try to stay out of the shopping centers and grocery stores. These areas will be trouble.

Industrial Area — The area outlying your City Perimeter. This will consist of your industrious large businesses. Transportation in these areas will consist of highways and railways. These buildings will contain a lot of resources, tools, gasoline, and fuel.

Residential Area And Suburbs — This is the area outside of the cities. They are where you will find housing developments and neighborhoods and services for the people living in those areas.

Know your street patterns, whether they follow linear or non-linear patterns. Linear patterns are easier to navigate but have a long line of sight. So you can see what is going on for long distances. The disadvantage is that other people can see you as well. Non-linear patterns are harder to navigate and are easier to get turned around while traversing. The advantage is they make it harder for others to surveil your movements.

Walking Through The City: Mindset Matters

Blend In

If people are dressed a certain way, try to change your appearance to match theirs. If you find yourself in a riot or in the middle of civil unrest, match their emotions. If they are yelling or chanting, yell and chant what they are. If they are moving in a certain direction, that is the direction you go as well until you can separate yourself from the crowd. If they are carrying signs, get yourself a sign.

Get the idea? Your job is to disappear into the crowd. Hunch your shoulders. Don't stand up straight. Don't record people with your phone. Don't be looking around. Change the way you walk. Make yourself as invisible as possible. Act like you know exactly what is going on and you aren't worried about it.

Note: If you see police moving towards the crowd, they won't protect you. Don't assume that they will. You are part of the crowd. Their first priority is to disperse said crowd. You aren't innocent. They see you as part of the problem.

Use Props

I mentioned getting hold of a sign if the people around you are carrying signs. Seriously, ask your nearest protestor for a sign or where to find them. You are one of them. They'll help you.

The biggest prop you can use is either your cell phone, a broken cell phone case, and/or ear buds. These are universal signs of leave me alone. Don't look like you are filming though. Act like you are talking to someone, receiving messages, listening to music, or trying to find your next check point. Don't actually use your phone or listen to music though. These are props. They are meant to disguise the fact that you are actually paying attention. Use the universal signals of "leave me the f*** alone" as needed.

Weapons

The biggest mistake you could make is to start shooting in the middle of a crowd. This is going to make you stick out like a sore thumb. Either everyone will run away and you become a target for police or they will attack you en masse. Either way, this isn't a good scenario.

Quiet and unobtrusive weapons are better.

However, the best solution is to not escalate violence. But make sure that you are doing this in such a way as you also don't become a victim. Your ego and pride are not worth the fallout from creating a violent situation. You do not need to be right. You do not need to "win." Keep your mind on what is most important — your pride or surviving the situation you are in.

Get Out of The Crowd As Soon As Possible

Situational awareness will help you. Move with the crowd. Don't go against the flow. Instead, move in a diagonal manner. As soon as an opportunity presents itself, get out of the crowd as soon as you can without drawing attention. Being a straggler isn't a bad thing. Look for possible exit routes.

Social media and what people are posting can help here. Keep in mind that police will be closing off routes.

Use The Magic Words

I used this a lot during Covid. Tell people that "Everything is good. Everything is fine. I am okay." Once you say those magic words, keep moving. Don't stop. Most people don't know how to react to someone repeating that everything is fine when they know it isn't. By the time their brain catches up to their intentions or job, you are hopefully out of the immediate area and out of their line of sight. Give yourself a little more time by making the other person pause and think for a few seconds. Adopt a "I’m okay. You are okay." mindset.

Move With Purpose

Act like you aren't a babe lost in the woods. Walk like you know what you are doing and where you are going, even if you don't. Attitude and the way you carry yourself can really make a difference. If you walk like you have a job to do that you need to get to quickly, people won't generally stop you. Moving with a purpose, even if you are faking that purpose, will go a long way.

Don't Get Trapped In Tight Spaces

Don't find yourself trapped with your back up against a building or at a dead end street. Make sure you have plenty of room. Make sure that you can keep moving. Don't walk down narrow places where you can't easily move. You need to put space between yourself and everyone else. Having multiple options to get out quick is ideal.

No One Messes With The Help

It may seem counterintuitive but no one messes with city workers or construction workers. They move about the city largely ignored. If city services are out, then it is automatically assumed that city workers are there to help. Grab a bright colored vest, a hard hat, and a clipboard. Congratulations! You are now in the power, water, and sewer business. Act like you belong there, are concentrating at your task at hand, and have a job to do.

The Two Types of Escape

Heavy Escape

This is where you have a vehicle to assist you in leaving your area. This is ideal as you are able to carry more supplies. Be sure to prepare your packing with the idea of you having to abandon your vehicle.

Light Escape

This is where you have to leave on foot or maybe on bicycle. What you can carry or, in the worst case scenario, what you already have on you is all the supplies you have available.

In each scenario, be sure to dress appropriately. Comfortable footwear, clothes appropriate to your area and weather, and being able to blend in to the environment should be considered.

Do not expect electronic navigation, cell phone service, emergency services, power, water, or internet to be available. Be prepared to work and travel without these services. Having a note card with phone numbers and addresses of those you need to contact is important.

When Do You Decide to Leave?

When you decide to leave will determine what you can take with you, whether you use a vehicle or not, and the routes you take. There are 4 stages to evacuation.

Stage #1: Awareness

You have become aware that a situation is incoming, whether it is planned civil unrest or a weather incident. Whether or not the seriousness of the situation is communicated is irrelevant. This is the first point you are aware that a situation is coming.

This is the most ideal time to decide if you are going to leave if you are going to try to leave by car or vehicle.

Stage #2: Panic Exodus

At this point, people have become aware of the extent of the danger. Roads have become clogged. Many people have decided to leave all at the same time and the current transportation routes cannot accommodate them.

Prepare for the possibility of starting out in a vehicle but will be finishing your escape on foot.

Stage #3: Voluntarily or Forced Evacuation

The situation either calls for you to leave due to immediate danger or local law enforcement has ordered a mandatory evacuation. You will not be able to take everything you want with you. You may also be leaving the area empty handed. Having a bug out bag with you at all times is ideal in this situation.

Stage #4: Survival

Safely leaving is no longer an option. The major evacuations have already happened. The people left in the area all have one thing on their mind. Survival. These people have become just as much as a danger as the situation you are escaping from. At this point, your personal safety and protection should be considered in terms of a higher priority. In other words, you might need to carry a gun and you will want to travel as discreetly as possible.

If the immediate danger from the situation has mostly passed, you may just want to hunker down where you are. If this isn’t an option, then you need to consider your route carefully.

In these types of situations, you have only two friends — fire and community.

There is safety in numbers. Present a unified front no matter the size of your community. Hang together or you’ll hang separately.

As for the former, ensure that you have multiple methods of fire starting and fire control. Mastering fire is decisive in promoting your long term viability. Fire is civilization when there is none. It is your heat, your food, your clean water, your laundry, and your late-night TV. Morale will depend on your ability to assert and maintain fire mastery, at home or while moving.