Okay, the zombie apocalypse has arrived. What is in your Z.A.S.K., that is to say, your Zombie Apocalypse Survival Kit?

My kit would be a backpack.

It would include that first aide kit you mentioned, along with about half of a gross of shotgun shells. I do own a shot gun (Remington 1100) and I’m sure I could get that much ammo, considering my home & near-by family.

The backpack would also include baby wipes, a book, a quart of bottled water, a 5th of whiskey, and a camera.

@kenmc: Interesting choices! The whiskey could be useful for many, many things, not just getting drunk enough to forget that all your friends are zombies. ;) What book would you bring and why that book?

@KatawaGrey Well, I think I’d bring 2 books. On The Road by Jack Kerouac because it’s my favorite book. And the other one would be a comprehensive guide to survivalism & living out-of-doors.

Well. First of all, I had to look up the specifics of zombies on wikipedia.
My survival kit would be a backpack.
It would have a canister of salt easily accessible in the side pocket, since in some cultures, it is believed that salt can return a zombie to the grave. This, however, would be a last resort. I would also have a journal in which I could record my experience fighting for my life. In the backpack I would also have a canteen or two full of water, and as many sandwiches as I could fit. My weapon would be a shotgun with a chainsaw bayonet attached, and a sword on a hip belt. I do own a sword and a chainsaw. Also on the belt would be a large knife, because you can’t have enough weapons. I would have lots of ammo in the backpack. I would also have a first aid kit with gauze, bandages, and carbon peroxide, among a tourniquet and some alcohol. For medical purposes, of course.
That’s really all that I can think of at the moment.

A couple of notes: I have in my closet a fisheman’s vest that i used to use on field trips (to store maps, compass, stuff like that) and that plus my backpack are my storage containers. My backpack has two thermal pockets and has a lot of room.

Here’s the list:

In the vest pockets: Map of my city, compass, school pencil case (including scissors and a calculator), notebook, solar battery charger, mp3 player, cell phone, LED flashlight, swiss army knife and foldable cutlery, foldable glass, pocket watch, Zippo lighter, nunchaku (I made them one summer, they’re not so good looking but they get the job done).

In the backpack: roll of duct tape, rope, lighter fuel, copper wire, diagonal pliers, rechargeable batteries, screwdriver kit, handsaw, vynil glue, a blanket (possibly synthetic), netbook with Backtrack Linux, camcorder, PSP, NDS, headphones, replacement headphones, money and credit card (might be useful, who knows), food sanitizer, disinfectant, bandages, painkillers, anti-acid, aspirin, plastic plate, a soap bottle, thermal shirt and pants, a box of tissues, two boxes of cereal bars, 6 tins of preserved meat, 6 tins of preserved tuna, a bottle with 1 liter of water (kept in the thermal pocket on the side, which is designed for bottles), standard 52 cards deck, D&D dice (one of each), my steel swordstick (stuck to the side with duct tape), The Hitchiker’s guide to the galaxy (english hardcover version).

Outfit: T-shirt, sweater, leather jacket, vest, sturdy denim pants, military boots, leather gloves, glasses with sunglasses attachment, bandana, elbowpads and kneepads.

Also, assuming i have enough time to actually buy them: bowie knife (on belt), Carbon fiber baseball bat (stuck alongside the swordstick). There’s no way to fastly obtain firearms in italy so i’m assuming i’ll find one eventually but i’m not taking it into account, because i can’t shoot.

well. i would too bring a backpack.
inside would be at least 2000 round .22 (suprising cheep down here 22,99 for 1000)
My hunting Knife
My dad’s WW I Bayonet
at least a quart of water (same as kenmc)
extrar food (such as crackers)
and the book “the zombie surival giude”
Oh and my .22 long rifle with 3 10 round Clips (i only have 2 but i can easly get anoter one)
if there is some one comming with us do we also tell what they would bring?

It’s here? Already?

Damn! Where did I put that thing? Double damn! It’s nowhere to be found. Fuck it.

I just got a new leather backpack for my computer and it has lots and lots of pockets for this and that. I’ve got a swiss army knife. A cosh, aka book weight. A shoehorn (never know when zombies might want to put on shoes).

What else? Oh yeah. Chainsaw. Wait. Check that. It’s electric, and I’m not carrying a generator wherever I go.

Fuck it. I’m gonna bring my horn. If worst comes to worst, I’ll chase them away with my bad playing. Wait. Can Zombies hear?

Never mind. They’re hear already.

I think I’ll plug in that chainsaw, after all.

Talk to you soon.

If I make it.

@Jay484: If you want, you can describe what someone else would bring but you can also describe anything you have in the event that you have an unexpected partner.

@Thammuz: Excellent response! I will most definitely be sticking by you when the ravenous hordes descend upon us!

@KatawaGrey alright then
She would be bring along another back pack with:
An extra 1000 .22 rounds
Another quart of water
food
A Kanata (yes i have one its downstaris in our basement next to our battle ax :D)
my other .22 long rifle
a blanket
and lastly medican.

I’d have a piece of paper with the phone number for the leader of the vampires and form an alliance with them.

Emergency Kit until Accommodations can be made…

Combats, Jungle boots, Ruck Sack and Webbing (9 pockets)

- Basic first aid kit with the following additions: antibiotics, painkillers, Purell, condoms and a bottle of whiskey.

- maps, compass, whistle, pencil, pen, pocket knife, orange/yellow marker tape.

- 2 small-caliber semi-automatic pistol, a 9-mm/.22 cal…..hollow points or hypershocks if I can get them. large supply of ammo.

- a 12-gauge Mossberg pump-action shotgun, Ammo.

- A supply of non-perishable food (MRI) (enough to last at least 2 weeks) and 5 bottles of water(water pills), snack food.

- a good supply of energy drink powder or “shots” on hand to stay awake.

- a trench shovel, this is perfect for digging latrines as well at close-quarter combat (only use in combat as a last resort).

- a well-made survival knife…Weapon…but to also open cans, peel fruit, machete with sheathe.

- lock-pick kit, glass cutter, small tool kit

- a case of lighters, a case of matches, and a fire building kit, lighter fluid.

- a good long range rifle with a quality scope when I can

- Portable crank electronic devices.

- Duct tape, if you can’t fix it you can always duct it.

- flashlights. several battery powered LED flashlights on hand (with extra batteries) along with some friction generated flashlights.

- double headed hand axe, folding saw

- cigarettes (canned tobacco and rolling papers)

- Cellphone, personal papers, sealed in plastic

Twinkies… definitely bringing lots of Twinkies.

Bicycle, Repair Kit, Water Bottle, Backpack (Can attach to Bicycle)
First Aid Kit
Scoped Rifle, Pistol, Rifle Rounds, Hollow Point Rounds, Hunting knife
Maps, Compass
LED Flashlight
Binoculars
Water Purifiers
Sunblock, Bug Spray, Lip Balm,
Hammock, Netting, Rain-Fly, Thermal Blanket
T-shirts, Long-Sleeve Shirts, Shorts, Jeans, Underwear, Poncho, Sunglasses, Five Finger Shoes
Toothbrush, Toothpaste, Soap, Mirror, Pack Towel
Camping Stove, Fuel, Titanium Pot, Titanium Mug, Spork, Scouring Pads
Notebook, Pens
The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, 100 Years of Solitude, The Hobbit, Flora & Fauna Guide
Juggling Balls
Harmonica
Cannabis, Pipe, Lighters

@hobbes
and that all gonna fit into one backpack?

@Jay64 – I think so. The weapons wouldn’t fit, but everything else is pretty compact and lightweight.

All right, enough of you have answered and most have given awesome answers so I think I can give you my list.

I would also have a backpack. This was a somewhat difficult decision as a duffel bag could also be used as a pillow and, in a pinch, a bludgeoning weapon. There is also the factor that it would hold more. However, I think the advantage of having my hands free while carrying my supplies far outweighs any advantage the duffel bag would give.

In my backpack, I would have:

-The two books on edible wild plants that I have, plus a third on wild medicinal plants.
-A pocket knife.
-Water purification tablets.
-A flashlight that could be charged either with solar power or one of those that you shake to charge.
-A hand held radio that could be charged either with solar power or by being wound.
-Battery-powered walkie-talkies with a large range I’ve seen them at Best Buy with a range of 35 miles for less than 90 bucks.
-Extra batteries for the walk-talkies.
-Matches.
-A water bottle that could be secured to my backpack or belt.
-A long knife. Not a machete.
-One of those thermal blankets that can be folded up to a much smaller size than a regular blanket.
-Disposable rubber gloves.
-Portable binoculars.
-Goggles.
-Maps of my town and the closest surrounding metropolitan areas.
-A spork.
-A pan or a pot. Thank you @noelleptc.
-Sunblock.
-Lip Balm. Thank you @Hobbes.
-A tarp.
-Duct tape.
-A small tool kit.
-A compass.

Just to add, I have a pouch type thing that I can attach to my leg and waist. I figure I can put the pocket knife, portable binoculars, matches, sunblock, water purification tablets and compass into that. The long knife can be secured to my belt and the lip balm can go in my pocket.

I always figured based on this helpful educational video that I’d still be able to live at home during the Zombie Apocalypse…and continue my Christmas baking.

@KatawaGrey no long range weapons? even a .22 rilfe would do

@Jay484: I figure that’s my assumed weapon. :)

@KatawaGrey oh alright

@noelleptc ah good old frying pans…. “grapping a frying pan” LFD2 Coach

@FIDDLE, I HAVE BEEN WAITING FOR YOU!

Alright, here we go. All this shit is legal where I live, so don’t get your panties in a twist…

Primary weapon- AR-15
500 rounds of 5.56×45 M885. 150 rounds 5.56×45 tracer rounds. All in magazines in my tactical load-bearing vest (which I don’t have a picture of).

Secondary weapon- American Tactical Imports 1911
100 rounds of .45 ACP (preferably Hornady TAP)

Tertiary weapon (probably too much weight unless I used it as a replacement for the AR, but whatever. Also, I just feel like showing off since I’m probably the only person on Fluther with a shotgun that has a fucking bayonet on it)- Mossberg 590 with bayonet
100 rounds of 12 gauge buck. 24 slug rounds.

Melee weapon- Gurkha Nepalese Kukri (Blades don’t need reloading. Also, this isn’t my pic, but mine looks just like it. You get the picture).

Okay, now that the fun stuff is out of the way, lets get down to the nitty gritty. I have a vest that looks like this which I’d stash all of my magazines, first aid kit, knife, rope, and flashlight in. Basically, everything I’d potentially need to grab in a hurry. I’d carry the AR, but it has a sling, so I could let it hang if I needed to. I’d keep my 1911 in either a drop leg holster or a belly holster. The Kukri has its own sheath.

I have an ALICE pack that I’d wear on my back. In it, I’d keep water purification tablets, cooking supplies, EXTRA BOOTS because shoes are really goddamn important, extra clothing, a whetstone, a gun cleaning kit because guns that don’t work will get you killed, extra weapon parts, paracord, extra batteries, a compass, a folding shovel, firemaking supplies, blankets, and condoms (which are great for carrying water). Oh, and a few other odds and ends… like seeds. And enough food for three days, at least. And water.

However, if I wanted to just eschew practicality entirely, and fight zombies in style, I’d wear my pith helmet and carry this as a primary weapon and this as a secondary weapon… Why? Because fuck zombies, that’s why.

My uterus just fell out.

@KatawaGrey, lol, you might wanna put it back in!

@Fiddle_Playing_Creole_Bastard: Hah! Seriously though, that is an excellent list. Also, it’s totally cool to start out with three weapons seeing as you would probably lose the first two in the same massive zombie attack that you lost your primary mode of transportation in.

Interesting note: I think that, depending on the kind of zombies we’d be dealing with, I was trying to explain different types to my mom earlier today. :P being on foot may be the safest option, especially if you’re unable to get out of a highly populated area before the initial panic.

@KatawaGrey, in the event of actual zombies, I’d be driving Liberty Prime as far as she’d take me. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention… I’d keep a stash of liquor and tobacco as a bartering tool. Knowing how dumb people can be, they’d probably be willing to trade ammo and provisions for it.

Also on second thought, I’d probably ditch the shotgun or pass it on to a friend. The rifle is way more versatile. And I’d avoid getting close enough to a zombie to have to use it or my pistol (or kukri) as much as possible.

@Fiddle_Playing_Creole_Bastard: She’s a beaut. Room for a few other survivors as well. The alcohol would be good for looters as well. If someone attacks you, get ‘em drunk and ride off into the night.

@KatawaGrey, lol, or just conk them on the grape with a shovel.

I knew Fiddle_Playing_Creole_Bastard was going to fuck the zombies, he took condoms.

On the subject of different kinds of zombies: What kind are we dealing with changes what one should do entirely. If we’re talking romero style zombies (slow, dumb, generally negligible until they become a crowd) being on foot is the best idea, because being able to avoid the crowds easily is better than ramming them with a car, since the car could break down after one too many zombie asses on its bumper. Also, in this case, melee weapons and explosives (molotov cocktails and the like) are preferrable because it’s generally hard to attract their attention unless you’re makig loud noises. Explosives work because the noise isn’t where you are (hopefully and, if it is, you have bigger problems on hand).

28 days later/Zombieland style zombies (from here on referred to as “infected”) call for longer range and faster/safer transport (so no motorbikes and no bycicles, yes range rover and humvee). My personal kit (in which i forgot binoculars) is thought as a default that would work well for both cases, to be adapted when more information arises.

Also: While i imagine it to be different in america, here in italy we all have quite sturdy and heavy doors and windows, especially those of us that live in the city, so it’d probably be a smarter idea not to flee the city immediately (for those in my sitauation) but to hide in our homes for a couple of days, waiting for the panic and carnage to subside, before going out scouting for survivors. This bears the huge upside of staying near to all the not lootworthy stuff (aka, all the useful stuff that people don’t loot because it doesn’t have a HD screen) with very little competition and allowing us to fight the horde on our home ground.

@noelleptc those are Romero style.

@Fiddle_Playing_Creole_Bastard lol That’s the first time I’ve seen a bayonet on a shotgun….looks great…

@Mz_Lizzy, lololololololol

@coffeenut, mine pales in comparison to this beauty.

Isn’t that kind of redundant, though? I mean, if you’re close enough to use the bayonet, why not just use the shotgun?

@Hobbes, shotguns with bayonets were originally used as a melee/close range weapon in trench warfare. They were later adapted to riot control use as a way to keep potential rioters at a distance.

In the event of a zombie attack, a bayonet would be an easy-to-use backup weapon to prevent a close call. Think about it… if you were using your shotgun and you ran out of ammo (pump shotguns are not easily reloaded quickly without training) and zombies were closing in, would you rather have to take the time to sling or drop your shotgun to draw your handgun or blade, or would you rather just spike the zombie through the eye from a safe distance?

Additionally, the M7 bayonet can also be mounted on my AR-15, and it also makes one hell of a steak knife.

@Fiddle_Playing_Creole_Bastard I’d bludgeon it with the back of the shotgun. >_>

Strapped to/hanging from me:
AMD-65 carbine with 8 30 round mags and 3 40 round mags
Hi-Point 9mm pistol (Yea, super cheap, but it’s what I got) with a few ten round mags loaded up with FMJ (I usually go JHP, but with zombies you gotta puncture brain)
Cold Steel Kukri
Cold Steel Barong

In my pack (canvas knock-off of some European soldier style)
Folding saw
Pruning sheers
Mora Clipper knife
Cold Steel Warhead (can be mounted to make a spear)
snare wire
8 lb test fishing line and 20 lb test ice fishing line
hooks
6000–9000 calories of food, mostly high fat high protein
Mess kit (pan, pot, deep plate, measuring cup)
titanium spork
sterno stove
sterno
First aid kit, plus some herbal tinctures and salves
change of clothes
multi-tools
tarps
space blankets, 3
wool blanket
poncho, camouflage
fire steel
fire piston
magnesium rod
lighter
bag of tinder (mostly grape vine bark and cattail fluff)
iodine tablets
ceramic filter
5 pairs of socks
change of clothes
two cotton scarves/wraps
two bandanas
fingerless gloves
sweater
a few water bottles
snow shoes
long range binoculars (I don’t recall the numbers right now)
ice treads
50 ft. of 550 p-cord
Dental floss
roll of Army green duct tape
A notebook
Flashlight, pivoting head
Mag light
Solar/hand crank radio (weather band, AM/FM, and LED flashlight)
Israeli civilian gas mask

Wearing
BDU cargo pants
T-shirt
Ranger vest and/or Light BDU jacket
Thermals (for winter only, obviously)
Wool overcoat, knee length
Tactical stealth boots
Wool socks

This is all actually in my car right now, by the way, except the ceramic filter which is coming in the mail, and the radio and gas mask I left at home. This list reminds me that I need to get batteries for my flashlights.

I’d probably also throw together some light armor made from sports gear, tires, and fiberglass resin. It’d be just enough to prevent a bite from getting through.

And now that I’ve skimmed some of your answers, I’m contemplating the bayonet even more. I’m leaving the 12 gauge at home, though, unless a travelling companion wants to carry it. I’ve got a bandoleer and belt that, combined, carry 80 additional shells. That would either be one of my brothers, parents, my sister, my siblings’ spouses, my partner’s family, etc.; between my dad and myself, we have plenty of firearms for the family and then some.

My partner would carry a pack quite like mine, but a bit lighter, and with a copy of the U.S. Army survival guide. She’d also get stuck with my Ruger 10–22, and has her own machete.

Also, if someone else had room in their pack, they’re getting stuck with my seed bank. I’m confident enough in my hunting, trapping, and foraging skills to say I don’t need it wherever we end up, but it can’t hurt. to add another food source

Edit: I wouldn’t carry explosives around with me, but if I had the opportunity while defending a position I’d probably cobble together fragmentation pipe bombs or a light grenade launcher. Or maybe just a crossbow with impact detonated heads.

Oh yea, I forgot the wrist-stabilized slingshot and the steel shot for it. Great for small game hunting, and I added a mod to it so it can fire arrows.

Taking the time to make decent suppressors would also be a good idea, if you don’t want to alert the zeds (and to protect your hearing). To actually “silence” a decent rifle it’d have to be pretty big, though.

I’m totally coming back to this because THIS IS THE BEST QUESTION EVER OMG IloveyouKate.

@jellyfish3232 Makes me think of the usefulness of a shotgun with shells filled with rock salt. If we have supernatural zombies who are allergic to salt, that’d be the prime weapon.

@Fiddle_Playing_Creole_Bastard Skip the whetstone. It adds too much weight, and with a few minutes of looking at a stream you can usually find a decent one. I skipped the cleaning kit because, well, an AK just needs a rag, a stick, and some oil. :P

I agree tragic. I read some of the suggestions out to my husband (who doesn’t fluther) and he was laughing his socks off.

@incendiary_dan

“This is all actually in my car right now”

By far the best part of that post.

@incendiary_dan, good point. I expunge the whetstone from my list (and add bug spray and sunscreen). And I’d definitely need the cleaning kit for my AR. I know the platform well compared to AK style rifles, and compatible magazines and ammo would be easy to obtain from US service men and women who die in the initial attacks.

@Fiddle_Playing_Creole_Bastard Yea, you definitely would need the kit with an AR. And don’t forget cops as a source of ammunition and mags. Since 2001 a lot of police departments are being given a lot of interesting hand-me-downs from the military, not the least of which is a lot of M-16’s. I bet in the conditions of zombie apocalypse, they might even share.

@Hobbes I wouldn’t have so much normally (though pretty close), but I decided to treat last night’s solar flare as a potential grid down event, even though that was unlikely.

@incendiary_dan, I just now noticed the part of @KatawaGrey‘s question where she said our weaponry could be stuff that is currently illegal (or hard to get legally). In that case, I’d trade my AR for an M4 or M-16 with a real happy switch on it in the event of zombies. :-D

@Fiddle_Playing_Creole_Bastard Or just learn this handy an perfectly legal trick.

@incendiary_dan, yeah, I know how to bumpfire… still not the same :-/

@Fiddle_Playing_Creole_Bastard I’ve been meaning to practice the techniques, particularly not doing it from the belt loop. But I never get to the range.

@incendiary_dan has prepared both of our survival packs, so my list is fairly similar to his. However, I have to make a few changes, since I’m half his size but eat more food.

You said we have a couple weeks to prepare, so in that time, I buy a tactical corset. If I can’t buy one, then I make one out of a corset-style dress that I own. It’s a practical addition to the zombie-killer chic look.

Along with other practical clothing, I will also wear my security jacket. It’s nearly as warm as my wool coat, but with better wind resistance. It has a detachable hood, collar, and liner. I fill the space between the liner and the jacket with MRE’s. Then I rip off the badge from my security company and replace it with some kind of “Fuck Zombies” patch and maybe a few studs.

My weapon of choice is a machete. I know an axe is supposed to be the preferred melee weapon against zombies, but I need zombie-killing power without the weight. I will also have whatever gun @incendiary_dan gives me, plus written instructions on how to use it. I will bring my slingshot as well.

In addition to standard survival gear (as listed by @incendiary_dan), I will have spare contact lenses and glasses. Can’t kill the zombies if I can’t see them. Sunglasses are also necessary for that reason.

Assuming that the zombies are attracted solely to living brains and guts rather than the scent of food, I hang a mantle of cured sausages around my neck, a la Samwise in the Fellowship of the Ring.

Also, I shave my head before they arrive. Always been curious to try it, and that way I don’t have to pack anything to keep it out of my face with, just a bandana or hat to protect from the sun. Plus, if someone were to film a montage of me gearing up for the coming invasion, it would look totally badass-awesome.

Is it bad that this thread sort of makes me wish zombies were real?

@hobbitsubculture I was just thinking of saying we’d probably shave our heads, or at least cut it short! We have to stop thinking the same things.

What ‘80’s song (of course it’s an ‘80’s song) would the montage be to?

@Fiddle_Playing_Creole_Bastard If it is bad, I’m guilty too.

@incendiary_dan, montage song.

The obvious choice would be some kind of cheesy/epic 80’s metal. Looks like @Fiddle_Playing_Creole_Bastard had the same idea. Not really my style though.

So it would probably be Swamp Thing. It is about the apocalypse.

I totally forgot until now that I have a patch that says “AK-47: For when the zombies come”

That will have to be in my kit.

@incendiary_dan, I have this sticker on my laptop.

Oh, man, I go off to work and come back to this! This is awesome!

@Fiddle_Playing_Creole_Bastard @incendiary_dan: I gotta tell ya, you two are not alone in the whole “wishing zombies were real” front.

@hobbitsubculture

“I fill the space between the liner and the jacket with MRE’s.”
“I hang a mantle of cured sausages around my neck.”

Wouldn’t all that get uncomfortable after a while? Plus the Corset?

@Hobbes Maybe, but I figure that’s going to be the first food I eat. The tactical corsets are meant to be fitted, not constricting, and because of the military webbing they can hold items. Kind of like a giant, Victorian utility belt.

@hobbitsubculture – Hahaha, I see =] That makes sense, though I still think all those MRIs would be terribly bulky…

Is it me or @Fiddle_Playing_Creole_Bastard and @incendiary_dan both live in rural areas?

Because I’d never think of hunting during a zombie apocalypse, with all means of transport breaking down and shit, I’d have to take a car just to find any sort of open field! Unless i was going to hunt for stray cats and dogs, and I’d sooner starve to death than do that.

My “plan” for getting food is ransacking storage rooms and back rooms of shops (which isn’t great, i admit) but then again what the fuck else can you do in a city? Growing something is out of the question because there would be too many zombies to stay in the same place for more than one or two days (you’re bound to draw attention, sooner or later) there’s nothing edible to hunt except for rats and pigeons, which don’t make for good diet, and you can’t fish because where the fuck would you fish?

@Thammuz I live in an area that feels like the boondocks, and it’s 30 minutes from downtown, and 30 minutes from a National Park. At the moment, I don’t have to drive very far to camp or shoot or go off-roading, if I like, and I also don’t have to drive very far to indulge in my city’s nightlife. In the event of zombies, I’d be going in the opposite direction of the city as fast as I could. I can’t help but shake my head at people who plan on fortifying their local Wal Mart or mall during a zombie outbreak. They’d probably be killed by looters before the zombies got a chance to even pick over their remains.

@Fiddle_Playing_Creole_Bastard: I feel like holing up in a mall or other large retail building would be a better option than getting crushed in the mad dash out of town. Ideally, one could get out before the mad rush but in the event of being cut off from a main road or injury, a mall or Wal-Mart may be the best option, unfortunately. I think if you are able to get out of the city alive and with supplies, the best time to try and go back would be after a few months if you survive that long.

i agree with @Fiddle_Playing_Creole_Bastard that going to a wallmart would be a bad idea…... sure it seems like i a good idea at first but after a while you will haft to deal with more then zombies. i’d rather be far far away from a wallmart

@Thammuz – I mean, cities would just be general deathtraps.

@Thammuz I live in a small, mostly rural town with @hobbitsubculture, though more in the central built up area. We grew up in another small town, more in the woods with lots of fun wooded places to explore.

Anyway, in an apocalyptic type situation, I wouldn’t stick around the city anyway. More humans=more potential zombies, and cities exist to funnel resources into them because too many people live there. However, there could still be some fairly successful hunting, trapping, fishing, foraging, and gardening in cities. A friend of mine writes a blog about urban foraging. There are plenty of animals like squirrels and rats to eat, not to mention pigeons galore, and most cities are built on rivers. That means prime fishing after the industrial pollutants clear up, so long as there aren’t rotting bodies in the water.

@Hobbes Indeed, an MRI would be extremely bulky. :) I caught the same typo in my original response. Probably because I was at work and the MRI tech was waving goodnight.

I was telling @incendiary_dan last night that I hope I’m stuck at work if the zombie apocalypse hits. I would be able to grab plenty of food from the kitchen, shut down the elevators, and hang out on the 2nd floor with the emergency stairs barricaded in case of a power outage. The hospital across the street would attract more of the zombies.

Of course, the hospital @hobbitsubculture works at is on the edge of a pretty sizable city, while the hospital I work at is a live-in hospital and out in the woods. It’s right on a major lake, with a big forest across the lake that is a major hunting area. This hospital has it’s own power plant, waste-water treatment, water tower, and underground tunnels. It was built to serve as a fallout shelter. The radio system works pretty well: I’ve gotten signal from the operator five miles away. Being live-in, it’s got a kitchen and large supplies of food (but also mouths to feed). I could pick of zombies from the water tower or the roofs.

On the downside, it’s also where the zombies are gonna come from. Everyone who works here decided that. One of the old, barely used buildings is a defunct tuberculosis hospital, which basically all the staff says is haunted, and it has a morgue on the bottom floor. We also have a rehab clinic on the grounds, and a home for problem boys on the other side. One thing is certain: we’d certainly have an interesting story for a zombie apocalypse.

Of course, our home is off of the major road, has several months supply of food in it, and is in a position where we can quickly run into a state park. If we get those noise dampening curtains we keep talking about, we could even sleep through the zombie groans.

@KatawaGrey In mad rushes, a lot of people are going to try to rush out through big box stores. It’s probably best to hunker down at home and be inconspicuous if you can’t just get out ahead of time. There’s also the fact that zombies might flock to places that they remember with what’s left of their brains (and if that isn’t commentary on consumerism, I don’t know what is).

Now that I think about it, I don’t think we so much wish for zombies as we do an excuse to gear up and have an adventure. Field trip?

@Fiddle_Playing_Creole_Bastard @incendiary_dan @Hobbes

I don’t think cities would become deathtraps that fast. From my point of view the best course of action would be barricading myself in my apartment for something like a week (i always have a stocked fridge) waiting for the panic to subside. Then i would scout for survivors, find a vehicle, food and water from what’s left ofthe shops and move to my summer home (a big villa with about an acre of walled garden, big wooden doors, central heating, a fireplace, a separate water tank for watering the garden which could be arranged to pass it through a purifier and into the house, if need be) and call it a day. The villa is about an hour and a half away from my city, it’s near a major lake, it’s in a scarcely populated area and most of those who do live there are old farts that wouldn’t pose much of a challenge anyway. Plus there have been sightings of wild boars around the town at night so, assuming we remain the only ones alive, the food would come to us!

But yeah, barricading in malls is an extremely stupid idea: the structures are not as sturdy as one would assume from their size, since many have windows at ground level, plus there are many entrances and exits, which makes fortifying it a fucking pain in the ass. The fewer the acces points the better.

@Thammuz If you can hunker down that’s great, but most real life disasters cities tend to be the epicenter of violence and death, so I think one that includes hordes of cannibals would probably make it more so.

One thing to add to my pack: Ragnar Benson’s book Mantrapping. Building any of those designs is totally illegal, but in a WROL situation with zombies, it’d come in handy to take out zombies without having to be there. Traps intended for humans are a great way to harden a perimeter.

@incendiary_dan Well, you have to remember we’re talking zombies here. Obviously violence would be centered in the cities but i hardly see zombies trying to beat down this type of door when there’s tasty humans out, and about and people wouldn’t be able to do it without a systematic approach and a portable battering ram.

@Thammuz, the thing about cities is that I would be more worried about humans than zombies. Zombies would definitely be a problem (higher concentration of humans in a small area = higher concentration of zombies), but I’d really worry about what other people would be doing. The power goes out in some US cities for 3 hours and people start looting, shooting, and burning furniture on the streets because they can’t watch their programs. Imagine what would happen if e’erybody was gettin’ eated.

@Fiddle_Playing_Creole_Bastard You forget i’m not in the US.

a) weapons here are extremely uncommon, those who have them are those who know how and when to use them because you also have to pass a psych test to qualify.
b) our policemen are fucking assholes. Not good, in general, but i assure you they know how to disband a riot (courtesy of the fascist training regime that has never been removed).
c) looting here never happened during my lifetime, if the light goes out the worse you see is people getting in the street to go buy beer.
d) the people looting would be the primary targets for the zombies and there are much more succulent targets to loot than a private home, so i can count on them to keep the zombies away from my house.

On a side note: The power goes out in some US cities for 3 hours and people start looting, shooting, and burning furniture on the streets because they can’t watch their programs. You people are fucking nutters.

@Thammuz: Point of interest: We are literally “fucking” nutters. During power-outs, most people have a ton of sex. Nine months after a power-out in an area, the birth rate shoots up. Not all of us are looting. ;)

@Thammuz, You people are fucking nutters.

Lol, pretty much.

@KatawaGrey Lady, I’m Italian, ostensibly the people whose males coined the term “Satiriasis” (although actually it’s greek but you know what i mean), we don’t need a blackout as an excuse ;-)

I realized the other day that the hospital I work at also has a functioning and highly equipped multi-port garage and a number of trucks and vans owned by the state. These would be great zombie patrol vehicles, and useful in some sort of run-and-gun tactic. Plus, you could fabricate a lot of stuff with those tools. The garage also has its own gas pump, with diesel as well. If the zombie outbreak happens shortly after a refill of the tanks, we would probably have at least a month of fuel for patrolling, more if we’re conservative on the use.

It wins as a bugout location.

@incendiary_dan Or it would win as a bugout location, if it weren’t for the fact that the outbreak will originate in the old morgue and you’ll have zombie-infested tunnels.