Emergency Exits - Planning

Planning emergency exits.

Well, you read last time about the need for emergency exits, lets make a plan for that day shall we? First off, you might need to be able to move really fast. It might be prudent to keep a small bag packed, preferably a back pack if your excape plan tends to be a certain type. You should have one packed for every member of the family who might need to go with you, including kids big enough to carry one. Inside you should have changes of clothing, especialy under garments. Pack for at least 3 days worth of traveling, perhaps as many as 5. That should give you enough time to get to a place where you can get more, or at least get to laundry facilities. Too much and it gets too heavy, too little and you can get pretty ripe. Don't want to go into a store in that condition while trying to get away un noticed, it can attract unwanted attention. Include a couple small tavel sized bars of soap, preferably anti bacterial type. You don't want to get sick while traveling. You might not be allowed into some other country if sick. Make sure you keep other supplies such as toothpaste and toothbrush, feminine products, and a small first aid kit. Nothing fancy needed, just some bandaids, tape, gauze, antibactrial ointment etc. anything major and you will probably need to find medical help anyways. Try real hard not to need to use it. Do buy and stash any medications that you need. You might keep a months worth as they will be harder to get. Most doctors are not comfortable in writing prescriptions to people who they have never seen, and are not planning on coming back.

You will need to make sure you keep a couple small bottles of water in it. Keep them rotated and fresh. How much depends on where you are at. A desert and you might want to include more. A few snacks such as granola bars can come in handy as well. A few coins to feed snack machines also might come in handy, depending on the planned route. Don't overdo it though as weight can be a problem. Water is far more important.

Things that can greatly aid in traveling are wise to include as well. A map of the route if needed for instance. One thing usually overlooked is cash. As much as you can afford to stash in it is all I can say. But make sure that you include some smaller bills as some places are bound not to be able to break bigger ones. Plan on not being able to use your credit cards as they can be traced. Same goes for ATM cards, including Visa or MasterCard check cards. There are private Visa or MasterCard check cards availible from offshore banks, but you run the risk of it being known and traced. A spare cell phone that nobody knows you even have, and has an unlisted number, preferably prepaid and does not have your name attached to the bill, could be a lifesaver. Make sure you keep the batteries charged up and a spare one included. Small toys or books for children can also help them.

You are undoubtable going to want to take along some protection. Having a small firearm could be of tremendous value to you in trying to disappear. Depending on the size and strength of the who is going to carry it, you might want anything from a small .22lr caliber pistol, to a bit larger one such as a .380 AMT Backup, or even as large as a .45 caliber. Remember though, the larger it is, the heavier it is, the heavier the amunition is, and the harder to conceal. Most street thugs will run off if you pull out even a small caliber weapon as they are looking for easy targets. If you need a larger one, you are probably in trouble anyways. best to avoid needing one if at all possible. It does need to be very high quality though as your life might depend on it being reliable, but not something you are attached to as you will most likely need to dispose of it before trying to enter another country. A box of ammo would not hurt if the bag does not weigh too much already, but it probably won't be needed. If it is, you're probably already screwed anyways. Always, always, look to avoid trouble.

It would be wise to include something easily sold of high value. This can be used for barter if need be. If you include 10 one ounce gold rounds, and the same in silver, you would be doing good. You might get into a jam somewhere that your cash isn't exactly liked or accepted. Gold and silver are almost universaly accepted for barter. If you make it 10 single ounce rounds of each, the gold can be used in increments of one ounce to buy high priced things, and the silver for smaller things such as food or cab fare. Making it for a single 10ounce bar means you're stuck giving it all away if a problem comes up where it is needed. Make it for 1 ounce rounds and it can become more useful if need be. And it adds less than 2 pounds to the pack.

How are you going to get out of your home without being seen? If you live in a wide open flat spot, you might have some trouble. You might consider digging an excape tunnel. Drastic measures I know, but what are the risks on you? That's for you to decide. If you are married you would of course need to give your spouse an excuse. You could always call it a fire excape for the basement, or incase a tornado brings down the house on you if you live in that area of the world. Make sure it it lockable from the inside at both ends, and very well concealed at the far end. Make it long enough so that prying eyes looking for you would not see you coming out of it. Make it with good drainage(away from the exit side), and structuraly sound so as to avoid cave ins. Consider putting an alarm on it in case somebody does try to enter it. And of coures, tell nobody that you can avoid telling.

Now for some good news. Ready for some? If you plan it well enough ahead of time, you can plant stashes along your intended excape route. Don't tell anybody about them, and better plan more than route if you can, just in case. You can rent out storage lockers in most areas fairly cheap. Since you're reading this so far I'm writing with the assumption that you need this because you have a bit of money, and want to keep it. That makes it easier to do these things. Keep in mind that whoever is looking for you is probably going to be watching the usual transportaion services such as airports, train stations and bus lines. You can rent out a storage locker and keep in it a small vehicle with a bit bigger stash. Disconect the battery so it doesn't discharge from sitting too long. Better to be a vehicle that can't be traced to you. Depending on your needs, you can get away with a motorcycle, or a small car, or even a van. Only you can determine that ahead of time depending on such things as how many are traveling with you. Do not use your real name in renting out the storage locker if at all possible. Use cash as credit cards can be traced. Do not make frequent visits to it, and only do so alone. The more people that know about it, the more people who can say something by accident to the wrong person. Somebody who is investigating is not usually going to come right out an tell people his or her intentions. They will try to ingratiate themself into a close friend's trust and find things out by small talk, or pretending to be interested in the same type of subjects. Tell nobody.

If you can afford a plane or long range boat this works even better. They can be both a stash point, and an initial target point. Make sure they are not registered under your name though. If you can do so, register them in another country, and rent a spot for them under a different name, preferably one that goes with the nationality of the registration. If you register it in Panama for instance, pick a Panamanian name/company to register it to, and renting a spot for it under the name Joe Smith hardly seems to go with it. Don't use, nor frequent it either, especially once you suspect that you might be being watched by somebody. And of coures, tell nobody.

Plan way ahead, as far ahead as possible. Don't do things fast, nor change your habits all of a sudden. People will notice and question. Get your passport as far in advance as possible, once it hits the fan, it's too late. Chances are you would tip your hand, and even if not, it takes a while to get it. Get used to doing some things twice. Once for the prying eye, once secretly. For instance, if you have a cell phone, have two of them. One is your official phone, one nobody knows you have. One car you officialy own, one that has some other name on it, and is stored where you don't frequent. Secrecy is the name of the game in this. It is aided by long thought out planning and thought. Know where you want to go, then "forget about it", meaning never speak of it. Have a couple destinations in mind if possible, just in case one doesn't work out.

Secrecy is your biggest friend in this. If you tell your spouse about all of this, and they talk, you're screwed. Or worse yet, if they divorce you..... well, you get the picture.

One of the biggest concerns in secrecy now days is your computer. Like it or not, it can be infected with a virus without your knowing it. Believe it or not, it can be infected even if you have very good virus infection. We expect to have a whole nother page on computer security shortly. But for now let me just say keep multiple computers, preferably one being a laptop, and your needed data on an external device such as a thumb drive. And even that keep encrypted. Use the one computer, or laptop, just for excape planning, and absolutely nothing else, and the drive encrypted. More on that another day.

On the note of secrecy, learn the fine art of disguise and deception, hiding in plain view. Let's say for instance you wish to excape to Argentina. First visit China. Come back saying how you wouldn't mind retiring in China. Then take the family on vacation to South America. Visit Brazil and Columbia. Make a trip through Argentina almost as an after thought. Have your banking records and other paperwork ready ahead of time, but with out anybody else knowing about it. Slip away by yourself while the others are busy, to do some "souveneir shoping". Head to the bank and apply for an account. You will need to have everything in order ahead of time in order to do this, or it won't work. Not only that, it might make it harder to apply next time as it might make you look unprofessional, or suspicious. Come back still saying how much you would not mind retiring in China. You can apply for a bank account in some areas without being present. Best practice is to first visit the bank though. Or at least hire somebody on your behalf to help set it up for you. If you set it up over the internet you risk somebody else knowing about it. The internet is easier to hack, and sniff out other people's traffic than is generaly known. People in charge do not want it well known, or it could cause a panic, or worse for them, a withdrawl of public trust. Have a private box set up else where, preferably in that country, to get mail at and have your bank account statements sent there. If they start showing up at your home, people start to ask questions.

Remember also, people will know something about you, such as the fact that you travel overseas. They will be curious and ask questions. If you act too secretive, they will ask more questions, perhaps worse ones, and of worse people such as the authorities. If you give out too much, they know too much. If you give out just enough, and make it the wrong info, you can wage a successful dis information war to your benefit.

OK, next time we run through some of the actual excape. See you then!

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