Doomsday Preppers: Taking From the Haves

Tonight on Doomsday Preppers, Meet Jeff Bushaw, a full-time prepper in Vancouver, Washington, who fears the eruption of the Yellowstone super volcano. Approximately 600-miles from his home sleeps a volcanic caldera that measures 34×45-miles. If it were to blow, and it has, America would be crippled and the ramifications would have catastrophic global consequences. In a small aircraft, Jeff plans to outrun the devastation. In the air he avoids congested roads and has the ability to move fast.

Allen and Franco are neighbors living in Missouri who are both preparing for a breakdown of the world food system following an economic collapse. The men have developed a friendly rivalry, constantly checking on each other’s preps and trying to improve their own. They have each built their own aquaponic systems and maintain gardens and greenhouses in order to create a self-sustainable lifestyle.

John Adrain is a successful inventor living in the Pacific Northwest who fears a wide range of disasters. He is focusing on security preps and has turned his idyllic estate into a technological fortress, complete with shatterproof windows and a military-grade gate.

Who do you think will come out on top on the Doomsday Prepper Leaderboard? Tune in to Doomsday Preppers: Taking From the Haves tonight at 9P and find out if any of these guys will take down the current prep-leaders Steven Vanasse & Tom Perez!

Comments

J H
oregon
December 5, 2012, 12:25 am

You represent all the haves on the show. How about the have nots. I know plenty with plans on how to get what they need if the day comes.
David
OC
December 5, 2012, 2:28 am

I am totally shocked that John received such a low score. So shocked that I actually wanted to search out where to post about it. I am only a boat captain and a nurse and not a “prepping expert”. He just seemed the most prepared of any of the episodes I have seen. Terrain and the 7P’s seems to be a massive part of creating luck. Well, besides the guy that is training tons of kids in the pacific northwest. Still, I think he got a much lower score than he deserved. I mean a low score for not having rain water collection in the Pacific Northwest? Lame sauce, stick a bucket outside and you’ll catch enough water. Besides the massive river below his house. A simple block and tackle system will refill his water from the river. sorry, I do not agree…
A Have-Not
December 5, 2012, 11:11 am

NatGeo should do a show about people that although they cannot afford to prep would be willing to do what ever it takes to survive. There are many people out there like myself with family’s that would not be willing to just lay down and watch our loved ones suffer. As horrible as it may sound if it cam to my children tarving or using the training and dicipline I acquired in the military to take what I needed, than I really don’t have a choice.
Alex Dunbar
Colorado
December 5, 2012, 1:13 pm

Hello, I am Alex of CQB K-9, and we participated in this episode with John Adrain. He is one of my clients and has the most elaborate security systems in place to thwart off any intruders, and survive through any worst-case scenario disasters. Joey & I are part of another layer of security and test the technology as a “Red Team”, that specializes in penetrating corporate and other clients security systems to bolster what they have, and implement addition security measures, if needed. I specialize with my trained executive protection and tactical K-9′s, all over the world, working with families and special teams with dogs. Check us out at http://www.cqbk9.com BTW, That Burglar Blaster is a nasty device!
Four Five Four
Texas
December 5, 2012, 11:17 pm

This hi-tech prepper was described as not fearing any single catastrophe but wanted to be prepared for the chaos that could ensue from ANYTHING. There was nothing about energy generation or stores of fuel. Maybe that was left out so as not to tip off a way to attack his hi-tech fortress but if he is solely dependent on the grid all of his hi-tech security could fail. If this is the case I think his score, which was actually fairly high compared to many others, was very generous .
Sandy
California
December 6, 2012, 11:18 am

Tom is a joke. This guy has EVERYTHING, millions to spend, yet he falls down crying & puking when a large caliber rifle goes out in his blind. He claims to be a “firearms expert”. His partner Jeff called out fire in the hole & made it FULLY aware he was about to shoot. This guys the type that wants to play army with his expensive toys. A 3 man experienced team will have his “alamo” in their possession in the first night of “doomsday”. Please, get a clue AND STOP CRYING. There will be no ambulances or 911 when that day comes. And stop blaming others for your inadequacies.
Nikmahadi Nik Hassan
Kelantan,Malaysia
December 6, 2012, 10:28 pm

Talking about the end of the day,Doom days, all religions in the entire world, believe that “horrible day”would come,it’s a matter of time,when it would come.aacording to Islamic perspectives, may be not many knows about what I am going to say,based on old books, that day would never come, until pertoleum under earth is out production, when it’s happened, humand civilasation reverse back to stone age periode, people run their life like “the stone aged” civilasation,,then the coming of Imam Mehdi,later on Jesuus appeared in the Palestine, at that time, al-quran verses lost, no more muslim, people live like an animals, having sexsual interourse outside wedlock, people at that time dont believe in God, God has died,as persaid by Niersche, great philospoher from German,
terry
virginia
December 8, 2012, 12:51 pm

to all you preppers–the people who you plan to keep out–they will make sure you stay in—and you will never come out again–when they find you-they will make sure to cover all your exits with heavy steel,cars,trees,or any to make sure you survive for the last time—-since your smart enough to go undergroud–they are smart enough to make sure you stay—selfishness goes both ways
Panda
Denver, CO
December 8, 2012, 3:20 pm

I’ve watched this show quite a bit and I’m always amazed to see how far these people take it. Yes, some of these scenarios seem like they might be on the horizon but that doesn’t mean it has to consume your life. Disaster preparedness is important even if you don’t have the means to do what these people do. I’ve always got my DISH Hopper ready to record the show and with four times more recording space than your average DVR I know I don’t have to rush to delete anything I’ve already recorded. The part about the super volcano is pretty scary since I’m not too far away from where it is. My DISH co-worker thinks that the food crisis thing could happen but there’s no guarantee as to when that might be. I think growing your own food is fantastic. It lowers your carbon footprint.
Jack Davis
Florida and Virginia
December 13, 2012, 11:15 am

Hmm, so are “Preppers” actually just a specific type of “Hoarders,” do ya think? Karen
——————–
Karen,
Actually, that is something I have thought about since the late 70s. Whatever we think of “preppers” or “survivalists” what they are doing is virtually the same thing more primitive cultures and tribes did thousands of years ago and Mormons have been doing for over 100 years. They store stuff (mainly food and things to grow food) in the event of an emergency. Centuries ago it might be a drought or a war or a siege or a plague of locusts. But until modern times, there was no Red Cross or FEMA or National Guard to bring in potable water or Port-A-Potties or pork-and-beans or medical supplies. As recently as my lifetime in southern Louisiana we endured half a dozen direct hits from hurricanes in the ’40s, ’50s and ’60s which knocked out power and thus water for a week or more as well as most of the systems that bring us food, sustenance and comfort. Back then people got by with the provisions they kept on hand. They were taught by example of their elders to think ahead and gather together both the consumables they needed as well as prepare themselves emotionally and physically for what was coming. As a result folks were far more resilient and resourceful back then. As a result, they were less stressed during emergencies, cooperated more, were less fearful, and bounced back sooner from the emergency. But that was then and this is now.

We are far more systems dependent now. Fast forward fifty years and society is much different in that most people now expect government to rescue them from not only privation but from discomfort and bring them ice and bottled water and hot food and even toilet paper and portable showers. And in a democracy we citizens get what we want which, in the final analysis, is to tax those who have the good sense to live in safer areas. And we more prudent citizens get the guilt trip and the duty of taking care of those who choose to live in areas much more prone to floods and tornadoes and Hurricanes. (All barrier islands around the US, the areas immediately adjacent to oceans, the Missouri, Tennessee, and Mississippi river valleys, etc.) But before I wander into a quagmire of political discourse, back to hoarding.

IMO, a fairly significant percentage of Americans today do not have much faith in government’s ability to take care of them in an emergency and that is healthy. Or, they choose deliberately to take care of themselves and their families in tough times and that is another healthy thing to do. They do so by purchasing and storing ahead of the emergency almost anything they think is practical or necessary to avoid dependency on others, or privation or even death. Those things can include food, water, water purification techniques, tools, medicine, fuel, money, guns, seeds, booze, books, candles, kerosene lamps, whatever they think they will need or want badly or that they can trade to get by.

At this point I come to the defense and admiration of these people regardless of their motivation. But I often consider the motivation and thinking of a lot of them to be misguided and paranoid. Regardless, their gathering all this stuff ahead of the emergency is not hoarding if they gather it gradually and carefully and ultimately use it up. By doing so, preppers or survivors or whatever one wants to call them, make things significantly better for everyone in a number of significant ways when things suddenly go from ok to bad to worse:
They are safely at home taking care of themselves, their families, and possibly even their immediate neighbors,
They are not out there engaging in road rage and bumper pool in the parking lots of big-box stores to fight over the last loaf of bread, quart of milk or gallon of gas,
They are not inclined out of desperation to grab as much of anything they can get their hands on depriving others of some share of what is left,
They are not putting a burden on already overburdened government emergency systems whether community, local, state or national,
They are not taxing the economic supply chain to bring in more stuff than it can provide at one specific time. Supply systems are build and managed to meet a normal and predictable flow. Increasingly, supply systems are designed for “just-in-time” so there is little or no reserve in the pipeline. In an emergency, such highly cost effective and efficient systems likely will break down.
By purchasing stuff in advance, the economy can anticipate the need, make it, ship it, and distribute it far ahead of an emergency,
Miners, shippers, manufacturers and distributors have the incentive and time to resupply itself with whatever is needed to produce the final goods,
By stockpiling usable stuff preppers help reduce price spikes and resulting price gouging,
Overall, fear and panic are reduced in a community or culture where individuals prepare for emergencies. People are more inclined to cooperate than compete,
Everyone is better off — including those who do nothing to be self sufficient!
Best of all, no one is harmed by preparing for emergencies.
Over the past 35 years I have watched the media repeatedly and predictably characterize those who prepare for emergencies as “hoarders” and thus selfish and even evil and mentally unbalanced people. They do that because it sells advertising. And it also resonates with the majority of our citizens who desperately wants to feel smarter and superior to someone else, especially morally superior.
John Williams
Jacksonville Tn
December 13, 2012, 10:19 pm

David Sarti from Lebanon Tennessee was the best doomsday Prepper simply because he was prepping to help others and rebuild his community. One of the few that was not only thinking of themselves.
SImone llanes
Boston, Ma
December 17, 2012, 7:19 pm

I would like to see normal people without any special equipment or special excuse would like for this kind of people survive
AlexSoucy
December 22, 2012, 10:32 am

The only thing that can protect us from that day is God. 2Peter 3:8-12 “However, let this one fact not be escaping YOUR notice, beloved ones, that one day is with Jehovah as a thousand years and a thousand years as one day. 9 Jehovah is not slow respecting his promise, as some people consider slowness, but he is patient with YOU because he does not desire any to be destroyed but desires all to attain to repentance. 10 Yet Jehovah’s day will come as a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a hissing noise, but the elements being intensely hot will be dissolved, and earth and the works in it will be discovered.
11 Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of persons ought YOU to be in holy acts of conduct and deeds of godly devotion, 12 awaiting and keeping close in mind the presence of the day of Jehovah, through which [the] heavens being on fire will be dissolved and [the] elements being intensely hot will melt!”
s chester
northwest
December 25, 2012, 3:25 pm

From all the blogs and other writingsI have read I get the impression that most people don’t have a complete understanding of range of catastrophes we all face so I composed a list. All items on the list are whens not ifs:
1. Extreme Weather (blizzards – floods – ice storms – large hail – tornadoes – deep snow – lightening – prolonged drought – very high winds – extreme cold – extreme heat – tsunami – hurricanes) With the warming of the planet is weather is going to become more and more violent.
2. Wild Fires (forest and brush fires) If you are planing to live in the forest and underground remember that a forest fire needs oxygen and could pull all the oxygen out of your bunker.
3. Earthquakes Please keep in mind that earthquakes can happen anywhere so build accordingly.
4. Electromagnetic Pulse, Geomagnetic Storms and Cosmic Radiation
Electromagnetic Pulse (EMP) and Geomagnetic Storms mainly effect long runs of electrical lines like power lines and will induce enough power into the lines to blow out transformers. If the pulse is strong enough it can effect electronics. The only way to protect your electronics is with a Faraday Box. Cosmic Radiation comes from outer space and usually from an exploding star. If the star is within 10 lightyears we could have a small problem. As far as I know there are no close stars ready to explode.
5. Super Volcano or Asteroid Impact Winter Lasting Three Years or More
Yes, Yellowstone is a Super Volcano but it is growing at only about 2.8 inches per year and still has a long way to go before erupting. A more dangerous one is Mt. Toba on the island of Sumatra. It blew about 74,000 years ago and created a 6 to 10 year winter that reduced the human population to less than 15,000.
There is about a 1 in 20,000 chance of an Asteroid Impact which is about the same as dying in a plane crash. The next near miss of a large asteroid that we know of happens in 2040 but there are smaller ones out there that we can not see yet due to their size.
6. Terrorism, Pandemic and/or Societal Breakdown
I think that these are the ones that bother people the most.
Our country is so large that Terrorism will never physically effect more that a small area at a time.
Due to our mobility a Pandemic is something that could effect the whole country or for that matter the whole world. If the ebola virus ever escaped from the wilds of Africa the airplane connected world would be in danger. Being highly contagious, with no cure and a kill rate of 50% to 90% very few would survive. More than likely a pandemic will come from a common pathogen that has become resistant to all current drugs.
The only thing that keeps Societal Breakdown in check is the large middle class. It balances the adverse effects of the poor and the rich and tends to suppress the ideological and religious extremes. In resent times the poor and rich classes have been growing while the middle is shrinking in size and the ideological and religious extremes have become more shrill. If the middle class gets too small our society will become unbalanced and be thrown into chaos.

So, if you are planing to survive for the long term you need to build your bunker taking all of the above into consideration. Surviving a volcanic winter of just a year requires special additions to your accommodations. You will need a continuous supply of fresh filtered air, clean drinking water and a large supply of food. You will need a method for taking care of the waste you generate and remember in a winter of a year or more everything outside will be frozen at least down 12 inches or more which will end up freezing a drain field unless you bury it deep. If you want electricity you will need a generator, spare parts and fuel for a year. Don’t count on having TV or radio to entertain you, you will need books and other non electric things to keep you occupied. Look up Biosphere 2 (http://www.b2science.org) located close to Tucson, Arizona. The first crew of 8 lasted 2 years sealed in a facility that is the size of two and a half football fields. The problems they had, in a smaller way, could be the same problems you will be facing if you are planing for the long term. Remember, in surviving for the long term your bunker is only half of the battle, the other is psychological.