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Show HILL TOP TIMES Page 10 Friday, November 5, 1982 Preparations moy mean life or death when in a cold weather environment li o deep in water. The solid leather boots freeze; his socks turn into a coat of iron. Survival Instructor He knows that he must get a fire started to preof onset With winter approaching, let's turn our attention to the preparation needed to ensure safe- vent frostbite, but his first attempt at the fire fails when a strong wind blows the match out. Already ty in a cold environment. Military aircrew personnel are faced with the fact he is losing the use of his hands. With extreme efthat mechanical failure, human error, weather, etc. fort he opens his mouth and grasps a match with his teeth. He manages to strike it, but the fumes may render their aircraft unsafe for human occupancy, but what about the munitions specialist, dash up his nose, forcing him to cough. He now knows it's no longer a matter of freezing hospital technician, skier, hunter, snowmobiler, or traveler to Grandma's house? fingers but a matter of life and death. With his final Use this in- attempt he takes the rest of the matches and holds Don't be a JohnnyJenny-come-lately- ! formation to increase your survivability in an air- them in the palms of his hands. He positions the , craft, vehicle, or other type of emergency. Everyone striker between his knees. all his As starts flesh at matches the should be prepared for a survival situation at any once, light time and be ready to meet and cope with the sur- to burn, but there's only a mild sensation. In his vival problems, but the average person thinks, "It present state, his efforts to feed the fire diminish can't happen to me." Well, here is an individual who as snow falling from the branches of a spruce tree douse the flames. thought the same way. . He panics and runs. He stumbles repeatedly and One morning John and his dog Rex set out to join finally falls down. The snow feels warm to John. The friends who were camped a day's hike away. He first wave of drowsiness affects him. As his blood doesn't realize how cold it is but when he spits, the and flesh coagulate, the dog approaches his inacsaliva freezes as it falls to the ground. He continues tive form and retreats. John is dead. on. His cheeks and the tip of his nose ache from the One thing to remember is that nature and the cold. For a few seconds he exposes his fingers to the elements are neither your special friend or foe. They cold, and is amazed how quickly his fingers are" are disinterested, and it's really up to you and your numbed. The sting that touches his feet and toes attitude whether you survive or not. passes gradually and he wonders, "Are they warm Carrying a proper attitude is sometimes not or numb?" enough, so it pays to prepare for any emergency by Then, when he least expects it, his body breaks carrying on your person, in your pack, vehicle, or through the ice and he finds himself standing knee aircraft a personal survival kit. There are two approaches By SSgt. Larry G. MacPherson , . . -"- that can be used in packing personal survival kits (both good): 1. Scatter items throughout your clothing, pack or car, to distribute the bulk and weight. This way loss of one item doesn't mean loss of all and you have less tendency to "rob the kit." 2. Pack items in a. small container (plastic soap box. box, snuff can, plastic film canister, Band-Ai- d The latter method will give ready access to the kit and its contents. Due to the large list of items suggested for the personal survival kit it would be very hard to pack all of them into our small compact kit. Care should be taken to evaluate the environment, equipment, and your survival knowledgeskills for selection of items to pack in the kit. To be prepared you should at least have certain items. If you normally carry a compass there would be no reason to carry another. The same applies to the other items in the kit. As a backpacker the avfirape riftrson can carrv most of the items listed previously as normal gear, but the hunter, fisherman, cross country skier, or day hiker is not going to have a lot of available space. So each piece of equipment he or she takes should have a multi purpose. The raincoat could double as shelter material. The more important items should be selected first, i.e., fire starting materials, shelter material, rescue or signalling devices, navigation aids, etc. With any space left available, personal comfort items can and should be added. ' Now let's return to John and Rex and look at what caused John s death. 1. John did not analyze the environment he was traveling through. 2. His clothing was inadequate for conditions. 3. When he first wondered about the condition of his feet, he should have checked them. 4. After falling through the ice, John should have tried to remove as much water from his clothing as possible by rolling in dry snow, brushing the snow away and repeating the procedure as needed and finally knocking the ice out of the material by beating it against something. 5. The environmental conditions present should have told John that his first attempt at building a fire could be his only one. A road flare may have been his one and only chance. A road flare would have been more than adequate. 6. After his attempts to build a fire, John panicked and ran headlong into the same environment which caused him so many problems, further exhausting himself. 7. At this point there is nothing that John can do for himself and the only ray of hope he still possesses is his faithful dog, Rex. Rex whimpers and whines when he goes put into the cold, because he realizes that he doesn't want to be there. When John falls through the ice, Rex goes underneath a large tree where it is dry and curls up, away from the wind. Rex doesn't need a fire because he is already wearing a good coat of insulation. By getting away from the elements (wind chill) he is able to maintain body temperature. He watches John run around in vain and fall helpless. Many incidents have occurred where the individual did not prepare for the unexpected and was caught by it. This often ended in death. So don't be a Use the environment and your knowledge to your benefit, not as a hindrance. If all things fail, your last resort will be the "will to survive." Questions or comments should be directed to 2849 ABGOTTT Base Survival Training Branch, Sergeant MacPherson or Sergeant Johnson, Ext. y G'' 2 (U.S. Air Force Photo) Any one of these items could hold an emergency kit to ensure your survival in the outdoors. See the list below for. things that should be included in your kit for unexpected situations. Snclude proper items in emergency kit MINIMUM ESSENTIAL ITEMS High quality pocket knife with 1 . at least two cutting blades. 2. Pocket compass. 3. Match container with matches: a. Plastic or metal container. b. Waterproof kitchen type matches (cushion heads to prevent igniting by friction). c. Matches dipped in paraffin-soake- d muslin and stored in waterproof container. 4. Needles: sailmakers, surgeons and darning (at least one) fish hooks, line, . 5. Assorted weights in heavy foil or container. 6. Snare wire, 28 or 30 gauge wire, as much as room allows. 7. Needle nose pliers with cutters. 8. Surgical soap or hand soap. 9.. Personal medicine (aspirin, an tacids). Beware of the effects the drugs will have on the body due to extreme cold. 10. Wafer purification tablets (iodine, Hallozene, household bleach). 1 1 . Shelter material (space blanket, tube tent, 8x8' plastic sheet, garbage bags). 12. Flashlight or chemical lights. 1 3. Nylon cord, 1 0 feet minimum. 1 4. Chapstick. 15. Mirror. 1 6. Colored cloth or scarf for signalling (4x4' orange or yellow). 17. Emergency ration (car- bohydrates in definite storage life). 1 8. Change, 40 to 60 cents. 1 9. Signal flares. '' 20. Tinfoil. 21. Sharpening stone. 22. Safety pins. 23. Sunglasses. - 24. Small candles (for heating shelter or fire starting). 25. Whistle. 26. Tea bags or bouillon cubes (make, procured water more palatable). 27. Tape. 28. Storage container to store items and use as cooking container. ADDITIONAL MEDICAL SUPPLIES 29. Sterile 30. 31 . Antibiotic ointment. Triangular bandage. Roller gauze. 32. 33. Tweezers. 34. Additional medications may be . - gauze compress bandage. desirable depending on nature of trip. ITEMS FOR VEHICLES (AIRCRAFT, BOAT) . 1. All items previously listed. 2. Spare tire, jack, tire changing tool. 3. Tire chains that fit. " 4. Heavy rope or tow cable. " 5. Jumper cables. 6. Small shovel". 7. Spare tools (screwdrivers, wrenches, pliers). 8. Small kit of assorted nuts, bolts, springs, and nails. ' 9. Change of clothing for all passengers. 1 0. Wool blanket or sleeping bags for ail passengers. 11. Freezable liquids (water, etc.) 12. Dry foods needing little or no r cooking. 13. More matches. ' . 14. Axe. Johnny-come-latel- y. 75778. Lyon a n o (?(? ssaOTuDH weirs The common cold is not a single disease. Breathing in any one of many viruses can cause the common cold. And antimicrobial drugs are not effective against cold viruses. The American Lung Association says that most colds can be spread to other people only at the onset of symptoms and for the next two or three days. The infected person expels droplets containing the virus by talking, coughing, or sneezing. Treatment of the common cold amounts mainly to relief Rest, aspirin, nasal deconwith ample fluids are diet gestants, and a light recommended, says, the ALA. v - As for flu, there are two main types of influenza,. A and B. Each type includes various strains of the s. ; n o (yDee influenza virus. Type A epidemics are generally more frequent and severe. New virus strains develop from time to time. Vaccines against such new strains are created, especially to immunize persons at special risk, including lung disease patients. Certain new drugs taken by people at high risk during the flu season can prevent infection. Dramatic variations occur once every decade or so. In 1976, for example, a major change in the A virus was found. The new virus resembled the swine-flvirus that caused 20 million deaths in the 1918 .'worldwide epidemic. To avoid a similar catastrophe, vaccine shots were offered to the whole -- u - n dii n uas, iruy population. Fortunately, the feared epidemic did not occur. Lung Association officials say that influenza illnesses can vary from very mild to very severe and even fatal. Symptoms often come on suddenly and may include some or all of the following: fever, chills, headache, dry cough, and soreness as well" as aching in the neck and limbs, v . Fever seldom lasts more than several days, although the patient may continue to feel weakened for a few days to a week or more. A physician's care at home or in the hospital may be needed if breathing is affected, the fever is high and persistent, or other complications occur; (LOGNEWS) |