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Final Destination

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Final Destination

The final destination of an escape route is a specific, pre-arranged secondary site, a second dwelling, a friendly community or a stocked shelter, at least 5 km from home and preferably 10-20 km so that whatever drove you out does not reach it. It needs water, shelter and supplies for two weeks, which for 8 people at 2 L each a day is 224 L of water, unless a reliable source is there.

Part of Escape Route Planning

The final destination is the place an escape route ends: a pre-arranged secondary location with water, shelter and supplies, far enough from the primary site to be unaffected by the event that caused the evacuation.

”Away” Is Not A Destination

The parent article says the destination should be a pre-arranged secondary living location, a friendly community or a pre-positioned shelter, with water, shelter capability and cached supplies to sustain the group for at least two weeks. It should be far enough from the primary location that the cause of the evacuation does not affect it, a minimum of 5 km and preferably 10-20 km. If no secondary location exists, identify at least three potential sites along your routes where you could establish a temporary camp. The phase-0 article makes the same point: an escape route leads to a specific safe place, not just away (Escape Routes).

What You Need

  • An agreement with whoever owns or lives at the site, made in advance, with a clear understanding of what you may bring and for how long.
  • Water: a source that you have tested, or stored water. See Water Purification.
  • Shelter: a building or a tarp configuration; see Tarp Configurations.
  • Supplies, cached and rotated; see Staged Equipment.
  • Three fallback sites along the routes, in case the destination is unusable.

Method: Choose, Agree, Stock, Visit

Step 1: Choose by distance and by cause. A site 5 km away can still be burned by a wildfire that burns your home. Pick a site that the likeliest triggers (fire, flood, contamination, attack) are unlikely to reach at the same time.

Step 2: Agree. A destination you are not expected at is an imposition, and a friendly community may turn away a group that arrives unannounced.

Step 3: Stock it. Water first, then shelter, then food, then tools and medicine.

Step 4: Visit it every season, staying a night, to check it, rotate stock and learn how it changes.

Step 5: Prepare the fallbacks. Three places along your routes, each with a shelter site and water.

Worked Example: Water And Walking Time

Water. The corpus gives a minimum of 2 litres per person per day to survive, more in heat or hard work (Atmospheric Water Sources). For 8 people for 14 days: 8 × 14 × 2 = 224 L. Water weighs about 1 kg per litre, so this is about 224 kg: too much to carry, which is why the destination needs a source or stored water, not a pack full.

Walking time at 3 km/h (an example group pace). 5 km takes 5 ÷ 3 = 1.67 h; 10 km takes 3.33 h; 20 km takes 6.67 h. At 20 km the trip is a day’s walk with rests, and it needs the night timing in Distance and Timing.

Common Mistakes

  • A destination known only to one person. The parent article says to brief everyone.
  • A cache with no water. Food without water is of limited use.
  • A shelter not visited for years. Roofs fail and rodents move in.
  • A destination that shares the cause. A second site in the same flood plain is not a second site.

Safety

An unused building is not a safe building

Closed buildings accumulate carbon monoxide from blocked flues, collapse under snow, shelter snakes and rodents, and may have contaminated water. Ventilate and check structure and stove before use, and treat all water. If the group will cook or heat indoors, follow Carbon Monoxide Risks.

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