Man, every day its something new out of the Katrina incident.
Are you tired of me going on about it yet, ’cause I sure am.
BUT…enormous incidents like these don’t come along very often, so when one does occur, giving us a chance to see our fine government agencies in action, its definitely worth an exhaustive examination.
To people like me (and maybe you) who have kept one foot planted firmly in the notion of preparedness for the last ten years or so this experience shows what we’ve been saying all along – in a truly large, massive crisis the government response will either be a) useless and inadequate and/or b) heavy-handed authoritarianism mixed with a healthy dose of the police state. And, ladies and gentlemen, I have been dismissed as a crackpot for saying such things in the past. Do I feel vindicated? Sure. More importantly I hope that these events have tipped people off the fence and solidly into the ‘my safety and welfare is my own responsibility, not the governments’ camp.
Mostly, I hope that people have learned that the police aren’t there to help you in a crisis nearly as much as they are there to help themselves…and that people will prepare with this in mind.
I’d also like to take a moment to say that not every single cop is a thug, wanna-be tough guy, or picked-on kid who grew up to want to be a bully himself. Nah, Im sure there are a very few out there who realize that being a cop doesnt make them better than the citizenry theyre charged with protecting. Very few. To them, I hope their good work is noted and that they can distance themselves from their ‘respect mah authority’ co-workers…at least, distance themselves far enough to avoid the spatter.
I have this fantasy about starting a website listing every NOPD officers name and listing whether or not they showed up for work during Katrina, if they were caught on tape looting, or if they just turned and ran. Then I’d use this website to keep track of them and make sure that every time they went to apply with another agency, their bad deeds were brought to light. Why? Because if you have the power to take away someones civil rights than you had bloody well better be a Boy Scout or else you should be strung up from the nearest telephone pole.
end of rant
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Know what makes preparing for the apocalypse alot easier? Having someone close to you who a) doesnt think youre out of your mind, b) takes an interest, c) encourages through positive comments like “You know, Ireally love that you [stockpile food, store extra fuel, buy toilet paper in the 48 pack, etc]..it makes me feel safe”, d) all of the above.
I read alot of things in the various boards about how “I’m trying to explain to my (wife/husband) why we need to stock up on [item] and all they do is say Im wasting time and money!” and I’m so glad I dont have to deal with that. I also enjoy knowing that if Im away and theres a problem, she’s got all of the resources on hand to keep things safe and sane.
So…lucky me.
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I was watching some footage from someplace other than Louisiana where a whole town was, literally, wiped away. Serious. Nothing but concrete pads where all the little houses and shops were. Which naturally gets me wondering what kind of structure you could build to resist something like that. All Im coming up with is a streamlined concrete structure of some type. Did I mention my latest brainstorm for fabricating your own durable, easy-and-fast-to-build concrete sheds, outbuildings and dog kennels? No? Okay, follow me on this: get a mold and make concrete Lego blocks.
Seriously, man!
Think about it a minute. You make some moulds to cast a block thats, oh, say 12x12x18. Then you just stack ’em however you want in whatever configuration you want. Then trowel over the whole thing with some more concrete. Presto! Instant concrete building. How is it different from cinder blocks? Cause these babies lock together in a fashion that helps to keep them from pulling apart or tipping over. Sure, you’ll probably want some rebar here and there but think of the simple and expedient buildings you could make. Reatining walls! Curbs! Horse stalls! Machinegun nests! Driveway dividers! Wave of the future, my friends…. completely modular.
machinegun nests.
*giggle*
Heh.
There are companies that make a style of concrete block that stacks in a style very much like that for doing home landscaping. (retaining walls and such)
and IIRC, the hollow concrete blocks usually are reinforced with rebar in their hollow centers before having the mortar put on to glue the bricks togather.
The only major problem with that is concrete blocks are heavy in any sort of quantity…
Concrete Legos
A few of the concrete companies do just that with mismatched loads (loads that are the wrong strength, DIY’ers that can’t do the math and order way too much). They have these forms at their sites and dump concrete in them if time is running out.
The gun club I belong to uses them for retaining walls (out away from the berms for the ranges) and for 8′ “fencing” along the road to help protect from rounds escaping that direction if someone has an ND in the wrong direction.
Difference is:
These are 2’x2’x4′ and weigh ~2400 lbs They are keyed too, with a recess on the bottom and a ridge on the top. Pretty much what you describe, just on a bigger scale. The smaller version would weigh only ~225 lbs, still quite a heft. You might want to enlist the help of some LMIs at that point.
Re: Concrete Legos
…sorry, I didn’t notice I wasn’t logged in.
I have been trying to think of ways to reduce the mass of these blocks, and short of hollowing out like a cinder block, a thinner block is the only thing I can think of. 6″x12″x18″ could be stacked in a thin wall or a thick wall, depending on the application.
Would 6″ of concrete stop most rounds? I would think so, but shotgun slugs and high power rifle may not.
Cinder blocks and rebar would serve the same purpose.
I’m thinking that a ferrocement dome might suffice. Not modular, but cheap, quick to build, and sturdy as hell. Hell, ferrocement blown over any kind of inflatable form would work pretty well.
I’m no expert, but I know that one of the features of my aunt and uncle’s home out on Navarre Beach (near Pensacola FL) is a strong steel wire anchor that runs like 10-15 feet below the surface to the top of the roof. Essentially, it holds the structure intact and prevents the house from being blown over by the surge. The house was built around 2000 so it is up to most all the latest standards to withstand a hurricane.
It withstood the brunt of Ivan last year with only water damage on the lower garage level. Thankfully the surge came just short of entering the living area on the 2nd floor.
There is something somewhat similar now, which are HOLLOW styrofoam blocks that lock together like lego. The are essentially shaped like a giant letter H with an interior web holding the 2 halves together. The blocks weigh about 4-5 pounds each. You construct your wall or foundation out of these, stick rebar in the pre-cut rebar ‘guides’ and then just pour/shovel/inject cement into it. Presto! Instand poured concrete wall (or whatever). The beauty is that the styrofoam adds an insane R-value.
Concrete Legos might be good for things like, oh, emergency levee reinforcement too. Ahem.
The blocks could be designed with a built-in circumferential gasket that would provide for weather sealing. (Quick mental picture – take a standard 2×4 Lego block and wrap it with a rubber band. The rubber band would run lengthwise between the nibs on the top, down the sides, and along the bottom.) Stack the blocks to form a wall and you’d have a weathersealing gasket embedded in the wall. No cement topcoat would be needed, so the buildings could be deconstructed just as easily and the blocks reused in the next emergency.