French government expected to issue all citizens with survival manual

[Wildgoose]

Councils are generally underprepared due to a number of factors, finance being the biggest.
I have attended a few planning meetings and exercises and have seen the flaws with my own eyes.
An example, in the event of mast evacuation due to a burst reservoir the army will provide a temporary camp with food cooked in field kitchens - great except nobody had cleared this with the army. Any X factor is filled with “the army will deploy” or “suitable vehicles will be procured” without any assurance this would be feasible.

 

[slowworm]

How many Council meetings have you attended?

At the time we took part in several online meetings as they were closed due to covid. What was interesting is what was said when they didn't realise the public was listening. I have also spoken at great length to several managers and councillors and know a few details via local people.

In my case it most certainly is nothing to due with money or councillors being over worked. Without wishing to go into too much detail it was far more about the council not being able to think past their own town based lifestyle.

With regard to your comments about local contingency plans. I have my copy when there was much time and money spent producing the 'Home Emergency Plan' in 2018. I read through it at the time and have it to hand. Considering it was produced by the Parish Council it wasn't very useful. Too much just copied from central government rather than being specific for the area. It's also out dated now but no sign of an update in 7 years. I also wonder how many people now know where their plan is?

What is interesting about it is there's various phone numbers and web sites in it but the last couple of emergencies we've had the power has been out and mobile masts down so no phone or internet.

 

[Pattree]

Do you have a landline?
Do you know where the nearest landline is?
Do you know the owner of the landline?
Does your locality have a phone box?
(ours doesn’t but the line is still there under a cover - it can be set up fairly quickly.)

This is all part of preparedness.

Edited to add:
Over the years we have replaced our cordless landline several times. In each case the instructions clearly stated that I should have a corded handset ready to plug in in case if an emergency involving a power cut.
Ours is tucked away with the hats and scarves next to the hall handset.

 

[Woody girl]

I was thinking about local contingency plans as I walked into my small town this morning. Saw one of our local councilors and asked them, on a whim, what the plan was... get this, they have only planned for serious flooding, (which isn't massively likely,) and will set up a tea and coffee station in the town hall.
What about sleeping arrangements I asked,
What about nuclear war? What about any war?
Dunno, dont think we have any plans, came the reply
I'm seriously underwhelmed.

 

[Pattree]

So will you be standing for election?
Campaigning?
Asking questions?
Making suggestions?

Sorry - I’m not having a go at you or anyone else here. While I was working abroad my wife was elected to chair the parish council. She still chairs the village hall committee. They DO have an admittedly limited series of contingency plans that involve accommodating and feeding in an emergency.

 

[wandering1]

I was thinking about local contingency plans as I walked into my small town this morning. Saw one of our local councilors and asked them, on a whim, what the plan was... get this, they have only planned for serious flooding, (which isn't massively likely,) and will set up a tea and coffee station in the town hall.
What about sleeping arrangements I asked,
What about nuclear war? What about any war?
Dunno, dont think we have any plans, came the reply
I'm seriously underwhelmed.

It makes me wonder what pur local councils plans are, and considering their ineptitude over the years i seriously doubt they've planned for anything except their retirement
Though i do look at buildings in the area that might be useful in the event of a war ( nuclear or otherwise ). Being smack between ( 7 miles in each direction ) two major midland cities both of which are major transport hubs from north to south makes both a prime target, so i start with that in mind, in my immediate vicinity we have our local library which has a ww2 concrete bunker underneath it second to that st pauls church ( again the basement is solid concrete
However more long term theres the kidderminster tunnels ( old ww2 aircraft factory built into the hillside)

The problem with all this is that only helps if your fortunate to be in their locality during a strike and have sufficient time to get their before impact which in reality is unlikely
The only thing one can do is have situational awareness when one is out and about
Ie there are parts of Birmingham new st station that are strong enough to survive a strike and provide adequate temporary protection underground ( ie the old staff canteen area and the station foundations off platform 1, other than that any building with a solid basement
Though i do know that our local council has has a reinforced basement ( but that is for the them )

 

[slowworm]

Do you have a landline?

It is not that simple. We do have a land line and indeed we have a non-mains powered land line phone as the mains powered one does not work during a power cut.

However, the phone exchange sometimes does not work when we get power cuts. Moves are afoot and council cash being spent on going digital, which does not work during a powercut.

It is pointless discussing this with anyone in government as they are town/city based and just can't comprehend not having mobile phone access. (Our is very poor and.... doesn't work during powercuts!)

Now we can cope but my mum has a fall alarm and is being forced to go digital. They seem to think a gadget that will provide power for an hour or two will suffice despite her area suffering powercuts that can last for over 12 hours.

Annoyingly the government has only just started looking at allowing mobile phones to use satellite connections. This should have been done before forcing old people who need fall alarms over to unreliable digital connections.

 

[Pattree]

Who was it said “Ask not ……..”?

 

[slowworm]

The only thing one can do is have situational awareness when one is out and about
Ie there are parts of Birmingham new st station that are strong enough to survive a strike and provide adequate temporary protection underground

I gather there are plenty of large rats about for food as well.

 

[wandering1]

Yes Slowworm
there are plenty of large rats around but id prefer not to eat our local council members probably catch some disease off em
But we as a family have a well stocked pantry enough tins and dry goods for several months and i keep enough stuff in storage for hiking and other purposes ie water tabs ets

 

[bearbait]

It is not that simple. We do have a land line and indeed we have a non-mains powered land line phone as the mains powered one does not work during a power cut.

However, the phone exchange sometimes does not work when we get power cuts. Moves are afoot and council cash being spent on going digital, which does not work during a powercut.

It is pointless discussing this with anyone in government as they are town/city based and just can't comprehend not having mobile phone access. (Our is very poor and.... doesn't work during powercuts!)

Now we can cope but my mum has a fall alarm and is being forced to go digital. They seem to think a gadget that will provide power for an hour or two will suffice despite her area suffering powercuts that can last for over 12 hours.

Annoyingly the government has only just started looking at allowing mobile phones to use satellite connections. This should have been done before forcing old people who need fall alarms over to unreliable digital connections.

BT have been rolling out Digital Voice, their "next generation home phone".

"We're making the switch because the analogue network that most home phones work on today is no longer fit for purpose and can't keep up with the demands of modern life. That outdated network will be switched off for all phone providers by 2027."

Digital Voice | Digital Home Phone | BT

Experience Digital Voice from BT. With Call Diversion & Call Protect, upgrade now to get crystal clear calling.

www.bt.com

After the upgrade one has to plug one's existing landline phone in to the back of the Wi-Fi hub, or a special wall adaptor, to make and receive calls.

They say "If there’s a power cut or your broadband fails, you’ll be unable to make any calls using Digital Voice, including 999 calls. You’ll still be able to use a mobile phone, just make sure you keep it charged at all times."

The mobile network, I'm guessing here, needs power too?

So, No Power? No Phone network...

 

[MrEd]

And people laugh at me for being a radio ham. Atleast HF will still work in a power cut or war!

 

[Woody girl]

So will you be standing for election?
Campaigning?
Asking questions?
Making suggestions?

Sorry - I’m not having a go at you or anyone else here. While I was working abroad my wife was elected to chair the parish council. She still chairs the village hall committee. They DO have an admittedly limited series of contingency plans that involve accommodating and feeding in an emergency.

To be Frank, no. I wouldn't get anywhere, I'd get stressed and I already suffer high blood pressure. So I'll just look out for myself as best I can, and help a few chosen ones that I know would help me.
I'm resigned to whatever happens, happens.
Once my phone line goes digital later this year, I know communication is gone in an "oh bother" situation I can't afford to set up other coms, and have no clue as to how, and I know nobody local who does. So that's something that will instantly become a problem for many, as others have said.
I'm making my home less reliant on electricaly powered items, and buying old fashoned kitchenalia, home made hay box etc, to be able to keep the kitchen working.
I have a few items that will catch small protein if needed, I forage, and have a small veg production area. I can and dry food.
I have a wood burner.
I can do no more, and if that's not enough, so be it.
When it comes to the bigger picture, most round here, either have no idea, can't be bothered, not interested,or tell me they will probably be dead when it happens.
You can't push water uphill.
I'm pretty much on my own. So be it. I'm not gonna flog myself silly for those sort of people. Sorry, they will have to figure it out themselves when the time comes. Sounds harsh, but I've tried for years to get people on board, I just get funny looks, and they walk off as quickly as possible. I'm done with them.
Nowadays, I'm just that poor old pensioner on a stick or with a walker, grey woman. If it ever gets brought up, I laugh and say, "well, the pandemic proved it was all fearmongering, so I've given up on all that malarkey."
I Stay low now.

 

[Woody girl]

It is not that simple. We do have a land line and indeed we have a non-mains powered land line phone as the mains powered one does not work during a power cut.

However, the phone exchange sometimes does not work when we get power cuts. Moves are afoot and council cash being spent on going digital, which does not work during a powercut.

It is pointless discussing this with anyone in government as they are town/city based and just can't comprehend not having mobile phone access. (Our is very poor and.... doesn't work during powercuts!)

Now we can cope but my mum has a fall alarm and is being forced to go digital. They seem to think a gadget that will provide power for an hour or two will suffice despite her area suffering powercuts that can last for over 12 hours.

Annoyingly the government has only just started looking at allowing mobile phones to use satellite connections. This should have been done before forcing old people who need fall alarms over to unreliable digital connections.

Everybody can see this, even a blind man....or woman, ...except the people who will be making money out of it!
Duty of care, no longer exists, we are told its a better system despite the blatently obvious drawbacks. Modernisation is a big fat con in some instances.

 

[demographic]

And people laugh at me for being a radio ham. Atleast HF will still work in a power cut or war!

Funny you mention this but I was thinking about ham radio and stuff like Meshtastic possibly being usefull in a grid down situation.
I'm kind of half thinking about Meshtastic a go, just out of interest to see its capabilities.

 

[MrEd]

Funny you mention this but I was thinking about ham radio and stuff like Meshtastic possibly being usefull in a grid down situation.
I'm kind of half thinking about Meshtastic a go, just out of interest to see its capabilities.

Yeah a few friends use it, I haven’t looked into it in detail, but it’s certainly interesting, similar to rebro for voice transmissions

 

[Falstaff]

I understand the Govt/military have a case hardened comms network but that is for them, nobody else. There are drills and procedures for nuclear incidents, but again these are for post-incident governmental control and not for the general public. If I understand it correctly, nobody will be able to give any meaningful warning, and there is very little that anybody could actually do if they did. Joe Public will get hurt, full stop.

Covid has shown that the country was totally unprepared for any form of biological crisis, natural or man made, and that is still the case now. The most that they can consider contingency plans for are floods and fire.
What they have not allowed for is infection rates within the displaced public who are in temporary shelters due to fire or flood/other. I was reading today a medical news report on how the South Passadena emergency services had to deal with a triple crisis of flu, norovirus and Covid within the shelters for folk who had lost their homes in the fires. They did an amzing job, basically by throwing a massive amount of 24hr medical staff and pharmacy resources at it, and having a large quantity of handwashing and mask stations fortuitously to hand. Also, having some very experienced Red Cross crisis managment team members.
Not a chance of the UK being able to even remotely cope with something like that, but easy to envisage it happening.

 

[GreyCat]

BT have been rolling out Digital Voice, their "next generation home phone".

"We're making the switch because the analogue network that most home phones work on today is no longer fit for purpose and can't keep up with the demands of modern life. That outdated network will be switched off for all phone providers by 2027."

Digital Voice | Digital Home Phone | BT

Experience Digital Voice from BT. With Call Diversion & Call Protect, upgrade now to get crystal clear calling.

www.bt.com

After the upgrade one has to plug one's existing landline phone in to the back of the Wi-Fi hub, or a special wall adaptor, to make and receive calls.

They say "If there’s a power cut or your broadband fails, you’ll be unable to make any calls using Digital Voice, including 999 calls. You’ll still be able to use a mobile phone, just make sure you keep it charged at all times."

The mobile network, I'm guessing here, needs power too?

So, No Power? No Phone network...

Indeed. Which is wht at rhe new place I have Starlink (on a business "priority " service) powered via a Delta Ecoflow with 2 extra batteries (6kWh). StarlInk including the WiFi router draws 45 Watts or so, plus i have the solar panels that I can plug into the Ecoflow. It's an investment I made for business resilience as I mainly work from home, but also provides backup communication if a storm leaves a bunch of power lines, phone lines and fibre down (as storm Darragh did a bit further west).

And people laugh at me for being a radio ham. Atleast HF will still work in a power cut or war!

My husband is a radio amateur. I am not laughing. When all else fails, cw (more code) can get through when nothing else can...... which is of course why we have licensed radio amateurs, a way of preserving skills and knowledge in case govt needs them in an emergencyor wartimesituation.....

GC

 

[ONE]

And people laugh at me for being a radio ham. Atleast HF will still work in a power cut or war!

Indeed, but realistically, what are you going to do with it? As I say on social media regularly, I cover 160m to 70cm, legally, at home. It should keep working in many/most circumstances where I'm still able to operate it all, and on a good day I can speak to a random person half a world away. But even on a good day, where everything else functions I can't reliably order a pizza, call an ambulance or talk to my cousin 15 miles away with it. If I needed help, I'd be more likely to open the window and shout than spark up any of my radios. YMMV if you've a prearranged network and amateur radio definitely has a role in emergency/disaster communications but it's all down to luck or prearrangement, which brings back the question of community.

 

[Everything Mac]

Well this has been an interesting read.

I wonder if this is part of a wider (at least perceived) shift I've seen over the last few years promoting things like growing your own veg for example.

Given the state of the world these days a leaflet like this makes sense and I'd be surprised if other governments don't start doing something similar in the years to come. The UK govt might not catch on for a while though.


I can't say I'm a prepper. Though in recent years, particularly now with the kids, I am hugely more open to the idea of having at least a few extra bits in the house just in case. It just seems to make sense to me. I'd like to think if it came to it I could take care of me and mine for a bit at least.

But I have to say I think a lot of "preppers" are kidding themselves on. I know some may take offence at that but hey ho.


All the best
Andy