Survival 101: How to survive earthquakes, terrorists, looters

MANILA, Philippines — There is a bar room joke that if in the United States, the reaction time for the police to arrive in a crime scene is three minutes, in the Philippines, the police is already there even before the crime starts.

To fall victim to a crime or a disaster, however, is no joke, said Martin Tuason, president of global arms and ammunition company Armscor Global Defense.

Hence, in light of the recent Marawi crisis and earthquakes in different parts of the country, Armscor organized the First Tactical and Survival (TACS) Expo on June 1 to 4 at the SM Megatrade Halls 1 to 3 in Mandaluyong City.

During the press conference held Monday afternoon for the expo, Captain Jobert Tolentino Jr., Disaster and Emergency Responders International chief, shared some tips on how to survive during natural disasters like Yolanda and the recent terror attacks in Marawi and Mindanao.

The first rule of survival is Yoyo (Your own, your own), said Tolentino.

“In disasters, we have to help ourselves first before we rely on government to help us,” explained Armscor Senior Vice President and Deputy Chief Executive Officer Gina Marie Angangco.

Tolentino gave as example the aftermath of super typhoon Haiyan or Yolanda, wherein in spite preparations, rescue teams cannot readily access the stricken areas, leaving victims to find ways to survive on their own for a while.

“Although we all have response teams, they will not be able to respond to you immediately. So, as the Office of Civil Defense says, we must be able to survive for at least the next three days during a large-scale disaster,” Tolentino said.

Rescuers have flunked the airports immediately a day after Haiyan hit, but they cannot get to the victims as roads have been blocked and there was a complete electric shut down.

During Yolanda, people fought to survive not only through food and shelter, but also looters, Tolentino recalled.

“So, we really have to prepare ourselves, our families, our livelihoods, our companies, for large-scale disasters,” he advised.

What to do during a strong earthquake

“When the earthquake really feels strong, do not panic and run. Do the duck, cover, and hold (technique),” Tolentino suggested.

• Duck – go down on the floor
• Cover – look for something to cover you like a table or a chair. Cover the whole body so you will not be injured and you will be able to go out of the building, Tolentino said.
• Hold – Hold on to your cover so it becomes stable enough to protect yourself from falling debris.

In addition, Tolentino said:

• Know where the exit is
• Identify evacuation centers and better go here after an earthquake than stay in the building because if there will be aftershocks, the weak parts of the building might collapse. Make sure the evacuation area is an open one, where nothing will fall on you
• Replenish the food in your survival kit every six months
• Store quick-dry clothes in your survival kit

WATCH: How to prepare an “Inch Bag”

An “Inch Bag” or the “I’m not coming home” bag is something you can bring “if you can’t go back to your house and go to an evacuation center,” said Angangco.

According to her, it contains sleepwear and everything you need to survive in a night or two. Even on ordinary days, she said you can keep your inch bag in your car just in case you get stranded in the middle of nowhere.

Whatever the crisis or situation is, Angangco said there are only four must-haves to survive:

1. Security – teach even a boy how to shoot and to handle looters
2. Communication – keep satellite phones at bay, equip each family member with a portable phone, or run to an evacuation area where there is a good signal for communication.
3. Water – You can survive without food, but not without water, for two to three days.
4. Power or electricity

How to handle looters and terrorists

The survival kit, said Tolentino, should also contain maintenance medicines enough for some days because, based on his experience during Yolanda, looters emptied drugstores even of maintenance medicines, leaving those with special needs stripped of supplies.

Tolentino trained Moro National Liberation Front armed men when former President Fidel Ramos called them to be integrated in the government’s reservist squad. Based on this experience, he said, Muslim extremists, even when armed, talk like any other Muslim, but can be violent during wartime like in the recent Marawi tragedy.

He added that Muslim extremists, too, usually want to behead someone to “baptize” a new axe because doing so raises its value among so-called “collectors,” who are either fellow Muslim extremists or mere supporters.

So, what to do when extremists or looters attack one’s town? Tolentino gave the following tips:

• Do the “lock down” - Run to a safe place and lock yourself there. It will be better if this place has a peeping hole where you can see everyone who comes in.
• Try hard not to be noticed inside your shell. Don’t make noise.
• Don’t just open door for anyone. Make codes only your family or officemates could understand so when you have to meet in your safe place, you can easily identify each other.

If you have been caught, here is what you can do:

• As much as possible, keep a low profile. Don’t take their attention. If you have been caught as a group, as much as possible, make sure to limit the terrorists’ attention from you, because if they notice you, you might be their first victim.
• If you are going to a place like Marawi where there are terrorists, make sure to know how to speak their language, which can buy you time to plan or negotiate your escape.
• If you are the target, try to negotiate. Negotiation is a survival technique. While they are talking to you, you are still surviving. Even begging for your life is a survival technique. It can buy you time to escape.
• Try to offer your captors anything as long as it keeps you living. Try to delay their tactics as much as you could, until such time that you can escape.

“Just think of pleasing them while thinking how you can escape,” Tolentino reminded.

Now, if that blade is already in your neck and the terrorist is about to chop off your head, there is only one thing to do, said Tolentino: Pray.

He did not advise “converting” to another religion on the spot or pretending to be a Muslim just to please the Muslims because he thinks these will anger the extremists all the more. So, in hopeless situations, he said the best weapon is still to be yourself.

“Our first line of defense is ourselves. We just enhance it with equipment. As we equip ourselves, our ability to survive slightly increases. As we learn how to do survival stuff, then we avoid making ourselves the target...Think as a survivalist!” he urged.