If you are surrounded by unknown threats or perils, one of the last things you want to do is draw attention to yourself. If you let others – especially those with bad intentions – see that your back is currently against the wall, that alone might make you more vulnerable still.
A prime aim when you are in survival mode, therefore, may be to blend in – either with the crowd, if that’s where you find yourself – or to disappear from view if you have made it to a more remote refuge.
Here are some of our tips and suggestions for blending into your surroundings – no just during a disaster but in those day-to-day situations where you may feel physically threatened.
Foster the “grey man” approach
A number of – mostly American websites – websites talk about the advantages of becoming the “grey man” in any crowd on the verge of panicking in the face of an emergency or disaster.
In a crowd close to panic, people are likely to do the unexpected – potentially aggressively and violently – in a last-gasp bid for self-preservation. In that commotion, anyone who appears – like you – to be fully prepped and ready for anything might stand out as a target. The very bug out bag you are carrying, for instance, can be the object of thieving attention.
As a truly grey man (or woman), you can conceal the fact from the rest of the crowd that you are actually well-prepared for what’s happening around you. In that concealment, you will also be hiding a further advantage you have over the rest of the crowd. Everyone is trying to escape to a safer place but only you know exactly where that place is and how to get there – because you have prepped for just this eventuality.
Blending in
Painting that picture of the grey man and successfully blending in against whatever background you find yourself in calls for attention to key characteristics – how you look, how you move, how you act, and what you carry:
Appearance
- at the best of times, people are likely to judge us by the clothes we wear – during an emergency, people are just as likely to make snap judgments about who you are, and what you might be up to, on the strength of your appearance alone;
- if you want to blend in, therefore, dress like everyone else – dress like a local, in clothes that suit whatever setting or environment you are in;
- though you want to cast yourself as the grey man you don’t have to take that literally in the colours you choose to wear – but remember that muted, sombre colours are likely to draw less attention than loud and brassy ones;
Your moves
- not too fast, but not too slow – that is likely to be the order of the day;
- try to go with the flow, move with the crowd rather than against it and do so with a purposeful stride that lets others know you know where you’re going – but without any hint of undue haste or running away from the current situation you are all in;
- dawdle and it might look as though you don’t know where you’re going (and appear all the more vulnerable because of it) but rapid movement might equally draw unwanted attention;
Actions
- acting normally and in a completely unthreatening or remarkable manner might be easier said than done;
- actions here include the way in which you engage with others around you – and that, in turn, means how you speak and the topics of conversation you choose;
- the grey man, of course, talks about nothing that is politically or socially sensitive or contentious – and in an emergency or disaster situation is not going to be the person forever talking about escape routes and plans;
What you carry
- part of you might be saying the ideal is to carry nothing but you are in an emergency situation and having prepped for just that event means you have some kind of bug out bag;
- aim for a bag that is as inconspicuous as possible – one that is likely to fit in with the everyday routines of those around you, such as the backpacks or briefcases carried by city commuters;
- above all, advises the Urban Survival Site, don’t wear your wealth – jewellery or other outward signs of being better-heeled than those around you is only asking for trouble.
Making your escape to a safe refuge
The whole point of your making efforts to blend in with the crowd is to make your escape from it. In any emergency or disaster situation you will not want to be surrounded by the unpredictability and uncertainty of the crowd but make it to the safe have at the heart of your prepped plans.
When making that escape, you want to do it quickly yet maintaining as inobtrusive a profile as possible. And here – to borrow the phrase from a well-known London bike shop – Two Wheels Good. Travel on two wheels and you can keep the machine much closer to hand, for a quicker getaway, through and around the kind of obstacles that would put paid to any exit on four wheels.
On a motorbike, of course, you can make your getaway even more quickly and continue to take full advantage of the manoeuvrability you have on two wheels rather than four.
Either way, aim to travel as light as possible – with the barest essentials for your immediate survival in the bug out bag. Since your prepping will have identified, mapped out and at least partially set up your place of safety and refuge, keep further, longer-term supplies of food, water, and other necessities buried nearby.
The same goes for any valuables, of course. These are unlikely to play a part in your immediate survival plans, so bury them safely away and out of sight of prying eyes until some of the dust has settled and you start planning your return to any new normal.
When an emergency or disaster strikes, therefore, aim to keep a low profile. Blend in rather than stand out from the crowd. Others may not be as prepped as you – but don’t let them take advantage of that fact.
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