EMP Hits, You’ve Only Got Your Carry-On – Can You Survive Like These Experts?

Imagine this: you’re flying back home on a red-eye flight. It’s 4:00 a.m., you’re in an Uber cruising through a major city like Atlanta when suddenly, everything shuts down. The highway is dead silent, cars are stopped, and there’s no power in sight. You realize it’s not just a power outage. It’s something much worse – an EMP (Electromagnetic Pulse) attack has hit. You’ve got no checked bags, only what you packed in your carry-on. Can you survive? This is a scenario from a recent BattlBox video dealing with this topic.

This scenario is exactly what survival expert Jason Salyer walks his students through in a live training, where Brandon Currin and JJ Morris joined forces to simulate surviving the first 24 hours after an EMP. Here’s a breakdown of how these experts handle the chaos, and what you can learn from their experience.

First Priority: Get Out of the Chaos

“Priority One would be getting the heck out of Dodge,” says Salyer, summing up the first and most crucial survival instinct. The experts emphasize that staying in densely populated areas is the worst decision. The calm won’t last long, and once people realize what’s going on, panic will spread like wildfire. If you linger, you’ll be caught in the madness. So, getting out early is the key. Currin adds, “It’s early, people haven’t freaked out quite yet, but you don’t want to be there when they do.”

The Three Survival Essentials: Water, Shelter, and Socks?

You might think survival is all about fire-starting or having a weapon, but as the experts point out, none of them have weapons in this exercise. “Water, shelter, and socks,” says Currin. Water is number one; it’s essential to staying alive. Next, a barrier from the elements is crucial – whether it’s a tarp, a bivvy, or a simple poncho. But one surprising essential? Socks. “If you don’t take care of your feet, you will be done,” explains Morris. Without good socks and footwear, you won’t be able to move efficiently, and in survival scenarios, being able to move is life-saving.

Navigating Without Electronics

One of the biggest challenges in an EMP scenario is the sudden loss of all electronics. GPS, phones, and any kind of modern navigation tool are useless. Morris and Currin agree that relying on good old-fashioned map and compass skills is vital. But beyond that, you also need to know your environment – how to recognize landmarks and use natural signs like the sun to get your bearings.

Calories are Fuel

Even in the first 24 hours, food matters. As Morris explains, if you don’t replace the electrolytes, salts, and calories in your system, you’ll hit a wall. “You’re going to Bonk,” he warns, emphasizing the importance of carrying calorie-dense foods like energy bars or nuts. It’s not just about having enough calories to survive but having the right nutrients to keep your body functioning efficiently.

Stealth Mode: The Art of Not Being Seen

Surviving an EMP isn’t just about the gear you carry – it’s about how you move. The experts stress the importance of blending into your environment. “If someone’s passing by, just stop moving,” says Salyer. In the early hours after the EMP, it’s best to avoid drawing attention to yourself. Whether it’s by hiding in thick vegetation or finding cover behind terrain, the goal is to remain invisible unless absolutely necessary.

Making Camp: Find Shelter, But Don’t Be Obvious

As darkness approaches, finding a camp spot becomes critical. But it’s not as simple as just picking a random location. “Don’t pass up a good spot assuming there’s a better one ahead,” warns Salyer. You need to consider how hidden the spot is, whether you have access to water, and how safe it is from people or animals. The experts demonstrate how to blend into the environment using hammocks and tarps to stay off the ground while remaining undetectable from passersby.

Water: Sourcing and Purifying

Once you’re settled, water becomes a priority again. In one impressive demonstration, Currin cuts into a grapevine to source clean water. He explains, “It’s like a straw. Cut the vine high, and water starts flowing out.” In survival situations, knowing how to find and purify water from nature is a crucial skill. Even though the experts carry water purification tablets and filtration systems, learning how to source water in the wild gives you an extra layer of security.

Avoiding the Danger of Bad Water

While sourcing water is important, drinking it without purification can be dangerous. Salyer highlights that purification tablets can take up to four hours to fully work, depending on the contaminants. He advises caution: if you drink contaminated water, you could be incapacitated by illness within a few days. Being prepared with multiple ways to purify water, like boiling or using filtration systems, could be the difference between survival and disaster.

Stealth Fire: Keep It Low and Slow

A fire can be a double-edged sword. You need it for warmth, cooking, and water purification, but it can also give away your location. The experts demonstrate how to make a “stealth fire,” small and smokeless, but effective enough to boil water or cook a meal. Using duct tape and small dry sticks, they show how even minimal resources can be used to start a fire in a survival situation.

Rest and Recovery

Surviving isn’t just about staying active; it’s also about knowing when to rest. Salyer stresses the importance of finding a safe, concealed spot to rest and recuperate. “You’ve got to rebuild and repair your body to keep moving,” he says. Knowing how to balance movement and rest can extend your survival time significantly.

Learn From the Experts

While the EMP scenario is simulated, the lessons these survival experts teach are very real. As Salyer, Currin, and Morris demonstrate, surviving a disaster with nothing but your carry-on is not just about the tools you have but the skills you know. They’ve learned through experience, and their advice could be the difference between life and death in a real-world scenario.

Could You Survive?

Watching these experts in action makes one thing clear: surviving an EMP event with only your carry-on is possible, but it requires preparation and knowledge. Do you have the skills to navigate without electronics? Can you find water and food in the wild? More importantly, do you know how to stay hidden and safe? Learning from these experts could make all the difference in a world turned upside down.