Narrator: Across the country ordinary
Americans from all walks of life are taking what
ever measures necessary to prepare-
Tim: I'm preparing my famiIy for the totaI
destruction of the power grid.
Jason: The YeIIowstone super voIcano.
KeIIene: A financiaI coIIapse.
Narrator: And protect themselves-
Doug: When survivaI is the goaI it's into the
spider hoIe.
Becky: Fast, Fast, Fast, Fast, Go, Go, Go, Go, Go.
Narrator: From what they perceive is the fast
approaching end of the world as we know it-
Matan: So I'm going to use my teeth.
Narrator: Next, we go inside the lives of four
committed preppers who have devised extensive
plans-
KeIIene: We have enough for about 8 peopIe for 3 years.
Narrator: Gone to great lengths-
S Y: I'II poison them or cut their throats in
their sIeep or something Iike that.
Narrator: And made huge personal sacrifices,
to ensure their very survival-
David: My knees broke, my backs broke,
my hands broke, the onIy thing that stiII works on
me is my mouth.
Narrator: The experts will assess their extreme
preps and decide if they have what it takes to
face Armageddon-
KeIIene: Here's to the end of the worId.
Narrator: And to survive-
This is doomsday preppers-
David Sarti is a disabled truck driver living
outside of Nashville, Tennessee-
For 20 years his job took him to every corner of
the United States, but now his life's work is at
home, he's a prepper-
David: I'm preparing for an eIectro magnetic puIse
that wiII disabIe the transportation system of
the United States!
Narrator: An electro magnetic pulse or an EMP
is a sudden burst of energy that can take out
any electrical appliance-
A nationwide EMPcan be caused by a solar flare,
a sudden release of energy from the sun-
David: An EMP onIy takes a miIIisecond.
Your teIevision wouId go off,
your car wouId staII, aII your Iights wouId go out.
It wouId be Iike someone instantIy fIipped the
switch on the worId.
Narrator: ln 1859 an EMP in the form of a solar
flare hit the United States and Europe-
Nicknamed the Carrington Event, it caused almost
worldwide failure of the telegraph system one of
the few electronic technologies of the day-
David: In some pIaces it was so powerfuI it
actuaIIy started fires and burnt the wires in
two.
couId you even imagine what it wouId do today
with aII the wires that are strung aII over the
pIace?
We know that the naturaI one wiII happen again!
Narrator: lf a similar EMP hit today scientists
believe that it could take over a year to
repair the America's damaged electrical grid-
To stay ahead of the game,
David monitors the sun's activity on a daily basis
checking for the warning signs associated with
massive solar flares-
David: Yeah this is where one of those EMP events
wouId come from.
This is Iive right now, in the Iast few days it's
putting out a Iot of fIares, but right
now we're getting a Iot of eIectricaI interference.
If one of those pops out at earth that's when
things go bad.
Some peopIe think that I'm obsessed about
prepping, but you know I hope their right,
I hope they think, I hope I am crazy,
I hope nothing happens!
You know that wouId be the greatest thing in the
worId!
AIright you're going to Iose my eyes foIks,
don't I Iook cooI, a fat Tom cruise.
Narrator: Spending 20 years on the road as a
trucker has given David an insight ofjust how
bad the effects of an EMP would be-
David: The trucking industry is what this
country Iives on.
There's not one thing, one thing that you don't
touch, see, hear and eat that does not come on a
truck.
AII the trucks are computerized and an
eIectro magnetic puIse wouId fry the computer in
those trucks, just Iike it wouId fry the
computers in most aII your cars.
This is a truck computer.
Don't Iook Iike much!
That controIs aII the stuff for the truck.
Man: Without that this one here wouIdn't run at
aII.
It wouId just quit.
David: Gauges in there, fueI sensors.
I caII it the AchiIIes heeI of the nations
trucking fIeet.
Narrator: Just three days without a
working transportation system would leave
America's grocery stores empty-
Back at his farm David adds shelled
corn to his extensive doomsday storage,
all stashed for the long term in 55-gallon
containers-
David: I have enough food and dry grains for 1 year
for seven peopIe.
Now this isn't nothing that you're going to Iove
to eat.
It's basicaIIy corn bread with beans.
Put these hand warmers in there,
there're the same thing as oxygen absorbers.
Push out as much air as you can.
Narrator: Hand warmers contain fine iron filings
that can absorb oxygen from the air-
When placed in a sealed bag,
they can eliminate mould and pests that rely on
oxygen to survive-
David: 20 years, 30 years, that's good.
I'II be pushing up daisies before that goes
bad.
Narrator: What David can't store,
he plans to grow on his farm-
lntent on making it the perfect location to sit
out doomsday-
David: I'm in a bug out Iocation;
we can produce more food than we can eat here.
So technicaIIy I have an unIimited suppIy.
So whiIe aII of y'aII in New York are eating Ramen
NoodIes, around here we're going to be eating
a Iot of ribeye steak and t-bones.
ApproximateIy 3 days after an eIectro magnetic
puIse the panic wouId of done aIready hit and most
everybody wouId of cIeaned out the grocery
stores.
Within 3 weeks you're going to have the first
rioting because peopIe when they get hungry
there're going to try to take other peopIe's food
away from them.
Narrator: To stave off hungry masses David has a
three-stage security plan in place-
David: I've got severaI extra roIes of barbed
wire, and then you have these yappy IittIe dogs.
If the person has gone through aII the troubIe
to get through the barb wire and try to take on
the dogs, finaIIy the Iast Iine of defense is this.
Every gun in this house is Ioaded.
I am a decent shot, I was a Iot better.
I used to be abIe to shoot the wings off a
nats ass at a 1 00 yards.
Get her dog!
Not too bad for a fat guy.
Narrator: David has taken his expertise to the
small screen-
David: AIright aII you YouTubers.
Narrator: He regularly preaches the prepping
gospel to a large online audience-
David: So we are going to pour that into the
ceramic fiIter.
Narrator: He covers everything from water
filtration-
David: Dirty water has turned into cIean water.
Narrator: To homemade antibiotics-
David: So what I'm going to do is show you how to
make your own antibiotics.
Thank you very much!
Narrator: Communication is survival for David,
and he has no intention of giving it up for an
apocalypse-
David: When there is a emergency the vaIue of
communication is fairIy basic.
I mean if you don't know where the heIp is,
what good is it going to be?
You have to have information to know where
it is.
AIright KI4W8, I just wanted to teII you,
you've picked the right subject about EMP
tonight.
Radio: congratuIations David.
HeIIo Nat Geo.
Narrator: Amateur or ham radio allows David to
communicate with millions of other ham operators
worldwide using only existing radio
frequencies in the air-
lt requires no phone lines,
no internet and can be run completely on battery
or solar power-
David: Whiskey charIie Two Victor,
Be back in a few.
It's kind of neat to be abIe to taIk to somebody
not using any of the infrastructure.
It's something that I can give back to the
community.
My knees broke, my backs broke, my hands broke,
uh the onIy thing that stiIIs works on me is my
mouth.
That goes a miIe a minute.
You know it's Iike I have a IittIe Briggs and
Stratton motor in there going bIahbIahbIahbIah.
Narrator: Even though a ham radio would work
after an EMP, it still needs to be protected
during an EMP-
And to keep his prized possession safe,
David is building a faraday cage-
David: Afaraday cage is a metaI container that
encIoses the item compIeteIy in a
conductive materiaI.
Narrator: By creating a seamless metal surface
that electricity would run along but not through
anything inside the faraday cage would be
protected from the electrical surge caused
by an EMP-
David: We're not done yet.
But this aII has to be seaIed up and it's going
to wrapped in metaI aII the way around.
If I was inside I couId cIose the door and
Iightning boIts couId strike and I wouIdn't
even know they were hitting me.
I wouId probabIy give it a few days before I even
unpacked my radios from their cages,
and then I wouId turn them on and scan the
frequencies, Iisting for other amateur radio
operators.
There are many peopIe beIieve that they can
just become hermits.
And that's fine and dandy but if you want to
rebuiId society you need to communicate.
if you don't know where the heIp is,
what good is it going to be?
You have to have information to know where
it is.
Narrator: The consultants at Practical Preppers are
impressed by your ability to grow and store food,
and your communication systems will help you
build back your community-
David: Yes one of the reasons I got into
amateur radio was for emergency communications.
Even though I'm in bad heaIth,
there's stiII things that I can do.
As Iong as I'm here I can do my best to heIp
others.
Narrator: But your health is your biggest obstacle
to survival with out the physical strength to tend
crops and chop wood, you will need outside
help in surviving a EMP-
David: I've been focusing on my heaIth,
I've come to a point right now where it's
going to take surgery, but it is what it is.
Since the NationaI Geographic speciaI peopIe
were fiIming here, my heaIth has not changed,
if anything it may of got worse.
UnIess something happens that I can afford the
surgery, I don't have much hope in that.
Narrator: What are the odds of a EMP actually
occurring?
Extremely rare and unpredictable-
Massive solar storms happen about every 1 50
years-
Carington size events which could take years to
recover from happened about 500 years or so-
Narrator: Kellene Bishop is a Utah housewife who
believes a catastrophic economic collapse will
cause food shortages and unleash panic across the
country-
But can she use her passion for cooking,
and her stockpiles of stored food to survive
doomsday?
KeIIene: Here's to eating weII at the end of the worId.
Narrator: ln the Salt Lake City suburb of Orem,
Utah Killeen Bishop has earned a reputation for
being able to whip up gourmet cuisine in a
flash-
What the bubbly housewife is also known for is-
KeIIene: I am preparing for a financiaI coIIapse,
which wiII resuIt in the end of the worId as we
know it!
I beIieve that there wiII be a coIossaI financiaI
coIIapse.
I beIieve we are on the precipice of that right
now.
The mortgage industry, the currency vaIue,
WaII Street, unempIoyment, etc, etc.
It's aII going to come into pIay as the
perfect storm.
We have a great deaI of foreign debt that couId
be turned over and fIooded back into the
system at any time.
There wiII be a day of reckoning and when that
happens the financiaI coIIapse wiII take a
matter of hours before it impacts us right here in
this nation.
I used to run a muItimiIIion-doIIar
business.
I had my bIing that my husband gave me every
christmas.
Now the kind of bIing that I ask Santa cIaus
for is typicaIIy the type of bIing you'II see on a
pressure cooker or a soIar oven.
If we find ourseIves in the worId where it's been
a financiaI coIIapse its very IikeIy grocery
stores wiII be empty.
I think I might be eating a IittIe differentIy than
other preppers because I'm a foodie.
Everything I have I have for fuII fIavor and
gourmet foods.
If the worId comes to an end I may be eating rice
and beans but they wiII be some kicking rice and
beans.
I'II be eating more things Iike beef
stroganoff, chicken poppy seed casseroIe,
coq au vin, four cheese ItaIian risotto.
I'II be eating some good stuff.
Under a doomsday scenario I'II be the onIy one
standing there who has another hundred pounds to
Iose.
Everybody eIse wiII be skin and bones.
So what are we Iooking at then?
Scott: Wheat wise?
KeIIene: Yeah.
Scott: Oh, we've probabIy got about
3000 pounds between the
two of us, something Iike that.
Narrator: Kellene and her husband Scott foresee
a day when money is so worthless
that fuel and groceries become luxury items-
KeIIene: coco has gone up 300 percent since Iast
christmas.
My worst case scenario is the vaIue of the doIIar
is brought down to 4 cents.
can you beIieve these were 25 cents?
Narrator: To prepare for a society where a carton
of milk might become prohibitNely expensive,
Kellene and her husband spend 6 to 8 hours a day
prepping and stockpiling enough food and
water to last them for years-
KeIIene: This is where we store aII of our yummy
freeze-dried and dehydrated foods.
Just this cIoset aIone we have enough for about 8
peopIe for 3 years.
Narrator: A protein room-
KeIIene: We're running out of room for the
canned chicken.
This one won't fit.
There is meat store aII over the pIace.
It's Iike opps!
Excuse me!
Don't step on the meat!
Narrator: A modified guest bedroom-
KeIIene: Eight 55-gaIIon barreIs of water.
What have you done to my guest bedroom honey?
Scott: It's a waterbed.
KeIIene: No I am not getting up on there!
Narrator: And a comfort room-
KeIIene: So a Iot of peopIe think that this
room is a IittIe bit over kiII.
This is where I store aII the comfort such as
chocoIate, brownie mixes and toiIet paper.
AII of our preparedness suppIies that we have in
our home presentIy probabIy have a retaiI
vaIue of over a 1 00 thousand doIIars.
Just so you know I taIIied the miIk,
and we're Iooking at 700 gaIIons but I reaIIy want
that to be up to 900.
Scott: I think they got a saIe coming up on that
too so now wouId be a good time for that.
KeIIene: That's the onIy time.
Scott: My wife does Iike to store a Iot of food.
I'm gratefuI for a wife that Iikes to and is good
at cooking.
KeIIene: Okay.
Scott: It's something that gives you
an edge in a doomsday scenario.
KeIIene: Might add just a coupIe packs of butter
because butter aIways makes a sauce.
The fact of the matter is I'd go back into a
burning house for my cookbooks.
I watch a Iot of cooking shows in order to give me
great inspirations for gourmet dishes from sheIf
stabIe foods.
It is not tough to make gourmet menus out of
sheIf stabIe foods.
The onIy tricky part is knowing how to make a
food sheIf stabIe.
Narrator: Kellene fears that electricity costs
shoot will skyrocket and she won't be able to rely
on her refrigerator-
Consequently, she treats her perishable foods so
it can stay fresh for years-
KeIIene: So we're actuaIIy preserving eggs
Narrator: Today she is teaching her friend Barb
food preservation tricks-
KeIIene: Put a IittIe bit of mineraI oiI on your
hands and then sIather it aII over the egg,
which is basicaIIy mimicking how they
aIready come out of the hen.
Not aIIowing oxygen to get through.
Barb: This goes fast.
KeIIene: It does.
When I get a kiIIer deaI on eggs Iike 50 cents or
75 cents a dozen I can buy a whoIe Iot of them
and I can store them in a cooI dry pIace without
them going bad.
They wiII sit tight for about 9 to 1 2 months
There we go!
So I'm actuaIIy dipping hot cheese wax over hard
cheeses.
AII you do is dip it in here nice and easy.
They continue to age but you don't have to have
refrigeration.
These wiII keep from 20 to 25 years.
Barb: That's great.
KeIIene: In the event of a financiaI coIIapse I
suspect that a Iot of peopIe are going to have
to eat that nasty powdered stuff.
Not me.
I am having Swiss cheese on homemade nan bread.
Scott: We're running out of room in here hun.
Narrator: A fortified pantry isn't Kellene's
only defense against a catastrophic financial
collapse-
lf her fears are realized she is prepared to fight
back-
KeIIene: So you're never more than 20 feet away
from a firearm in this house.
One exampIe is a smaII firearm in a number 1 0
can of peas and I remember that because
it's my peashooter.
So this is my every day kind of weapon.
They don't make cans quite big enough for my
doomsday weapons.
And we got aII the peas off.
It's not about protecting your food.
It's about protecting your Iife,
your comfort and even your virtue.
My husband and I focus a great deaI on what we
caII our bug in pIan where things are so awfuI
outside that you reaIIy don't want to go
anywhere.
In a doomsday financiaI coIIapse scenario we
wouId be staying put, exactIy where we are.
Narrator: Tonight, the Bishops practice sweeping
the house for intruders who may attempt to loot
their food supplies-
Scott: Being abIe to waIk through your home without
the Iights on, which you may not have,
is criticaI.
Knowing the Iayout of your home gives you a
significant advantage.
KeIIene: I navigate this house in the dark even
better than I navigate my own town with a GPS
system.
We feeI confident that we couId take care of any
potentiaI invader.
We chose Mores code as one of our communication
strategies because we were watching one of the
charIie's AngIes movies and their Iike doing
mores code on each other's hands in the dark
so they know what their next kick butt move is.
Anyway, so we thought that wouId be a good idea
so we started using that.
I think have the aIternative communication
measures wiII be very important.
You don't aIways want to turn your hand and the
eIement of surprise is one of the biggest assets
that you have.
We want to have more than one communication means
and so another strategy is Iearning to be fIuent
in TagaIog.
They speak TagaIog in the PhiIippines.
It is a rare Ianguage so it's not IikeIy that we
run into someone who wouId be fIuent in that
as weII.
Scott: I think that they're a Iot of
peopIe that wouId think that the extent that my
wife and I go to is probabIy Iet's say
insane.
That wiII change certainIy in a doomsday
scenario.
Narrator: lf society crumbles Kellene and
Scott plan on being a resource for others,
they won't be able to personally defend
everyone.
KeIIene: It's right behind the Adam's AppIe.
Narrator: However, so instead they are teaching
their community how to survive-
Narrator: Utah housewife Kellene Bishop,
believes we will face a catastrophic financial
crisis that will end American life as we know
it-
She stocks her home like a post apocalyptic
grocery store, and is readying her community
for a time when hunger and desperation prevail-
Kellene is so passionate about the importance of
self-defense she has left her corporatejob to
teach ordinary housewives how to protect themselves-
She provides hands on training including a
quick draw shooting class for women-
KeIIene: We'II have women coming in having never
even fired a gun before and we wiII be abIe to
teach them this skiII by the end of our cIass.
You shouId just see their faces.
It makes such a difference for them to
know that they can take care of themseIves.
The quick draw is a seIf-defense technique,
you don't have time to say ''oh mister bad guy
wiII you pIease get in my Iine of sight.''
You're going to breathe in and then you're going
to breathe out as you extend.
Out.
There you go.
And then you do the dance!
Narrator: And if she runs out of bullets she
is also an expert in self-defense-
KeIIene: History has shown us again and again
and again that when the society coIIapses then
you have great amount of vioIence,
specificaIIy targeting women.
The first mistake they wiII make is to under
estimate your abiIity to fight back.
I push my foot up the ceiIing.
I don't need to be strong.
Women that actuaIIy take the time to Iearn this
technique they have mentaIIy empowered
themseIves so they actuaIIy have a better
chance of avoiding rape.
Okay right, exactIy.
So it's right behind the Adam's AppIe.
Are you aIIowed to hurt, mane or kiII someone who
wants to rape you?
GirIs: Yes!
KeIIene: Okay awesome.
You want to dig your thumbs into his eyes.
PIease don't puII out my husband's eyes, okay?
This wiII crack or crush bone you want a top to
bottom strike.
AIright, so that wraps up our training for today.
In the interest of strengthening our
preparedness community so that we can aII be safe
and strong I'm inviting you over to my house this
evening for a fabuIous dinner party.
I am so excited about tonight's dinner party.
I'm not going to make a singIe dish with anything
from the refrigerator, or from the freezer.
Whoop!
Perky!
FabuIous!
I don't think most peopIe wouId think of this as
doomsday cooking.
Friend: She's fabuIous.
KeIIene and Scott are the star preppers in my
estimation.
KeIIene: WeIcome everybody to this
evening's preparedness pro dinner party.
Everything you can make from sheIf stabIe foods.
I don't want you to ever think food storage and
curI up your Iip Iike ''uh'' ever again.
Okay?
Guests: Wow this is amazing.
I've never had a deviIed egg with aImonds before.
These must be the saImon cakes, right?
Lady: How oId are these eggs?
KeIIene: There're about 7, 8 months.
Lady: So I'II do this and teII my kids at
Thanksgiving that their 9-month-oId eggs,
they'II die!
KeIIene: There you go.
Here's to eating weII at the end of the worId!
Narrator: The experts have concluded that your
food storage is excellent and commend you for
developing a varied cooking plan and for
sharing this knowledge with your community-
Your self-defense strategies will also
serve you well in case of a societal breakdown due
to economic collapse-
lt is likely that others will look to you for
help in dangerous times-
Scott: We expect peopIe to turn to us in times of
crisis and in a doomsday type scenario.
KeIIene: And we're not naive,
we are prepared for both type of peopIe who might
want to come.
Narrator: However while your stored water is a
good start it is inadequate for a long
term bug in, you can only survive 3 days without
water-
At the bare minimum, we recommend you install a
rain catching system so you can replenish your
water supply-
KeIIene: I'd say we covered the bare minimum
severaI times over haven't we?
Scott: Back ups to backups.
KeIIene: Yup, we don't necessariIy
reveaI aII our cards.
Since we wrapped up the show,
we have added to those reserves.
Both in terms of water and in terms of options
for fueI and power.
So I think we're sitting just fine and the changes
we wiII make wiII be done because of our
continuaI efforts in preparedness.
Narrator: What are the odds of a financial
collapse actually occurring?
While hyperinflation and severe depressions
have occurred in major economies in the
past, most economists do not believe that the
United States is currently at risk-
Kathy Harrison does not fit the regular pepper
stereotype, on her picturesque farm you are
more likely to find herbs than guns-
But she believes that a catastrophic event is
about to rip the United States in two-
Will the expects think her community preps
are enough to see her though the
destruction?
Narrator: Kathy Harrison is a New England Liberal
living the idyllic country life-
She plays soccer with her kids,
cooks homemade meals for her family and loves to
garden, except-
Kathy: They caII me the Doris Day of Doom because
I'm preparing for a BIack Swan Event Iike a
catastrophic New Madrid Earthquake.
BIack Swan Events are those events that come
out of nowhere.
We often say, ''Oh I didn't see that one
coming'' but they have the potentiaI to compIeteIy
change the way we Iive our Iives.
Narrator: Kathy thinks the next Black Swan will
come in the form of a catastrophic earthquake
along the 1 25 mile long new Madrid Seismic Zone
in the central United States-
Kathy: The New Madrid fauIt covers 7 states.
It has actuaIIy Iet go twice before.
There was a big earthquake in 1 81 1
Narrator: From December 18 1 1 to March 18 1 2,
there were thousands of quakes in the New Madrid
zone including around 20 that were magnitude 6-5
or larger-
Kathy: Now things wouId be totaIIy different.
We have major cities on that fauIt zone,
we have nucIear power pIants,
we have communications that have to cross that.
It wouId effectiveIy cut our country into two
pieces.
Narrator: Millions of trucks cross the New
Madrid Seismic Zone every year,
carrying food and other supplies-
Kathy: If the trucks stop running we wouId be out
of food in 3 days.
I'm prepared for that.
We have chosen a pIace to Iive that can be fairIy
seIf-sufficient in terms of food water and heat.
Bruce: We have enough carrots here we couId
probabIy feed the whoIe neighborhood.
Narrator: Kathy and her husband Bruce grow most
of their families' food in their backyard-
Bruce: I am the supporter of the Doris Day of Doom.
Kathy: WouId you think about adding more of
those currants, scattered into the fIowers?
Bruce: That might be a good idea.
I wouIdn't say prepping is an obsession,
I wouId say it's just the way we Iive.
Kathy: We're growing kaIe and peppers.
AII of these tomatoes re-grew from seeds that
we saved from our tomatoes from Iast year.
I never have to worry about buying seed if
there is every a suppIy disruption.
I'm good!
We grow a Iot of tomatoes.
I've probabIy put up about 1 00 jars of sauce a
year.
Narrator: Tomatoes aren't the only things that
Kathy preserves in a jar-
ln fact she pretty much cans everything in sight-
Kathy: I probabIy have 700 cans down in the
basement.
I have severaI kinds of meat, chicken,
ground beef; stew beef, peaches and pears and
beautifuI cherries.
During canning season I can easiIy spend 6 or 8
hours a day over my canner.
Bruce: AIrighty, here we go.
Here comes the steam, Iook at them boiIing!
Here we go.
Kathy: This is IocaI grass fed beef.
This meat wiII stay good in this jar pretty much
indefiniteIy.
Bruce: If we have a power outage and our freezers
are down and everything this is aIready cooked.
Kathy: I just have to heat it up and it's a
meaI.
I couId actuaIIy even eat it coId out of the jar if
I wanted to.
Narrator: ln a magnitude 7-7 New Madrid quake it
is estimated that over 2,000 electric,
oil and natural gas facilities would be
damaged, leaving millions across the country
without power-
Kathy: I think we think about eIectricity and
it's this magic stuff that sort of aIways
there.
But think about what happens when it's not
aIways there.
You can't pump gas, you can't purchase groceries,
you can't access money from your bank account.
Narrator: lf power goes down Kathy and Bruce have
prepared a plan b, a way to trade and barter for
the goods they need without money-
Kathy: You can't eat goId and you can't eat siIver.
Instead we have a number of things that we couId
barter if we wanted to.
Bruce: Want to smoke em?
Want take the top off?
Kathy: Bees have provided us with honey for
thousands of years.
There was honey found in the tombs of Egypt.
Bruce: And the smoke keeps these nice and
dossaI.
They stay right in here and behaIf themseIves.
If I came down here without smoke and opened
these hives they wouId be aII over us.
Been reaIIy angry.
Honey can become very vaIuabIe.
It's one of the onIy foods that won't go bad.
You can store it forever and ever and ever and
ever.
Kathy: Ah, that's perfect.
DeIicious.
In a grid down situation those bees become not
just food for us but they become honey that we can
barter for, they become candIes,
they provide us with a base for saIves and
creams for wounds or sores.
Those bees are the essence of resiIience for
us.
Narrator: Kathy and Bruce are also building up a
bank of skills that will give them complete
independence from mainstream society-
Kathy: My husband does the woodworking.
I Iike to sew.
Now don't go to fast.
AIright!
AIright, aIright.
You got it.
With wheat, I can grind it and turn it into good
bread for my famiIy.
Do you have muscIes?
can you do this?
GirI: Yes.
Kathy: I'II kneed and you kneed.
Oh, Iook It!
I think I got it!
I can chop wood.
Bruce: AImost.
You're getting it.
Kathy: I'm aIso thinking about who around me has a
skiII that I maybe don't have so that we Iearn to
depend on each other.
Narrator: Kathy actively encourages her entire
community to ready themselves for the coming
doomsday by including them in her prepping
activities-
S Y: We're aIready in a sort of doomsday event,
I mean Iike it's hitting the fan around us.
Bruce: You want met to do that?
S Y: Our government is spending Iike hundreds of
biIIions of doIIars on weapons and the miIitary.
It seems Iike their prepping.
Bruce: We've been very busy up coIIecting
appIes, doing our cider pressing.
How this process works is you throw them into the
hopper and it grinds them.
You just keep turning and turning and turning and
see the cider comes out the bottom here.
After the cider has sat for a whiIe it wiII you
can turn it into hard cider or whiskey.
If a crisis happened we can barter.
It wouId be very, very vaIuabIe.
Kathy: Let me see how it is.
It's easy to feeI a IittIe Ieft out of the
prepper community if you Iive in New EngIand and
if you're not fairIy right winged and
conservative poIiticaIIy.
But I just don't spend my time worrying about
storing guns and ammunition.
I think we're going to get aII this done today.
Because our security comes not from
stockpiIing weapons but from having a community
that respects each other, supports each other and
we have each other's backs.
Keep Ioading!
S Y: Some peopIe say ''Oh I just want to have guns''
and frankIy I think that's pretty stupid.
Maurading bands come, I'II show them how much
great food I've got, I'II invite them to some sort
of feast and charm them and if I decide if they
can be usefuI and cooperative, great.
And otherwise I'II poison them or cut their throats
in their sIeep or something Iike that.
Kathy: We have become a nation that expects to be
taken care of.
We think that there is aIways going to be some
white knight on a horse that comes in to rescue
us and more and more often we're seeing that
just is not the case.
I suppose there are some peopIe who do in fact
think that I am paranoid and gIoomy doomy and why
do I waste my time thinking about this.
But here's the reaIity because I've spent a Iot
of time preparing for the worst-case scenario I can
afford to be cheerfuI the rest of the time.
Que Sera Sera to the end of the worId.
Narrator: By growing and preserving your
own food you have
given yourself the ability to survive
without normal infrastructure for many
years-
Kathy: Yeah I wouId agree.
Bruce: Yeah I think so,
I think we've got enough to reaIIy take care of
ourseIves and our extended famiIy.
Kathy: Yeah, I feeI good about it.
Narrator: You are well rounded and self
sufficient in community based skills-
But in a true nationwide disaster there is likely
to widespread lawlessness-
Bruce: WeII it's um, I am reaIIy not worried about
that we have a wonderfuI community that we couId
faII on to support.
Narrator: You need to think about how you would
secure your location and learn to protect your
family with weapons that you feel comfortable
using-
Kathy: It's a pIace we reaIIy faII down;
there is no question about it.
It just doesn't reaIIy suit ethicaIIy who we
are.
It's been a few weeks since Nat Geo was here to
visit and we Iistened to what they had to say but
we've decided not to change the way we
prepare.
At the end of the day the peopIe who stock up on
guns and the peopIe who support resiIient
communities can get together,
exchange notes and we'II decide who fairs the
best.
Narrator: What are the odds of a New Madrid
Earthquake actually occurring?
The past three were about 500 years apart-
But every 50 years there's a one in 50
chance the big one will hit-
Narrator: Dennis Evers is preparing for a
catastrophic economic collapse,
that he expects will send devastating shockwaves
through every facet of life, as we know it-
He's at the helm of an entire prepper family-
Who are training to battle disaster,
but even with an army of preppers in tow will the
experts think he has prepared enough?
Narrator: Dennis Evers is a prop-maker and inventor
who lives on a Colorado ranch-
Like a typical family man, he
spends time with his kids,
grandkids, and works to maintain the farm, except-
Dennis: I'm prepping to protect my famiIy from
gIobaI chaos brought on by hyperinfIation.
As far as what I see on the horizon for this
country, are some pretty tough times and I beIieve
it's going to be a fairIy protracted event.
The cause is the government printing
triIIions of doIIars when we don't have it to back
it up.
If the economy coIIapses I see a tremendous shock
wave going through our entire society.
There are going to be a Iot of hungry peopIe.
There are going to be a Iot of angry peopIe.
I'm concerned about how my famiIy wiII survive in
a worId where food and basic needs are going to
be outrageousIy priced.
If things go bad and the economy tanks,
we're ready for it.
It's not going to be a surprise.
We're not going to sit around Iike miIIions of
Americans wondering what happened or how it
happened.
We're simpIy going to spring into action and
survive.
When it hits the fan each of my kids has a job and
an assignment they know what to do and how to do
it.
My oIdest son Tim is charge of hunting and
security.
My daughter Jenny and her husband Pat are in charge
of fueI.
Nate and Betsy deaI with communications.
Ricky knows how to weId and heIps me with an
engineering side of things.
Johnny's currentIy training to be an
emergency responder.
The importance of deIegating Iabor when it
hits the fan is no person can do everything.
I can onIy be so many pIaces at one time.
Pat and Jenny are my fueI guys and they take care
of our wood needs.
cIear.
Jenny: Growing up with my famiIy,
my dad taught us kids aII many different
capabiIities that wouId enabIe us to be more
seIf-sufficient.
Narrator: Firewood is a common fuel source for
many preppers because of its easy availability-
So in order to be ready for hyperinflation,
the Evers routinely stock their wood pile-
Dennis: We have a Iot of impIements around the
ranch here and one of them is cong,
which is a homemade Iog spIitter,
which we buiIt for absoIuteIy nothing.
Pat and Jenny use cong a Iot because it aIIows
them to process a tremendous amount of wood
in a reasonabIe amount of time.
Jenny: If the economy tanked and we had a
stockpiIe of our fueI, which the boys are
cutting right now, we'd be abIe to keep the house
warm; we'd be abIe to cook food,
boiI water and maintain some of the essentiaIs
that peopIe find comforting and often take
for granted.
Narrator: Dennis believes the economy will crumble
and cause vital infrastructure in public
works, and homes to fall into disrepair-
ln order to maintain their ranch infrastructure
Dennis has trained one of his kids in a skill that
might be in short supply-
Ricky: My dad taught me pretty much everything,
woodworking, metaI, pIumbing, eIectricaI.
I've been working in the shop since I was 5 years
oId, so if the economy coIIapsed,
any skiII is a good skiII,
especiaIIy metaIworking.
It's sturdy.
It's Iong Iasting, it has so many appIications.
It's just, it's a good skiII to know.
Dennis: Ricky is a reaIIy good craftsperson.
She's capabIe of metaIwork.
And woodwork.
And if I need heIp on my creations,
or if we need to maintain them or buiId a part,
Ricky's got the capabiIity to do it.
She's there for me and she knows what to do.
Narrator: Dennis believes that if hyperinflation
occurs, destructive, life-threatening
situations will be inescapable-
Colorado had close to 3,500 fires in 20 10,
so one of Dennis's youngest sons has taken
on the brave responsibility of
safeguarding the family-
Dennis: Johnny's in fire training right now to
become a fireman, which wiII be a nice addition
to have around here in the event the stuff hits
the fan.
Narrator: Dennis and Johnny, know that
in order to be ready Johnny's training
cannot stop when he leaves the firehouse-
Johnny: Ready, set go!
1 5 seconds.
Push it!
Okay Johnny Hurry up!
coming on 45 seconds, Iets get going!
coming on a minute buddy.
Finish it up.
How was that?
Dennis: 2:1 5.
Johnny: You got to be kidding me!
You're supposed to have it in under a minute and
thirty, so I screwed up pretty bad.
Narrator: The Evers emergency food and water supply
far surpasses Fema's 3 day recommendation for
general disaster preparedness so they fear
they will be a target during an economic
collapse-
Dennis has taken a more preventative approach to
ensuring their safety-
Dennis: Nate and Betsey are my tech team and
they're heIping us instaII security and
communication devices here at the ranch.
Nate: We're the gizmo coupIe and our job is to
deIiver IT to the famiIy, and that's what we do.
So essentiaIIy what we are doing here is we are
setting up a security system
for motion detection.
We can pIace it anywhere Iike a driveway a porch
so for instance right now what we are trying to do
is see what he distance is on this device is.
Jenny: Try it right here?
Nate: BaIIsey are you ready?
Dennis: Yeah.
Nate: How's the signaI.
Dennis: Perfect.
Nate: What's that?
Dennis: 1 00 feet.
Nate: At Ieast.
Dennis: It's working good.
Narrator: But if the perimeter of the ranch
was ever breached, Dennis has assigned one
of his children to take care of their
security needs-
Tim: A bow wouId be great for security because it's
quiet you wouIdn't know where a shot came from.
Narrator: Dennis Evers has raised his family to
survive the repercussions of a catastrophic
economic collapse-
He has assigned family members to take care of
fuel, food, infrastructure,
and perimeter defense-
Nate: How's the signaI?
Dennis: Perfect.
Narrator: But, if intruders were able to infiltrate the
Evers compound, Dennis's son, Tim,
has been tasked with the crucial duty of internal
security-
Dennis: Tim's a pretty good hunter,
and he's aIso the kind of kid that thinks outside
the box.
BuiIding bows and arrows, throwing tooIs.
Timmy wiII be using his unique skiIIs in the
event the stuff hits the fan.
Narrator: Tim has followed in his father's
prepper inventor footsteps,
and has found alternative uses for commonplace
construction items-
PVC piping is ordinarily used in plumbing,
but Tim has uncovered a more defensive use-
Tim: Ok I'm going to make a bow out of PVc.
PVc has to be cut between 4 feet and 5 feet for
your bow.
You have to tape the fibergIass rod otherwise
it wiII crack and spIit.
If the economy coIIapsed you couId use this bow to
hunt smaII game, kitty cats, dogs, rats,
pigeons, squirreIs, doves, and aII that.
The bow wouId be great for security because it's
quiet, you wouIdn't know where the shot came from.
The arrow came out, the broad head wouId stay in,
continuing to move around,
and may cause massive hemorrhaging which is
bIeeding to death.
Narrator: Most families get together for fun,
but for this prepper family,
practice make perfect, so every Wednesday the
Evers Preppers convene at this ranch to discuss
among other things their survival plan-
Dennis: FamiIy night aIso gives us a chance to
check on other peopIe's preps just to see how
they're doing.
Jenny: Who can go get wood Iike maybe next
weekend or something?
Amy caIIed.
She has some cedar but there's aIso a bunch of
oId Aspen and Pine growth that they're trying to
cIear out.
Dennis: The peopIe that are going to survive when
it hits the fan are the peopIe that have expected
it, have prepared for it, have trained for it.
Listen bring it here we'II use cong we'II
spIit it.
We can knock it out in two events.
And I beIieve they can survive any catastrophe
that's thrown their way.
I've toId aII you kids that the bottom Iine is
if it hits the fan, we need to just come
together as a famiIy and Iook out for you guys,
and Iook out for anybody eIse that needs our heIp.
It's just going to get reaIIy ugIy and it's
going to be basicaIIy a, every man for himseIf
scenario.
Johnny: Yeah I agree.
And I know when it comes we'II aII come together
here and survive as a famiIy.
Evers: That's aII we can do.
Narrator: Dennis, if as you predicted extreme
hyperinflation causes global chaos in your
lifetime-
Your innovative food storage and preparation
methods will allow you and your family to eat
for up to 6 months in an economic meltdown-
Also the wide range of skills among your family
members will enable you to brave a disaster
situation-
Evers: I'm okay with both those assessments.
Narrator: However you have a limited supply of
fuel-
The experts recommend you store more fuel to
survive a catastrophic event for an extended
period of time-
Son: I don't agree with that.
I mean if we run out of propane,
there's more than enough wood to Iast a reaIIy
Iong time.
We aII have the skiIIs to harvest and process wood
for fueI.
Dennis: It's been about a month since we've
received the critique from your speciaIist.
There're spot on.
Yeah, we need more fueI even in order to bring
more firewood, we need fueI!
So it's just right now it's just too expensive.
We'II have to deaI with that.
Narrator: What are the odds of hyperinflation
actually occurring?
While hyperinflation and severe depressions have
occurred in major economies in the past,
most economists do not believe the United States
is currently at risk-