Ask the Survival Expert: What to do about looting during the blackout?

The German Association of Cities and Towns warns that gas could become scarce in the winter and the network could collapse if everyone switches to fan heaters at the same time. The Bureau for the Protection of the Constitution expects attacks by Russian hackers on critical infrastructure.

Benjamin Arlett written a survival guide. He is a trained wilderness teacher, lifeguard and industrial climber – and one of the first self-employed in Berlin as a survival trainer. His company SurviCamp prepares customers for a blackout in one-day courses.

In an interview with T-Online, he explains how he prepares participants for a crisis, where precautions end and entrepreneurship begins with fear, and why a group is the best life insurance policy in a crisis.

Mr Arlet, imagine an emergency situation and power outages in Europe for weeks. At the door are looters looking for food and emergency generators. What do you advise the participants of your survival courses, how should they behave?
Benjamin Arlett: Something has gone wrong in that regard. The person concerned has no contact with other people. If you’re alone at home in such a situation and a group of looters comes by, you don’t stand a chance. All you can do is run away and hope they don’t catch you. You become a less attractive target for looters because you are well positioned.

In your book, you write, “The best life insurance policy is a functioning team.” Where do you get that?
By group I primarily mean family and friends. You should also check beforehand: Who am I nearby? Who has a stash at home or has certain skills? If you don’t have anyone around, you should find social media groups to join. Then you don’t become a target for looters in the first place because you are well positioned.

The book also says, “In a fundamental crisis, the rule-breaker may be superior to those who follow the rules.” If you want, you can use this as a guide to getting weapons. Aren’t you afraid your course will attract extremists?
People preparing for violent upheavals do not take our courses. People like that know everything better, and as far as I’m concerned they can do more than stay at home. SurviCamp has always been apolitical, which is reflected in our course content.

But what rules are you talking about?
General: Of course, the rules also apply in the event of calamities. Violators are usually punished by the police. But in an emergency, the police may have better things to do.

There are some extremists who actually wish for the collapse of the state order. How do you distinguish yourself from this clientele?
People who look forward to disaster or government collapse are what we call doomers. They want everything to sink into chaos – partly because they don’t turn big wheels in everyday life and have the urgent desire to be ‘in charge’ for once. However, the vast majority of people who prepare for emergencies are not extreme. They only want to make provisions for power outages and other supply bottlenecks. And that is our target audience. It is a cross section of society, slightly more men than women. Age: from 16 to 60.

Do you remember the scene from the preppers?
Not really. In the beginning, I was involved in a few Facebook groups that deal with normal preparation for professional reasons. I don’t do that anymore. There are many people who only want attention, not the thing itself.

Hardcore preppers promote tasers and other weapons. What’s the most extreme thing you’ve noticed?
I do not pretend to judge what is reasonable and what is unreasonable crisis prevention. That’s the principle of the black swan: I think this and that can happen. And then it suddenly becomes very different. And the ones I made fun of were the smart ones.

For example, there is the food outfitter “SicherSatt”, who sells the box of emergency supplies for a month for 300 euros. If you buy the items yourself in the supermarket, it only costs 71.75 euros. Where does precaution end, where does fear begin?
As with almost everything, there are budget, middle class and upper class in crisis management. If you buy everything ready-made in a package, you pay a little more, but you also save yourself searching in the supermarket. Your own budget determines where the limit lies.

How high do you actually estimate the risk of a blackout?
The fear is probably justified, but you have to ask yourself: what impact should the danger have on my life? I can think of the example of the pilot getting into the plane with a parachute, but when he gets off the plane, he leaves the parachute there and doesn’t take him to bed. You should see this crisis provision as accident insurance.

What knowledge do your courses impart that are not already in the checklist of the Federal Office for Disaster Relief?
You have the opportunity to try out the many things recommended after the checklist. Should I rather buy a gas stove or an alcohol burner? The participants can also ask such questions to the trainer. However, the checklist only covers supplies and equipment. In my opinion, something else is much more important: how is my mental and physical condition? Do I have a social network? And do I have certain skills that are needed in a crisis like this? Can I do first aid? Can I take the lead in a group?

Making a fire, building an emergency shelter, orienting yourself without a mobile phone or GPS, what do the participants find most difficult?
The workmanship is not the problem at all. It’s about prioritizing basic needs. When I ask the participants what their most important needs are, the answer is usually: ‘Food and drink’. It sounds plausible at first, but retaining heat is much more important, because you freeze rather than starve. Then come the themes of fire and water. Food comes last. In a short-term crisis, this is not important at all.

Can emergency preparedness take away the fear of participants?
In each case. We know from brain research that in the event of a crisis, the brain can fall back on a reference experience if you have already played through a fictional scenario. state.