Winter Cold Poses Several Unique Survival Problems You May Not Have Thought Of…

Since it’s been much colder around the Pacific Northwest than it should be for this time of year it got me to thinking about several of the troubles that we could face during an emergency situation due specifically to the winter cold. Though I’m sure this list isn’t exhaustive it will get you started to think about what you might face if/when the many services we rely upon cease to run. In no particular order (except the first one) here’s my thoughts:

1. Keeping warm can kill you! For those that are accustomed to heating a home with a wood stove, for instance, this shouldn’t be much of a problem but for the rest of us that rely on central HVAC to heat the house we could do dumb things such as burning stuff inside the house or using appliances improperly and without ventilation to keep warm. Doing so could start a house fire or result in carbon monoxide build up… both of which are bad for your health and general ability to stay alive. 😉
2. Water storage will freeze. This includes water stored in disposable bottles as well as water in large barrels if kept anywhere that can get below freezing for extended periods of time, especially outside and in a vehicle. If you do keep water anywhere it can freeze then ensure it’s never more than about 90% full as water will expand when it freezes and burst the container. Moreover, you’ll find that melting a now large block of ice for drinking water is rather difficult to do inside of a container and the larger the container the worse it is. The best plan of action is to keep your water supplies from freezing in the first place.
3. Fuel lines may freeze. Though not usually a problem for most people except those at higher latitudes frozen fuel lines can be trouble for car engines and equipment you expect to rely upon during an emergency, including generators and other small equipment.
4. Hardened/frozen ground makes digging difficult. This particular problem is concerning for many reasons, including not being able to plant crops (though a greenhouse or hoop house can help) but also with things like being able to dig a hole to bury fecal waste–a much bigger problem than most realize–and even for burying survival caches. If you own your property it may be wise to have some holes pre-dug for sanitation and to bury caches before the ground freezes.
5. Water may be difficult or impossible to procure. One of the suggested ways to get water is with a rooftop rainwater catchment. I plan to do so and since it rarely snows here that should work but what about those who live where it regularly snows? I’d suggest it’s rather difficult to procure rooftop rainwater from snow, at least until it melts which could be a long, long time. Similarly, many small nearby streams are likely to freeze. Even if a stream is big enough to NOT freeze it may be rather dangerous or difficult to get to the water. My advice: have plenty of water stored and work early on in an emergency to procure more water.
6. Food stores may freeze or worse. Depending on what you choose to store you may find that a variety of foods including canned goods, for instance, have frozen solid; this makes them rather difficult to cook. 😉 You may also find that foods in your refrigerator have actually warmed up despite cold temps in the house! Yes, you will still need to run your refrigerator or choose to move these foods (perhaps into a portable cooler and outside) to take advantage of the winter cold. Be aware that doing so will eventually cause these items to freeze as well, be it things you want to stay frozen such as meats from the freezer to things you don’t want to freeze such as milk and cheese.
7. Solar powered items will be less efficient, perhaps even useless. When the sun is lower in the sky you get less energy out of it, especially at higher latitudes. You may find that things like solar ovens are nearly useless in the winter; that said, I have used my Sun Oven in the winter in the Midwest to some extent but have yet to try it here in the Pacific Northwest. Other items like a camp shower may take much longer to heat up. Moreover, solar panels will be less efficient and, therefore, take longer to charge batteries. Speaking of which, most anything that relies on batter power may be less efficient too.

Those are my thoughts on why the winter cold can bring some unique survival problems. What else can you think of that I didn’t mention? I’d be grateful to hear your thoughts.