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drewkittyGWOT VI - In Case Of Apocalypse, Break Glass
I'd said that the California Republic doesn't have civil affairs troops.
I'd lied.
The _Army_ of the California Republic doesn't have civil affairs troops. We fight wars. Sometimes those wars are small, sometimes big - but we are all about the mission. Security is a mission. Policing is a mission. Punching fist sized holes in would be genocidaires from a half mile away is a mission too.
Feeding, watering, clothing and housing large numbers of people is a mission too. But it's not our mission.
I'd brought two ROPUs, water purification systems, and they'd have been in active use in California making clean water for Californians if I hadn't brought them here. But their full output was spoken for by my troops and our field hospitals. The rest of the water platoon could work on local purification systems, and they were on a priority, but water sources for military camps had to take precedence.
We hadn't brought tents, but we had brought tarps and stolen tents, whenever possible from Xtians.
We wore our uniforms, which for a poor country are rather well designed. (OK, who am I kidding, we just use American uniforms with different name tapes.) And we had a lot of ponchos, shelter halves and both billed and wool hats - the hats with the California Republic logo for identification of allied refugee forces. We'd brought ten thousand of each, and were running out.
The mess sections had their hands full. Distributed warfare means meals to go, and sending out troops with sack lunches for three days to go work with refugees was just not on. The food went to the refugees and the soldiers went hungry. This was starting to be an issue, so we were feeding a meal before and after sleep at bases and ranting about the need to stay mission capable, so hide your food in your rigs and stop giving it away.
So the problem of trying to feed, water, clothe and house a million people wasn't ours. All we could do was provide a modicum of security for the people who were doing it.
###
Red Lion LOG [Logistics Operations Center]
northwest Iowa
Operational Period Briefing, Day 8
The grandly named LOG was a circle of laptops on improvised tables in a field. The grim faced men and women in their Red Lion jackets, shirts and whatever pants (including jeans) had done it all before, too many times, in every part of California.
"We've made contact with the surviving elements of Langar Aid. Four of their six food trucks were destroyed by Xtian militia. They are gathering up their personnel and will redeploy by tomorrow mid-day meal to three sites as indicated.
"Red Ball Express has hauled in twelve thousand shelf stable meals and anticipates being able to provide at least another four thousand per day. Per protocols we are reserving these for nursing mothers.
"We are starting to re-establish family food distribution. Standard ration is one pound of grains and 14 ounces of cooking oil for four people. Pre war efforts to teach field cooking have been mixed. What pots and pans are out there are in constant use. California military has been very helpful in repairing those whenever possible.
"California military has seized multiple grain silos so we are good on grains. Cooking oil is being brought in by truck. Distribution containers are a problem. We are asking people to keep containers and return.
"We are also having a big problem with cooking fires. The pilot project with portable solar ovens was a failure, people discarded them as excess weight during the movement. We can't supply firewood, coal, charcoal, propane or liquid fuels. The only available product is cow dung, and we're starting to run short on that.
"Water. California military has seized and secured the water infrastructure in several towns. We are getting a 'long walk' problem, even with outgoing California convoys hauling water during their operations. Fortunately, refugees who have had to walk to water tend to stay near it, if it is a secure area. We've distributed twelve thousand field filter kits but due to the pre-War distribution patterns, most of those have been lost. We can't get chemicals for water distribution, chlorine has been listed by the Americans as a war material! Of course iodine is far too expensive because of the dual use for thyroid protection. We are building more field filter kits and hoping to get a production facility manned mostly by refugees up by next week.
"We've had to punt on bedding and clothing for now. The mylar films are not working well as ersatz space blankets, and they don't hold up well as overhead cover either. Reluctantly we've had to purchase bundled rag intended for pre-Firecracker recycle, only to find that most lots are rotted and all are dirty. We've blacklisted the vendor.
"Sanitation continues to be a major problem, tied to the security issues. California military is not available to police within refugee encampments, and single user porta potties are creating all sorts of problems. We've tried removing doors and setting up privacy screens, gender segregation and family-only areas, but it's only a partial fix. California military also helped us set up PVC urine tubes, but that is only half the problem for half the population. Don't even ask about bathing.
"Preventative medical care is a flimsy house of reeds. Almost all outside medical staff, and most of ours, are tied up on shock-trauma, GSW and foot and leg injuries. We are attempting to spread isolation and cover-your-cough, but refugees who know each other tend to stick together even if one gets sick. We are continuing to see problems with intrarefugee violence, sexual violence and VD, especially in the last week with the refugee evacuation mixing groups who had been avoiding each other. Note especially that we are continuing to have refugee on refugee violence in several locations. The only exception is the North Bend camp after California military tried and hanged seven refugees for rape and theft of food - that camp is now quiet.
"There wasn't anywhere near enough housing stock _before_ the Firecracker for all these people, let alone everything that has happened since, including the burning of isolated farms and ranches by Xtian aligned bandits to reduce the housing stock. Weather forecast continues mild but if we get rain we're going to get illness. We are trying to get tarps, canvas, thick mil plastic … but the North American stock of these continues short. We have a pilot project going with adobe blocks and press, but as you know such structures are the exact opposite of portable. California military has also requisitioned much of the standing and manufactured timber for military use, especially bunkers.
"A word on trash. We had tried to get the larger refugee camps to burn and pile. But now that they're on the move, trash is literally the last thing on their minds. That's fine for ordinary trash but medical and sanitary waste is becoming an issue."
###
The Red Lion Society wasn't just medical personnel. They'd been running refugee camps since the very beginning, and they had a process for setting them up, running them, and by far most important, rehoming people and closing the camps out - salvaging the supplies if feasible, giving them away if not.
That last part - closing time - was the rub.
These people had no place to go. Neighboring states didn't want them, and Nebraska was willing to kill over it.
If they were rehomed here (and some didn't want to be), they would be a permanent thorn in Iowa's side. The hate radios had suggested, not at all facetiously, sweeping them into the Missouri River. No point to stopping a genocide this week if all the same conditions persisted into next year.
We sure as hell weren't going to force march them to Oregon. Just the movements within Iowa were taking lives every day. I'd been specific in my letter to the Army of God about how, too.
I was worried about famine.
I was very, very worried about pestilence.
"You have died of dysentery" isn't just a line from a video game.
I couldn't fight that war. All I could do was create the security conditions for experts like Red Lion to fight it for me.
###
Instructions - Red Lion Society - Field Water Filter Kit
Remember, dirty water _will_ make you and your family sick!
Contents, nested:
-- five gallon bucket
-- five gallon bucket lid (these instructions in baggie glued to lid)
-- two gallon bucket (marked D for Dirty on all sides)
-- one piece of washcloth in plastic baggie, marked D
-- one small towel in plastic baggie, marked D
-- one plastic scoop (for filter media)
-- four plastic cups (marked C)
-- one one gallon water container (marked C)
-- one dish and bottle washing brush (marked C)
-- one spigot, two washers, one plastic nut
Keep all components that touch water as clean as you can. Wash your hands before working on any water item.
If a pure source of water is available, for example at a town or camp site, always use it in preference to this kit.
Assembly instructions:
-- find or bring with you enough clean sand to fill bucket to six inches depth (see markings, or length of handle of scoop); if time permits, sift sand and dry it in the sunlight for a day
-- use clean wood (not chemically treated wood) in a fire, collect charcoal to depth of six inches on top of sand
-- cover charcoal with another 1-2 inches sand
-- if feasible use a layer of 1-3 inches of small stones, gravel or pebbles above the upper layer of sand.
If none of this is possible, try to sift and use clean clay or loam dirt. Avoid dirt near an existing stream or river; dig down at least one foot and use dirt below the 'surface' as the filter medium, especially if you are in a radiation area. If using dirt, use at least eighteen (18) inches. Even as little as a half inch of sand (at the bottom) improves the effectiveness of a dirt filter.
Attach spigot with two rubber washers and one plastic nut to base of bucket in hole provided. Be careful when carrying or transporting bucket not to break off spigot; this is a common cause of kit failures.
Gather water from as clean a source as you can find in the 'dirty' bucket. This kit cannot help with water contaminated by chemicals. If you are in a radiation area, use this kit as instructed but _do not take it out of the radiation area_. Try to use uncontaminated filter media and discard it daily instead of weekly.
Try to filter it through the provided towel to remove larger particles as you collect it. You can also wring out the towel and pour through it again when you put the water to be treated in the bucket.
Even though the 'dirty' bucket is labeled as such so that people do not drink from it, try to keep it as clean as you can with the bit of washcloth.
It should take a few minutes for the water to seep through the layers to the spigot. This is normal. Do not tip the bucket or dig a hole in the layers to improve flow, this interferes with the purification process. Do not attempt to clean urine, seawater or industrial water in this bucket. If you need to purify these liquids, ask for a Field Distillation Kit from your Red Lion Helper. Do not try to use chlorine, iodine or other purification chemicals inside this kit. If you have these chemicals, use them AFTER purification with this kit on the kit-treated water.
Once a week, or more often if required due to visible contamination of media or kit-treated water, take apart the filter components - sand, charcoal, sand, gravel or pebbles - and replace them (preferred) or dry them in sunlight for several hours and reuse them.
Only use clean cups and the clean one gallon container provided to drink from the spigot. Keep these clean from scrubbing with the brush. Use a droplet of liquid soap per dish if you have any, but even without soap, mechanical scrubbing at least twice a day is helpful. Family members should mark their cups and avoid sharing cups when feasible.
…
I'd said that the California Republic doesn't have civil affairs troops.
I'd lied.
The _Army_ of the California Republic doesn't have civil affairs troops. We fight wars. Sometimes those wars are small, sometimes big - but we are all about the mission. Security is a mission. Policing is a mission. Punching fist sized holes in would be genocidaires from a half mile away is a mission too.
Feeding, watering, clothing and housing large numbers of people is a mission too. But it's not our mission.
I'd brought two ROPUs, water purification systems, and they'd have been in active use in California making clean water for Californians if I hadn't brought them here. But their full output was spoken for by my troops and our field hospitals. The rest of the water platoon could work on local purification systems, and they were on a priority, but water sources for military camps had to take precedence.
We hadn't brought tents, but we had brought tarps and stolen tents, whenever possible from Xtians.
We wore our uniforms, which for a poor country are rather well designed. (OK, who am I kidding, we just use American uniforms with different name tapes.) And we had a lot of ponchos, shelter halves and both billed and wool hats - the hats with the California Republic logo for identification of allied refugee forces. We'd brought ten thousand of each, and were running out.
The mess sections had their hands full. Distributed warfare means meals to go, and sending out troops with sack lunches for three days to go work with refugees was just not on. The food went to the refugees and the soldiers went hungry. This was starting to be an issue, so we were feeding a meal before and after sleep at bases and ranting about the need to stay mission capable, so hide your food in your rigs and stop giving it away.
So the problem of trying to feed, water, clothe and house a million people wasn't ours. All we could do was provide a modicum of security for the people who were doing it.
###
Red Lion LOG [Logistics Operations Center]
northwest Iowa
Operational Period Briefing, Day 8
The grandly named LOG was a circle of laptops on improvised tables in a field. The grim faced men and women in their Red Lion jackets, shirts and whatever pants (including jeans) had done it all before, too many times, in every part of California.
"We've made contact with the surviving elements of Langar Aid. Four of their six food trucks were destroyed by Xtian militia. They are gathering up their personnel and will redeploy by tomorrow mid-day meal to three sites as indicated.
"Red Ball Express has hauled in twelve thousand shelf stable meals and anticipates being able to provide at least another four thousand per day. Per protocols we are reserving these for nursing mothers.
"We are starting to re-establish family food distribution. Standard ration is one pound of grains and 14 ounces of cooking oil for four people. Pre war efforts to teach field cooking have been mixed. What pots and pans are out there are in constant use. California military has been very helpful in repairing those whenever possible.
"California military has seized multiple grain silos so we are good on grains. Cooking oil is being brought in by truck. Distribution containers are a problem. We are asking people to keep containers and return.
"We are also having a big problem with cooking fires. The pilot project with portable solar ovens was a failure, people discarded them as excess weight during the movement. We can't supply firewood, coal, charcoal, propane or liquid fuels. The only available product is cow dung, and we're starting to run short on that.
"Water. California military has seized and secured the water infrastructure in several towns. We are getting a 'long walk' problem, even with outgoing California convoys hauling water during their operations. Fortunately, refugees who have had to walk to water tend to stay near it, if it is a secure area. We've distributed twelve thousand field filter kits but due to the pre-War distribution patterns, most of those have been lost. We can't get chemicals for water distribution, chlorine has been listed by the Americans as a war material! Of course iodine is far too expensive because of the dual use for thyroid protection. We are building more field filter kits and hoping to get a production facility manned mostly by refugees up by next week.
"We've had to punt on bedding and clothing for now. The mylar films are not working well as ersatz space blankets, and they don't hold up well as overhead cover either. Reluctantly we've had to purchase bundled rag intended for pre-Firecracker recycle, only to find that most lots are rotted and all are dirty. We've blacklisted the vendor.
"Sanitation continues to be a major problem, tied to the security issues. California military is not available to police within refugee encampments, and single user porta potties are creating all sorts of problems. We've tried removing doors and setting up privacy screens, gender segregation and family-only areas, but it's only a partial fix. California military also helped us set up PVC urine tubes, but that is only half the problem for half the population. Don't even ask about bathing.
"Preventative medical care is a flimsy house of reeds. Almost all outside medical staff, and most of ours, are tied up on shock-trauma, GSW and foot and leg injuries. We are attempting to spread isolation and cover-your-cough, but refugees who know each other tend to stick together even if one gets sick. We are continuing to see problems with intrarefugee violence, sexual violence and VD, especially in the last week with the refugee evacuation mixing groups who had been avoiding each other. Note especially that we are continuing to have refugee on refugee violence in several locations. The only exception is the North Bend camp after California military tried and hanged seven refugees for rape and theft of food - that camp is now quiet.
"There wasn't anywhere near enough housing stock _before_ the Firecracker for all these people, let alone everything that has happened since, including the burning of isolated farms and ranches by Xtian aligned bandits to reduce the housing stock. Weather forecast continues mild but if we get rain we're going to get illness. We are trying to get tarps, canvas, thick mil plastic … but the North American stock of these continues short. We have a pilot project going with adobe blocks and press, but as you know such structures are the exact opposite of portable. California military has also requisitioned much of the standing and manufactured timber for military use, especially bunkers.
"A word on trash. We had tried to get the larger refugee camps to burn and pile. But now that they're on the move, trash is literally the last thing on their minds. That's fine for ordinary trash but medical and sanitary waste is becoming an issue."
###
The Red Lion Society wasn't just medical personnel. They'd been running refugee camps since the very beginning, and they had a process for setting them up, running them, and by far most important, rehoming people and closing the camps out - salvaging the supplies if feasible, giving them away if not.
That last part - closing time - was the rub.
These people had no place to go. Neighboring states didn't want them, and Nebraska was willing to kill over it.
If they were rehomed here (and some didn't want to be), they would be a permanent thorn in Iowa's side. The hate radios had suggested, not at all facetiously, sweeping them into the Missouri River. No point to stopping a genocide this week if all the same conditions persisted into next year.
We sure as hell weren't going to force march them to Oregon. Just the movements within Iowa were taking lives every day. I'd been specific in my letter to the Army of God about how, too.
I was worried about famine.
I was very, very worried about pestilence.
"You have died of dysentery" isn't just a line from a video game.
I couldn't fight that war. All I could do was create the security conditions for experts like Red Lion to fight it for me.
###
Instructions - Red Lion Society - Field Water Filter Kit
Remember, dirty water _will_ make you and your family sick!
Contents, nested:
-- five gallon bucket
-- five gallon bucket lid (these instructions in baggie glued to lid)
-- two gallon bucket (marked D for Dirty on all sides)
-- one piece of washcloth in plastic baggie, marked D
-- one small towel in plastic baggie, marked D
-- one plastic scoop (for filter media)
-- four plastic cups (marked C)
-- one one gallon water container (marked C)
-- one dish and bottle washing brush (marked C)
-- one spigot, two washers, one plastic nut
Keep all components that touch water as clean as you can. Wash your hands before working on any water item.
If a pure source of water is available, for example at a town or camp site, always use it in preference to this kit.
Assembly instructions:
-- find or bring with you enough clean sand to fill bucket to six inches depth (see markings, or length of handle of scoop); if time permits, sift sand and dry it in the sunlight for a day
-- use clean wood (not chemically treated wood) in a fire, collect charcoal to depth of six inches on top of sand
-- cover charcoal with another 1-2 inches sand
-- if feasible use a layer of 1-3 inches of small stones, gravel or pebbles above the upper layer of sand.
If none of this is possible, try to sift and use clean clay or loam dirt. Avoid dirt near an existing stream or river; dig down at least one foot and use dirt below the 'surface' as the filter medium, especially if you are in a radiation area. If using dirt, use at least eighteen (18) inches. Even as little as a half inch of sand (at the bottom) improves the effectiveness of a dirt filter.
Attach spigot with two rubber washers and one plastic nut to base of bucket in hole provided. Be careful when carrying or transporting bucket not to break off spigot; this is a common cause of kit failures.
Gather water from as clean a source as you can find in the 'dirty' bucket. This kit cannot help with water contaminated by chemicals. If you are in a radiation area, use this kit as instructed but _do not take it out of the radiation area_. Try to use uncontaminated filter media and discard it daily instead of weekly.
Try to filter it through the provided towel to remove larger particles as you collect it. You can also wring out the towel and pour through it again when you put the water to be treated in the bucket.
Even though the 'dirty' bucket is labeled as such so that people do not drink from it, try to keep it as clean as you can with the bit of washcloth.
It should take a few minutes for the water to seep through the layers to the spigot. This is normal. Do not tip the bucket or dig a hole in the layers to improve flow, this interferes with the purification process. Do not attempt to clean urine, seawater or industrial water in this bucket. If you need to purify these liquids, ask for a Field Distillation Kit from your Red Lion Helper. Do not try to use chlorine, iodine or other purification chemicals inside this kit. If you have these chemicals, use them AFTER purification with this kit on the kit-treated water.
Once a week, or more often if required due to visible contamination of media or kit-treated water, take apart the filter components - sand, charcoal, sand, gravel or pebbles - and replace them (preferred) or dry them in sunlight for several hours and reuse them.
Only use clean cups and the clean one gallon container provided to drink from the spigot. Keep these clean from scrubbing with the brush. Use a droplet of liquid soap per dish if you have any, but even without soap, mechanical scrubbing at least twice a day is helpful. Family members should mark their cups and avoid sharing cups when feasible.
…
