Fundamentals of survival of rescuers in the mountains. Signs of approaching storm

Gomel Engineering Institute of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of the Republic of Belarus

Life safety

Basics of Survival

Prepared

Aniskovich I.I.

Gomel 2009

Basic concepts of survival

Human life has always been fraught with danger. It is no coincidence that our distant ancestors, taking their first steps along the path of evolution, learned to use the stone not only as a tool of labor, but also as a weapon.

The struggle for existence forced people by hook or by crook to cling to life, to adapt to any adversity, no matter how difficult they may be, to boldly go towards dangers. The desire to realize the seemingly impossible, permeating the entire history of mankind, helps to understand the incredible efforts made by people in various parts of the world in order to adapt to harsh natural conditions. Man has always had the ability to adapt to the natural and artificial environment - from primitive hunters who went out to the beast with a stone ax in their hands, to space travelers of the second half of our century, who have been in a state of weightlessness for a long time, mobilizing all their physical and mental capabilities. Survival is active, expedient actions aimed at preserving life, health and performance in an autonomous existence. It is for people whose lives are constantly fraught with dangers that preliminary preparation, both physical and psychological, is very important. Rescuers, military personnel of many branches of the armed forces, tourists who go on long routes, many scientists and researchers must first go through a complete adaptation process, as a result of which the body gradually acquires resistance to certain environmental factors that was absent before and, thus, gets the opportunity to "live in conditions previously incompatible with life”, which means complete adaptation to the conditions of the polar cold, hot deserts or lack of oxygen at mountain heights, fresh water in the salty sea. People who have undergone full adaptation have a chance not only to save life itself, but also to solve problems that were previously unsolvable.

The adaptation process is very complex and multi-stage. At its first stage, the stage of adaptation to any new factor, the body is close to the maximum of its capabilities, but it does not solve the problem that has arisen completely. However, after some time, if a person (or animal) does not die, and the factor requiring adaptation continues to act, the possibilities of the living system increase - the extreme, or urgent, stage of the process is replaced by the stage of effective and stable adaptation. This transformation is the key link in the whole process, and its consequences are often striking. Extreme conditions - an event (or a sequence of events) in which a person, through his own preparedness, the use of equipment and gear, as well as the involvement of additional, pre-prepared resources, has the opportunity to prevent an emergency, and, if necessary, help himself and others after an emergency. An extreme situation is an event beyond the limits of personal human experience, when a person is forced to act (or remain inactive) in the complete absence of equipment, equipment and initial training. (Basic information about ways to overcome the ES is not formalizable in principle, based on the very definition of an extreme situation). Most people and animals placed in extreme situations from which there is no way out do not die, but acquire one or another degree of adaptation to them and save their lives until better times. Such stressful situations - long periods of hunger, cold, natural disasters, interspecific and intraspecific conflicts - are always widely represented in the natural habitat of animals. The same scheme operates in the human social environment. During a relatively short period of its history, humanity went through periods of slavery, serfdom, world wars, but did not degrade, demonstrating high efficiency of adaptation to extreme situations. Of course, the price of such adaptation is unreasonably high, but these indisputable facts inevitably lead to the conclusion that the body must have sufficiently effective specialized mechanisms that limit the stress response and prevent stress damage and, most importantly, allow one to save life and health. In general, all this corresponds to a well-known everyday observation - people who have gone through severe life tests acquire a certain resistance to damaging environmental factors, i.e. resilient in any extreme situation. Imagine that a miracle happened, and today's man suddenly found himself in the primitive conditions of the existence of mankind. Making his way along the damp walls of the cave, to the sonorous chatter of his own teeth, our hero recalls the fire with unexpected joy. What about chopping wood? Well, okay, you can break the branches. He habitually hits himself in the pocket. Oh, horror, no matches! At first, our time traveler does not realize the full depth of the catastrophe that has befallen him. But in a minute it is covered with cold sweat. He has no idea how to make a fire without matches! Feverish attempts to make fire by rubbing wooden sticks against each other, cutting sparks lead to nothing - kindling stubbornly does not want to flare up. Further, with inexorable consistency, it turns out that a representative of our time cannot hunt without a gun, fish without lines and hooks, cannot build even the most primitive shelter, has no idea how to protect his mortal body from hundreds of dangers lurking from all sides. Hunted looking around, he rushes through the ancient forest, occasionally attacking the berries, which do not saturate at all. Our contemporary is doomed. He has to survive in conditions of autonomous existence. Autonomous existence is the activity of a person (a group of people) without outside help. The only chance to prolong their existence is to seek help from the local natives. Nothing to do about! And then he meets the real masters of that era: the genius of getting food, the genius of making fire. With great effort, starting from the very basics, the unlucky traveler comprehends the science of "survival", with difficulty pulling himself up to the level of development of primitive man. There is nothing exaggerated in this fantasy. Even astronauts, before taking their place in the spacecraft, walk hundreds of kilometers along the paths of survival - forest wilds, hot sands of deserts. A modern person, and even more so a professional rescuer, regardless of the planned actions and the route of movement in terrestrial and extraterrestrial space, timing and geographical location, must be ready to act in an emergency, without communication with the outside world, when you can rely only on yourself. For a person who finds himself in an extreme situation due to unforeseen circumstances, such as a plane crash, a shipwreck, military personnel, as well as lost tourists, survival is mainly a psychological issue, and the most important factor in this case is the desire to survive. Regardless of whether a person is left alone or as part of a group, emotional factors may appear in him - experiences due to fear, despair, loneliness and boredom. In addition to these mental factors, trauma, pain, fatigue, hunger, and thirst also influence the will to survive. How long will a person in trouble have to stay in conditions of autonomous existence in extreme conditions? It depends on a number of reasons that determine the duration of autonomous existence.

The reasons for the duration of autonomous existence:

Remoteness of the area of search and rescue operations from settlements;

Violation or complete absence of radio communications and other types of communications;

Unfavorable geographical, climatic and meteorological conditions of the area of search and rescue operations;

Availability of food stocks (or lack thereof);

The presence in the area of search and rescue operations of additional search and rescue forces and means.

Goals and tasks of rescuers on survival issues

The purpose of training rescuers for survival is to develop in them stable skills for actions in various conditions of the situation, to develop high moral and business qualities, self-confidence, reliability of rescue equipment and equipment, and the effectiveness of search and rescue support.

The basis of survival is solid knowledge in various fields, from astronomy and medicine to the recipe for cooking dishes from caterpillars and tree bark.

Survival techniques in each climatic and geographical region are different. What can and should be done in the taiga is unacceptable in the desert and vice versa.

A person must know how to navigate without a compass, give a distress signal, go to a settlement, get food with the help of gathering, hunting, fishing (including without a gun and the necessary gear), provide himself with water, be able to protect himself from natural disasters and much more. other.

The practical development of survival skills is extremely important. It is necessary not only to know how to behave in a given situation, but also to be able to do it. When the situation becomes threatening, it is too late to start learning. Prior to high-risk trips, it is necessary to conduct several emergency field exercises that are as close as possible to the real situation of future routes. It is necessary to calculate in advance theoretically and, if possible, check almost all possible emergencies.

The main tasks of training rescuers for survival are to provide the necessary amount of theoretical knowledge and teach practical skills for:

Orientation on the ground in various physical and geographical conditions;

Providing self- and mutual assistance;

The construction of temporary shelters and the use of improvised means of protection from the effects of adverse environmental factors;

Obtaining food and water;

Use of means of communication and signaling for the withdrawal of additional forces and means to the area of search and rescue operations;

Organization of crossings through water barriers and swamps;

Use of rescue boats;

Preparation of sites for landing helicopters;

Evacuation of victims from the disaster area.

Factors affecting survival

Training in survival actions is the main factor determining the favorable outcome of autonomous existence.

Risk factors

Climate. Adverse weather conditions: cold, heat, strong wind, rain, snow can reduce the limit of human survival many times over.

Thirst. Lack of water entails physical and mental suffering, general overheating of the body, rapidly developing heat and sunstroke, dehydration in the desert - inevitable death.

Hunger. Prolonged lack of food depresses a person morally, weakens physically, increases the impact on the body of adverse environmental factors.

Fear. Reduces the body's resistance to thirst, hunger, climatic factors, leads to the adoption of erroneous decisions, provokes panic, mental breakdowns.

Overwork. It appears as a result of strenuous physical activities, insufficient food supply, difficult climatic and geographical conditions, due to the lack of proper rest.

Natural disasters: hurricanes, tornadoes, snowstorms, sandstorms, fires, avalanches, mudflows, floods, thunderstorms.

Diseases. The greatest threat is posed by injuries, diseases associated with exposure to climatic conditions, and poisoning. But we should not forget that in an emergency, any neglected callus or microtrauma can lead to a tragic outcome.

Survival Factors

Will to live. With a short-term external threat, a person acts on a sensual level, obeying the instinct of self-preservation. Bounces off a falling tree, clings to stationary objects when falling. Another thing is long-term survival. Sooner or later, a critical moment comes when exorbitant physical, mental stress and the seeming senselessness of further resistance suppress the will. A person is seized by passivity, indifference. He is no longer afraid of the possible tragic consequences of ill-conceived overnight stays, risky crossings. He does not believe in the possibility of salvation and therefore perishes without exhausting his reserves of strength to the end.

Survival, based only on the biological laws of self-preservation, is short-lived. It is characterized by rapidly developing mental disorders and hysterical behavioral reactions. The desire to survive must be conscious and purposeful. You can call it the will to live. Any skill and knowledge becomes meaningless if a person resigns himself to fate. Long-term survival is ensured not by the spontaneous desire “I don’t want to die”, but by the goal set – “I must survive!”. The desire to survive is not an instinct, but a conscious necessity! Survival tool - various standard and homemade emergency kits and emergency supplies (for example, a survival knife). If you are going on a dangerous journey, you need to complete emergency kits in advance, based on the specific conditions of the trip, terrain, time of year, and the number of participants. All items must be tested in practice, repeatedly checked, duplicated if necessary. General physical preparation does not require comments. Psychological preparation consists of the sum of such concepts as the psychological balance of each member of the group, the psychological compatibility of the participants, the similarity of the group, the real idea of the conditions of the future route, training trips that are close in terms of loads and climatic and geographical conditions to the real upcoming ones (or better twice exceeding them). Of no small importance is the correct organization of rescue work in a group, a clear distribution of duties in marching and emergency modes. Everyone should know what to do in the event of a threat of an emergency.

Naturally, the above list is far from exhausting all the factors that ensure long-term survival. Once in an emergency, first of all, it is necessary to decide what tactics should be followed - active (independent exit to people) or passive (waiting for help). With passive survival, when there is absolute certainty that the missing person or group is being sought, that the rescuers know their whereabouts, and if there is a non-transportable victim among you, you should immediately start building a capital camp, installing emergency signals around the camp, providing food on the spot.

Life support. Assessing the situation and making an informed decision

How to behave in extreme cases? Let's start with the basics and remember the key word for this situation "SURVIVAL":

S - assess the situation, recognize dangers, look for ways out of a hopeless situation.

U - excessive haste harms, but make decisions quickly.

R - remember where you are, determine your location.

V - conquer fear and panic, constantly control yourself, be persistent, but if necessary - obey.

I - improvise, be creative.

V - cherish the means of existence, recognize the limits of your capabilities.

A - act like a local, know how to evaluate people.

L - learn to do everything yourself, be independent and independent.

A group of people. First of all, it is necessary to choose an elder, a person who knows and is able to take all the necessary measures aimed at survival. If your group takes the following tips into account, then the chances of being rescued and returning home will increase significantly. Should:

Decisions are made only by the senior of the group, regardless of the situation;

Follow the orders of the senior group only;

To develop a sense of mutual assistance in the group.

All this will help to organize the activities of the group in such a way as to best ensure survival.

First of all, it is necessary to assess the current situation, which in turn consists of an assessment of the factors affecting survival.

The health status of group members, physical and mental condition;

The impact of the external environment (air temperature and the state of atmospheric conditions in general, terrain, vegetation, the presence and proximity of water sources, etc.).

Availability of emergency supplies of food, water and emergency equipment.

Provide self- and mutual assistance (if necessary) and draw up an action plan based on specific conditions, which should include:

Carrying out orientation on the ground and determining your location;

Organization of a temporary camp. Choosing a suitable place for building a shelter, taking into account the relief, vegetation, water sources, etc. Determination of the place of cooking, food storage, placement of a latrine, location of signal fires;

Provision of communication and signaling, preparation of radio equipment, operation and maintenance of them;

Distribution of responsibilities among group members;

Establishment of duty, tasks of duty officers and determination of the order of duty;

Preparation of visual signaling means;

As a result, an optimal mode of behavior in the current situation should be developed.

Help from local residents.

In most areas where a person or group of people injured in a disaster may be, there are always local residents. If you find yourself in a civilized country, the locals will always come to your aid and do everything necessary to get you home as soon as possible.

To enlist the support of local residents, be guided by the following:

It is better if the locals make contact first;

Deal on all matters with a recognized leader or leader; - Show friendliness, courtesy and patience. Don't show that you are afraid;

Treat them like human beings;

Respect their local customs and habits;

Respect the personal property of local residents; treat women with special respect;

Learn from the locals how to hunt and get food and water. Heed their advice regarding dangers;

Avoid physical contact with them, but in a way that is imperceptible to them;

Leave a good impression of yourself. Other people after you may need the same help.

When conducting RPS, rescuers often have to perform tasks far from populated areas, spend several days in the “field conditions”, and face various extreme situations, which imposes additional requirements on their ability to work in these conditions. Solid knowledge in various fields, the ability to use them in any conditions are the basis of survival. Going to the RPS, rescuers must, along with tools and protective equipment, have the following set of necessary items that can be useful in any climatic and geographical zone: a signal mirror, with which you can send a distress signal at a distance of 30-40 km; hunting matches, a candle or tablets of dry fuel for making a fire or heating a shelter; whistle for signaling; a large knife (machete) in a sheath, which can be used as a knife, ax, shovel, spear; a compass, a piece of thick foil and polyethylene, fishing equipment, signal cartridges, an emergency kit of medicines, a supply of water and food.

Signaling

Rescuers must know and be able to put into practice special signals. Rescuers can use fire smoke during the day and bright lights at night to indicate their location. If you throw rubber, pieces of insulation, oil rags into a fire, black smoke will be emitted, which is clearly visible in cloudy weather. To get white smoke, which is clearly visible in clear weather, green leaves, fresh grass, and damp moss should be thrown into the fire.

To give a signal from the ground to an air vehicle (aircraft), a special signal mirror can be used (Fig. 1). It is necessary to keep it at a distance of 25-30 cm from the face and look through the sighting hole at the plane; turning the mirror, match the light spot with the sighting hole. In the absence of a signal mirror, objects with shiny surfaces can be used. For sighting, you need to make a hole in the center of the object. The light beam must be sent along the entire horizon line, even in cases where the noise of the aircraft engine is not heard.

Rice. 1 Special signal mirror.

At night, the light of a hand-held electric flashlight, a torch, a fire can be used for signaling.

A fire built on a raft is one of the distress signals.

Good means of signaling are brightly colored objects and a special coloring powder (fluorescein, uranine), which are scattered on snow, earth, water, and ice when an aircraft (helicopter) approaches.

In some cases, sound signals (shout, shot, knock), signal rockets, smoke bombs can be used.

One of the latest developments in target designation is a small rubber balloon with a nylon shell, covered with four luminous colors, under which a light bulb flashes at night; the light from it is clearly visible at a distance of 4-5 km. Before launch, the balloon is filled with helium from a small capsule and held at a height of 90 m by a nylon cable. The mass of the kit is 1.5 kg.

In order to facilitate the search, it is advisable to use the International code table of air signals "Ground - Air" (Fig. 2). Its signs can be laid out with the help of improvised means (equipment, clothing, stones, trees), directly by people who must lie down on the ground, snow, ice, trampled on the snow.

Fig.2. International air signal code table

"Earth - Air"

1 - Need a doctor - serious bodily injury;

2 - Medicines are needed;

3 - Unable to move;

4 - Need food and water;

5 - Requires weapons and ammunition,

6 - Map and compass required:

7 - We need a signal lamp with a battery and a radio station;

8 - Specify the direction of travel;

9 - I am moving in this direction;

10 - Let's try to take off;

11 - Vessel seriously damaged;

12 - Here you can safely land;

13 - Fuel and oil required;

14 - All right;

15 - No or negative;

16 - Yes or positive;

17 - Did not understand;

18 - Need a mechanic;

19 - Operations completed;

20 - Nothing found, keep searching;

21 - Information received that the aircraft is in this direction;

22 - We found all the people;

23 - We only found a few people:

24 - We are unable to continue, returning to base;

25 - Divided into two groups, each follows the indicated direction.

Along with the ability to give signals, rescuers must be able to work and live in the field, taking into account meteorological (weather) factors. Monitoring the state and forecasting of the weather is carried out by special meteorological services. Weather information is transmitted by means of communication, in special reports, is applied to maps using conventional signs.

In the absence of information about the weather, rescuers must be able to determine and predict it according to local characteristics. To obtain reliable information, it is advisable to make a weather forecast simultaneously for several of them.

Signs of persistent good weather

It is quiet at night, the wind intensifies during the day, and calms down in the evening. Direction

wind near the ground coincides with the direction of movement of clouds.

At sunset, the dawn is yellow, golden or pink with a greenish tint in the distant space.

Fog accumulates in the lowlands at night.

After sunset, dew appears on the grass, with sunrise it disappears.

In the mountains, haze covers the peaks.

Cloudy at night, clouds appear in the morning, increase by noon and disappear in the evening.

Ants do not close the passages in the anthill.

Hot during the day, cool in the evening.

Signs of approaching storm

The wind intensifies, becomes more even, blows with the same force both day and night, sharply changes direction.

Cloudiness is intensifying. Cumulus clouds do not disappear by evening, but are added.

Evening and morning dawns are red.

In the evening it seems warmer than during the day. Temperatures drop in the mountains in the morning.

There is no dew at night or it is very weak.

Near the ground, fog appears after sunset, and by sunrise it dissipates.

During the day, the sky becomes cloudy, becomes whitish.

The crowns around the moon are decreasing.

The stars twinkle intensely.

Chickens and sparrows bathe in the dust.

Smoke begins to creep across the ground.

Signs of persistent bad weather

Light continuous rain.

The ground is foggy and dewy.

Both at night and during the day it is moderately warm.

Dampness in the air day and night, even in the absence of rain.

Small crowns closely adjacent to the Moon.

When stars twinkle, they cast a red or bluish light.

Ants close the passages.

The bees don't leave the hive.

Crows scream heart-rendingly.

Small birds clog in the middle of the tree crown.

Signs that the weather is changing for the better

The rain stops or comes intermittently, in the evening a creeping fog appears, dew falls.

The difference between day and night temperatures increases.

It gets cold.

The air is getting drier.

The sky is clear in the gaps.

The crowns around the moon are increasing.

The twinkling of the stars is decreasing.

The evening dawn is yellow.

The smoke from the chimneys and from the fire rises vertically.

The bees in the hives are noisy. Swifts and swallows rise higher.

Mosquitoes swarm

The coals in the fire quickly turn to ash.

Signs of stable partly cloudy weather

The predominance of the north or northeast wind.

The wind speed is low.

Creeping fog at night.

Abundant hoarfrost on grass land or tree branches.

Rainbow pillars on the sides of the Sun or a reddish pillar across the solar disk. Sunset with a yellowish tint.

Signs of a change to cloudy, snowy weather

Change in wind direction to the southeast, then to the southwest. Wind change from south to north and its strengthening - to a blizzard. Increase in cloud cover. Light snow begins. The frost is easing.

Blue spots appear over the forest.

Dark forests are reflected in low dense clouds.

Signs of persistent cloudy, snowy weather without major frosts

Slight frost or, with a southwesterly wind, a thaw.

By the thaw, blue spots over the forest intensify.

Steady southeast or northeast wind.

The direction of movement of the clouds does not coincide with the direction of the wind near the ground.

Light continuous snow.

Signs of a change to frosty weather without precipitation

The wind from the southwest turns to the west or northwest, the frost intensifies.

Cloudiness is decreasing.

Frost appears on the grass land and trees.

The blue spots over the forest weaken and soon completely disappear.

The weather imposes certain requirements on the organization of a bivouac, temporary housing, life and rest during multi-day RPS. With this in mind, rescuers organize a bivouac. It should be located in avalanche-safe and rock-fall-safe areas, close to a source of drinking water, have a supply of deadwood or firewood. It is impossible to arrange a bivouac in the dried up beds of mountain rivers, near the shallows, in dense shrubs, coniferous thickets, near dry, hollow, rotten trees, in thickets of flowering rhododendron. After removing stones, branches, debris from the site and leveling it, rescuers can proceed with setting up the tent. (Fig. 3)

Tents differ in design features, capacity, material. Despite this, they are all designed to protect a person from cold, rain, wind, dampness, and insects.

The procedure for setting up the tent is as follows:

Expand the tent;

Stretch and secure the bottom;

Install the racks and tighten the guys;

Fasten the exit and tighten the roof braces;

Eliminate creases on the roof by tightening (loosening) the braces;

Dig a ditch around the tent with a width and depth of 8-10 cm to drain water in case of rain.

Under the bottom of the tent, you can put dry leaves, grass, ferns, reeds, moss. When setting up a tent on snow (ice), empty backpacks, ropes, windbreakers, blankets, and foam rubber should be placed on the floor.

The pegs are hammered at an angle of 45° to the ground to a depth of 20-25 cm. Trees, stones, ledges can be used to secure the tent. The back wall of the tent must be placed in the direction of the prevailing winds.

In the absence of a tent, you can spend the night under a piece of tarpaulin, polyethylene, or equip a hut from improvised materials (branches, logs, spruce branches, leaves, reeds). It is installed on a flat and dry place, in a clearing or the edge of a forest.

In winter, the campsite should be cleared of snow and ice.

Fig.3 Options for setting up tents.

In snowy winter conditions, rescuers must be able to arrange shelters in the snow. The simplest of them is a hole dug around a tree, the size of which depends on the number of people. From above, the pit must be closed with branches, dense cloth, covered with snow for better thermal insulation. You can build a snow cave, a snow dugout, a snow trench. When entering a snow shelter, you should clean your clothes from snow and dirt, take a shovel or knife with you, which can be used to make ventilation holes and a passage in case of snow collapse.

For cooking, heating, drying clothes, signaling, rescuers use fires of the following types: "hut", "well" ("log house"), "taiga", "nodya", "fireplace", "Polynesian", "star", " pyramid". "Shalash" is convenient for making tea quickly and lighting the camp. This fire is very "gluttonous", it burns hot. “Well” (“log house”) is kindled, if you need to cook food in a large bowl, dry wet clothes. In the "well" the fuel burns out more slowly than in the "hut"; a lot of coals are formed, which create a high temperature. On the "taiga" you can cook food at the same time in several pots. On one thick log (approximately 20 cm thick), several thinner dry logs are placed, which approach each other at an angle of 30 °. necessarily on the leeward side. Fuel burns for a long time. Near such a fire you can stay for the night. "Nodya" is good for cooking food, heating during the night, drying clothes and shoes. Two dry logs up to 3 m long are placed close to each other, flammable fuel (thin dry twigs, birch bark) is ignited in the gap between them, after which a third dry log of the same length and 20-25 cm thick is placed on top. To prevent the logs from rolling out, with flyers are driven into the ground on two sides of them. They will simultaneously serve as supports for the stick on which the bowlers are hung. The “nodya” flares up slowly, but it burns with an even flame for several hours. Any fire must be made only after careful preparation of the site: collection of dry grass and deadwood, making a deepening in the ground, fencing with stones the place where it will be bred. The fuel for the fire is dry forest, grass, reeds, shrubs. It has been noticed that burning spruce, pine, cedar, chestnut, larch give a lot of sparks. Oak, maple, elm, beech burn quietly. To quickly kindle a fire, kindling is needed (birch bark, small dry branches and firewood, a piece of rubber, paper, dry fuel). It is tightly packed with a “hut” or “well”. To make the kindling light up better, put a piece of candle in it or put dry alcohol. Thicker dry branches are laid around the kindling, then thick firewood. In wet weather or during rain, the fire must be covered with a tarpaulin, a backpack, a thick cloth. You can kindle a fire with matches, a lighter, sunlight and a magnifying glass, friction, flint, a shot. In the latter case, you need:

Open the cartridge and leave only gunpowder in it;

Lay dry cotton wool on top of the gunpowder;

Shoot at the ground, while observing safety measures;

The smoldering cotton wool will ensure the kindling of the fire.

To set up a fire in winter, it is necessary to clear the snow to the ground or build a deck of thick logs on the snow, otherwise the melted snow will extinguish the fire. To prevent a fire from causing a fire, it should not be made under low tree branches, near flammable objects, on the leeward side, relative to the bivouac, on peat bogs, near reeds and reeds, dry grass, moss, in spruce and pine undergrowth. In these places, the fire spreads at high speed and is difficult to extinguish. In order to prevent the spread of fire, the fire must be surrounded by a ditch or stones. The safe distance from the fire to the tent is 10m. To dry clothes, shoes, equipment near the fire, they should be hung on poles or ropes located on the leeward side at a sufficient distance from the fire. An obligatory rule is to extinguish the fire (with water, earth, snow) when leaving the bivouac. Successful fulfillment by rescuers of the tasks assigned to them is possible only if the body restores and maintains high mental and physical performance throughout the entire period of work. This is based on a balanced diet. It is important not only the correct ratio of proteins, fats and carbohydrates in food, but also the mandatory presence of vitamins and other biologically active substances in it. The rescuer's daily diet should include at least 1.5 g of protein per kilogram of body weight, almost the same 4 times more carbohydrates, as well as about 30-35 g of table salt, vitamins, water, etc.

LITERATURE

1. Search and rescue work-M., EMERCOM of Russia, 2000.

2. Disasters and people - M., "Publishing house AST-LTD", 1997.

3. Accidents and catastrophes - M., Publishing house of the Association of construction universities, 1998.

4. Survival - Mn., "Lazurak", 1996.

5. Self-rescue without equipment - M., "Russian Journal", 2000.

6. Military topography - M., Military Publishing House, 1980.

7. Manual on the aviation search and rescue service of the USSR. - M., Military Publishing House, 1990.

8. Instructions to the crew of the Mi-8MT helicopter. - Military Publishing House, 1984.

9. Instructions for the crew of the Mi-26 helicopter. - Military Publishing House, 1984.

10. Instructions to the crew of the An-2 aircraft. - Military Publishing House, 1985.

11. Textbook "Fundamentals of military topography" Svetlaya Grove, IPPC Ministry of Emergency Situations of the Republic of Belarus, 2001.

12. First aid for injuries and other life-threatening situations - St. Petersburg, DNA Publishing House LLC, 2001.

Gomel Engineering Institute of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of the Republic of Belarus

Life safety

Basics of Survival

Prepared

Aniskovich I.I.

Gomel 2009

Basic concepts of survival

The reasons for the duration of autonomous existence:

Remoteness of the area of search and rescue operations from settlements;

Violation or complete absence of radio communications and other types of communications;

Unfavorable geographical, climatic and meteorological conditions of the area of search and rescue operations;

Availability of food stocks (or lack thereof);

The presence in the area of search and rescue operations of additional search and rescue forces and means.

Goals and tasks of rescuers on survival issues

The basis of survival is solid knowledge in various fields, from astronomy and medicine to the recipe for cooking dishes from caterpillars and tree bark.

Survival techniques in each climatic and geographical region are different. What can and should be done in the taiga is unacceptable in the desert and vice versa.

The human species has settled in almost all corners of the Earth. Even in areas too inhospitable to provide a permanent home, mankind has found ways to exploit their resources, either by hunting or by getting what they need directly from the land, and often uses their methods of exploiting nature simply for the pleasure of using them.

Almost everywhere in nature there is what is necessary for survival. In some places food is plentiful, in others food resources are very scarce and it will take common sense, knowledge and ingenuity to take advantage of the opportunities available. But even more important is the will to live. Men and women have proven that they can survive in the most hostile conditions, but they did it only because of their determination to win - without this, all knowledge will do little if you find yourself in a difficult situation.

Survival is the art of staying alive. All items of equipment that you have should be considered only as a head start, which may not be. You must know how to take everything you can from nature and use it to the fullest, how to draw attention to yourself so that rescuers can find you, how to move through unfamiliar territory towards civilization (if there is no hope of salvation from outside) without a map and compass. You must know how to keep fit or heal yourself and others when sick or injured. You must be able to maintain a stable morale both in yourself and in others who share with you the hardships of the situation.

But survival methods are relevant not only in extreme situations of a catastrophe on a mountain top, a shipwreck in the tropics or in the middle of a desert. Every time you put on your seat belt in your car, you increase your chances of survival. Looking around when crossing the street or making sure before going to bed that the fireplace is functioning properly, you instinctively use survival techniques. It is this mindset that you must develop along with skills and abilities.

The basic elements of survival are food, fire, shelter, water, location and medicine. The abbreviation is used to prioritize them. Regardless of where we are on the Earth, the priority does not change - whether in the Arctic, in the desert, in the jungle, in the open ocean or on the coast.

P — protection (protection)

You must ensure that you are protected from possible subsequent dangers, i.e. aftershocks with collapses, a forest fire or a fuel explosion. Always stay at the scene of the accident for as long as it is safe to do so, and then protect yourself from environmental hazards. This means organizing a shelter and often starting a fire. There are several reasons why you should not leave the scene of an accident.

You can use the wreckage to create shelter, signaling, etc.
The place itself is a big "sign", a "signal" that is easier to spot.
Perhaps there are wounded who cannot be moved.
By staying where you are, you save energy.
If you are registered somewhere (at a hotel, at work at a business trip, etc.) and stay on the established route, then a minimum time for rescue will be required.

L — localization (locating)

The next step after creating a shelter or shelter is to set up signals that localize your location. You must draw attention to your location. Do this as quickly as possible to help your rescuers.

BUT — adaptation (search for food and water)

While waiting for help, look for water and food to replenish your emergency supplies.

H — navigation (route selection)

Good navigation - finding the right direction for your path - can lead you out of a dangerous situation. But if you are limited in this, stay where you are.

The medicine

You must become your own doctor and constantly monitor your condition. Immediately treat scratches, corns, blisters, without bringing them to infection and inflammation. Monitor the status of your comrades and solve problems as they arise. If they limp, fall behind, or behave strangely, stop and take immediate action.

Experience shows that any of us, often against our will, may find ourselves in a situation in which he has no one to count on and needs to hold out at any cost, no matter - a few hours before dawn or a few days, weeks, months before the arrival of help. You will learn how to provide yourself with water, food, warmth in winter and shelter from the heat in summer. The author gives advice that has been tested on his own experience and convincingly proves that not so much is needed to survive in any conditions - the desire to survive, certain knowledge and self-confidence.

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The following excerpt from the book Primer on Survival in Extreme Situations (Igor Molodan, 2016) provided by our book partner - the company LitRes.

1. Emergencies

Survival

Survival in our days is of increasing interest, which is connected, no matter how strange it may seem at first glance, with the urbanization of society. There is nothing surprising in the fact that unprepared people, getting into critical situations, lose a sense of self-confidence, stop thinking and acting adequately. Depending on the circumstances, such behavior can lead not only to serious consequences for health, but also to death. That is why it is worth studying ways and methods of survival in a variety of situations that threaten life and health.

To date, it is customary to distinguish between two main areas in the science of survival - forced survival and voluntary survival. Supporters of the second call themselves autonomists, and any of us can be in the position of the first. The only difference is that autonomists have the opportunity to choose equipment. The tips collected in the book can be applied not only during autonomous survival, whether forced or voluntary, but also in a normal trip. After all, the second is a de facto formed separate type of tourism, although it differs in its goals and objectives from other types of tourism.

social survival is a set of measures aimed at maintaining health and performance in emergency situations associated with a person's stay in society. These can be accidents and disasters of a different nature (man-made, natural, in transport, in a combat zone). At the same time, adaptive properties, physical condition and special knowledge are of the greatest importance.

offline survival is a set of measures aimed at maintaining health and performance in the wild.

Forced autonomous survival arises as a result of an unforeseen situation. Often it turns out to be associated with being in adverse conditions, for example, in a deserted area, caused by various factors (accidents, disasters, natural disasters, military conflicts, etc.). In any case, a significant impact on the prospects of survivors is their preparedness in the broadest sense: both the necessary knowledge and skills, and equipment, and physical form.

Depending on various factors (general condition, prospects for being quickly found by rescuers, etc.), forced autonomous survival can be active or passive.

Active autonomous survival - a set of actions aimed at the fastest way out of an emergency; almost always the main criterion is the decision to leave the scene. The factors determining the transition to active autonomous survival are the good physical and mental condition of the victims and favorable conditions (proximity to roads, settlements, etc.).

Passive Autonomous Survival - a set of actions aimed primarily at waiting for rescue at the scene or not far from it. When making a decision, the physical and mental condition of the victims, the presence of the wounded, weather conditions, confidence in the prompt deployment of search and rescue operations, etc. are also taken into account.

According to the time frame, forced autonomous survival can be short-term and long-term.

Short-term forced autonomous survival implies the minimum necessary time to reach people on the condition that the victims (one or a group, it does not matter; if there are no special reservations, there are no significant differences in actions) made the decision to move from the moment a critical situation arose. Also, passive survival can be considered as short-term autonomous survival, in which the victims were found and received the necessary assistance in a time sufficient to reach people if they had decided to move.

Long-term forced autonomous survival (autonomous existence) does not have a strict time frame and is associated with the presence of the victim or a group of victims for various reasons in an area untouched by human activity until they are discovered, assisted and evacuated.

Tourist offline survival- this is a planned set of activities of a scientific or recreational nature, aimed at exploring the possibilities of maintaining health and performance in an area untouched by human activity.

Tourism Survival Goals are determined from the very essence of the concept of tourist survival. They are:

Preservation of health in various natural and climatic conditions;

Maintaining efficiency, expressed in full-fledged activity in an area untouched by human activity, using limited resources;

The study of the psychological aspects of human behavior in an unfamiliar area and the development of scientific recommendations for overcoming adverse environmental factors.

Tourist Survival Tasks:

Practicing movement techniques in areas untouched by human activity;

Practice in orienteering in various ways;

The study of plants and animals, including those suitable for human consumption or medical use;

Search for water sources and development of methods for its extraction and purification;

The construction and arrangement of shelters, the creation of comfortable living conditions, the manufacture of clothing and equipment, etc., regardless of natural conditions.

Tourist survival can be expeditionary and sports.

Expeditionary Survival is aimed at developing and improving theoretical knowledge related to the preservation of human health and performance in various natural and climatic conditions.

sports survival sets itself the goals of holding events of a competitive nature between autonomists with the fulfillment of certain tasks and standards.

The main stages of survival:

1. Movement in an area untouched by human activity.

2. Practicing survival skills in the selected region:

Search (or obtaining) water and food;

Making a fire and cooking;

Building a shelter and making the necessary equipment;

Medical aspects of survival.

3. Orientation and access to people.

Autonomous survival has already become a full-fledged type of extreme tourism. Its extremeness lies in the difficulty of predicting the development of the situation associated with being in the wild, certain risks not only for the health of the survivor, but also for his life. At the same time, tourist survival should not turn into a covert suicide attempt. It must be organized and carefully planned. The minimum amount of multifunctional equipment must be carried with you, while convinced survivalists try to use it in exceptional situations related to the preservation of life and health, when the basic methods and methods of autonomous survival turned out to be insufficient.

The main difference between autonomous survival and other types of tourism is the rejection of traditional equipment, food and water supplies. Routes in autonomous survival are chosen in an area untouched by human activity, far from settlements. The schedule and pace of movement in offline survival do not have strict restrictions. The main task is to reach the final destination without compromising the physical and emotional level.

The key to the successful implementation of activities related to the preservation of the health and performance of a survivor in various conditions is the right clothing and equipment. Only equipment that is laborious to manufacture in natural conditions (knife, flask) is permissible.

A set of measures to preserve the health and performance of a survivor should not upset the balance of the region's ecosystem, expressed in the ill-conceived extermination of flora and fauna, pollution and destruction of water sources, careless behavior with fire. The use of natural resources is allowed solely to replenish the energy costs and the water-salt balance of the survivor's body, ensure safe movement, create comfortable conditions for a good rest and restore the expended physical effort.

Train disaster

Precautionary measures:

It is best to be located in the carriages of electric trains and trains that are in the middle of the train, as they suffer the least during an accident; the safest shelves are the lower ones, located in the direction of the train;

Bulky and heavy things must be placed down, as with a strong push they can fall from the upper shelves and cause injury;

You can not clutter up the doors in the compartment at night, as in the dark it will be difficult to get out;

Before going to bed, you need to remember where the clothes, documents and money are; essentials and valuables are best placed under the pillow;

At night, it is better to remove food, bottles, etc. from the table so that you do not get hurt in a collision;

On the side shelves of second-class carriages, it is better to sleep with your feet forward along the course of the train in order to exclude neck injuries during a collision or emergency braking.

In the event of a railway accident, you need to try to grab hold of the fixed parts of the car with your hands, group up and cover your head with your hands.

When turning the car over, firmly holding onto your shelf with your hands, you need to rest with your feet firmly against the top shelf, wall, etc. and close your eyes so that glass fragments do not get into them. After the car gains stability, you should look around and outline exit routes. If there is no danger of fire, there is no need to rush to get out, it would be more correct to provide first aid to the victims, calm the children, and prevent panic. You need to get out of the car one at a time, helping women, children and the elderly.

If the car is overturned or damaged, you will have to get out through the windows, opening the transoms or breaking the windows. In the latter case, it is necessary to clean the frames from fragments. In the event of a break in the wires of the contact network, you should move away from the cars by 30–50 m so as not to fall under the step voltage. After evacuation to a safe place, you must immediately report the incident to the emergency dispatcher.

The most dangerous is the fall of the wagon into the river. In this case, you need to remember that the windows of the 3rd and 6th compartments of most cars are emergency exits. If the car is filled with water, you don’t need to try to get out right away - its pressure will be very strong, the resistance of the elements will lead to a waste of strength. It is better to spend these 10-20 seconds looking for documents and valuables. It is best to start getting out when the pressure of the water outside and inside begins to equalize. This usually happens after the wagon is about ⅔ full of water. In a place already covered with water, any metal object needs to break the window. Next, you need to take a few deep breaths and exhalations, draw full lungs of air and throw the body outward with an intense push; actively working with your arms and legs, rise to the surface of the water.

Shipwreck

Panic in such a situation is more dangerous than in many other circumstances. Without succumbing to it, you must try to clearly and quickly follow all the instructions of the captain. First of all, passengers need to put on life jackets and remove clothes and shoes that restrict movement. Then you need to take the documents, wrapping them in an airtight package that every ship traveler should have, and putting it under his underwear. Quickly, but without fuss, climb to the upper deck and, following the instructions of the captain and crew, board a lifeboat or raft, helping those in need and letting children and women go ahead.

If you can’t get into the boat, and the life jacket is not available for some reason, you need to look for any floating object (lifebuoy, board, empty plastic bottle with a cap, etc.) and, after looking around, jump into the water with your feet down. Once in the water, you need to swim away from the ship for 200-300 m, so as not to be pulled under the water or the bottom of the ship. In the future, everyone in the water needs to come together to help each other and organize joint rescue actions.

Seeing a boat in which there are free places, you should swim up to it from the stern; Under no circumstances should you jump on board. If there are no places in the boat, you need to ask to throw a cable (rope), tie it around your waist and continue to sail in tow. It is important to save strength and periodically massage the limbs to restore blood circulation.

During a long voyage in a boat, you should not drink sea water. In the presence of fresh water, it is better to mix it with sea water in a ratio of 3: 1 so that the supply is enough for as long as possible. With strong thirst, you need to periodically moisten a piece of cloth with sea water and wipe the body and head. To catch fish, you should use the tackle that should be in every lifeboat. You can squeeze juice from fish and drink it instead of water. Never give up hope of salvation. You should fight for life in every possible way.

If you are picked up by a passing ship, you need to provide your details, the name of the ship, the time and place of the disaster (at least approximately), as well as the number of people who survived.

Air accident

In the event of an emergency in the air, you must strictly follow all the instructions of the crew commander and flight attendants. If there is no command, fasten seat belts, remove all sharp objects, jewelry, watches, hold children close to you, lean forward in a chair and grab your head with both hands. Do not attempt to get up from your seat until the aircraft has come to a complete stop. Remember, all movements break the alignment and complicate the work of the crew. In any case, you should remain calm and prevent the occurrence of panic in the cabin.

After stopping the movement of the aircraft, you must immediately, following the sequence, leave it using emergency hatches (the rules for using them are shown on them) and inflatable ladders. After evacuation, you should move away from the aircraft as far as possible, helping the wounded and children, and lie down on the ground, covering your head with your hands, if a fire starts.

After the evacuation of all passengers, it is necessary to try to provide first aid to the wounded. On your own or with the help of other passengers, you need to build sheds from improvised materials for children and the wounded; look for water sources and send some of the most trained people for help.

In the event of a depressurization of the aircraft cabin at high altitude, it is first necessary to put on an oxygen mask. Do not press it against your face, but put it on, because even in a mask you can lose consciousness, but it should not fall off your face. Then you should help to put on masks for children and those passengers who were not able to do this on their own. After that, you should buckle up and follow all the instructions of the flight attendants and crew. The crew will do everything necessary to occupy such a height at which high-altitude hypoxia does not occur.

In a fire, smoke fills the cabin very quickly. The design of most airliners is such that in the event of a fire, passengers have a maximum of 2-3 minutes to leave the aircraft. You will have to move to the emergency exit in conditions of smoke on all fours. If the passage is blocked, the instructions advise you to lower the backs of the chairs and move around them.

Man-made accident

If toxic substances are released into the air, cover your nose and mouth with a handkerchief, collar, scarf, etc. to purify the air you breathe. Next, you need to notify the emergency services and leave the infection zone as soon as possible.

If possible, it is best to proceed to the place of residence or any other room that has not been infected. There you need to take off your outer clothing and wash it; if this is not possible, the clothes should be folded into a sealed bag (for example, plastic), close all windows and doors and caulk the cracks with a wet cloth, turn off ventilation devices and air conditioners.

If there are obvious signs of poisoning (dizziness, nausea, vomiting, etc.), you should immediately seek medical help. In the absence of signs of poisoning, it is advisable to take a shower or at least thoroughly wash exposed areas of the body and hair.

You should not hide in basements or cellars, as toxic gases heavier than air accumulate near the surface of the earth.

After eliminating the consequences of the accident, you should not eat vegetables, fruits and herbs without special treatment. It is dangerous to eat milk and dairy products, eggs, as well as the meat of animals slaughtered after the alarm was declared in the infected area, drink tap water and water from open sources, since all this can be contaminated.

Residents of megacities are strongly advised by experts to avoid places with heavy traffic, try not to go out during rush hours. Unnecessarily, you should also not be in industrial areas, especially on foggy days. If going out with children cannot be avoided, it is best to hold babies in your arms, and not carry them in strollers and do not drive them by the hand, since most of the toxic substances from exhaust gases accumulate at a height of up to 1 m from the ground (this is especially noticeable in the early morning). You should not walk through tunnels and galleries, i.e. places most polluted with exhaust gases; parks and squares are much better suited for walking. Remember that in residential areas, the main sources of air pollution are smoking and the use of gas stoves, coal and kerosene heating, the use of artificial insulation materials, and the contents of aerosol cans.

Armed conflict

It would not be an exaggeration to say that for a civilian who, by the will of fate, finds himself in a zone of armed conflict, the main goal is survival and an early exit from the combat zone.

Clothing should not be bright and defiant. Military-style clothing is highly undesirable. Do not carry or wear expensive items and jewelry.

During bombing and shelling, you do not need to hide under tall buildings and stay in apartments, it is better to hide in a bomb shelter, basement or cellar. It is also advisable to avoid crowded places, gas stations and supermarkets.

If the terrain and weather conditions allow, you can hide in a forest belt, which is poorly visible to snipers.

In case of evacuation or moving to another place, you should not take a lot of things, as this attracts the attention of marauders. You only need to take documents and the most necessary for survival - clothes, described on p. 55–68 wearable emergency supply, first aid kit and money. It is better to hide the main amount of money and jewelry in advance in a place inaccessible to strangers.

While moving, it is advisable to always keep your hands in sight, and have a white handkerchief in one of the outer pockets in order to be able to signal your status to military patrols.

If a meeting with a patrol could not be avoided, one should not panic, let alone try to escape. In this situation, it is better to follow all the orders of people with weapons as calmly as possible. At the first request, it is necessary to present documents and try to convince the patrol that there are no aggressive intentions whatsoever. If there is a curfew, you don't need to break it without special reasons.

You should not travel in an expensive car. It without special ceremonies can simply be taken away.

It should also be borne in mind that when trying to cross the line separating the warring parties, the probability of falling under fire is extremely high; this is even more true at night. In addition, despite the best efforts of the International Movement to Ban Anti-Personnel Mines, they are used almost everywhere, and it is almost impossible to see such an explosive device at night.

Covert movement

Silent walking. It is necessary to walk so that the efforts come from the hip, and not from the knee. Steps should be somewhat shorter than usual. The foot is placed on the ground easily and gently. When moving over short distances, it is better to put the foot on the toe, slowly transferring body weight to the entire foot. When moving long distances, the front leg should first rest on the heel, and the back leg should bend slightly. It is advisable to place your foot so that it can be immediately raised if an object that can become a source of noise comes across on the way. Usually the heel makes noise, especially where there are a lot of branches, stones, etc.

To walk without noise through the forest, steps must be made shorter than usual, put the foot on the ground with a soft, groping movement. If there are a lot of branches under your feet, before stepping, you need to push them apart with your toe, feel for solid ground and step on. Taking aside the branches that block the path, one must not throw them away, but silently return them to their previous position. At dusk or darkness, it is recommended to lower the visor of the headgear to the level of the eyes, slightly bend the left arm at the elbow and hold it in front of you at the height of the face, checking the space in front of you by moving it up and down.

Movement on viscous ground requires additional expenditure of energy to stretch the legs and maintain balance. In this case, it is better to move in short steps, quickly rearranging the legs so that they do not have time to go deep into the soil. The foot should be placed on the entire foot, the movement should be facilitated by the energetic work of the hands. It is advisable to choose more solid areas of soil, furrows, bumps, clay ledges. If necessary, small jumps are allowed.

Moving on slippery surfaces the leg should be placed on the entire foot. At least one hand must be free to maintain balance. During movement, the muscles of the legs must be constantly kept in tension.

When walking through tall grass it is recommended to raise your legs higher and put them on the ground from the toe.

To attenuate the sound of steps, you can sheathe the soles with fur patches or wrap them with soft rags. Regardless of the conditions in which you have to move, you should do it carefully, carefully choosing the route.

When traveling in shallow water, in order not to create noise, the leg should be lowered gradually from the toe, dragging it forward through the water in a sliding motion, as when skiing.

Movement at night. At nightfall, the sensitivity of the eyes gradually increases, reaching a maximum value after about 50-60 minutes.

A few words about masking. Headgear with a clear outline should not be used. To hide or distort the contours of the figure, cut branches of trees and shrubs are most often used. It is preferable to use large branches (0.7–1 m or more) - they fade more slowly; algae, reeds, sedge and moss in cut form retain their color for up to 15 days. The branches of maple, oak, birch, linden, ash and poplar in the summer retain their green color for no more than two days, the leaves on the branches of aspen, acacia, hazel curl and blacken after a few hours. Branches of pine and spruce last 10–12 days in summer, and up to 80 days in winter.

Burnt tree bark, charcoal, mud, berry and plant juice can be used as pigments that are applied to mask open areas of the body; all these substances to a certain extent mask the smell of the body.

Determination of prescription and direction of traces

Knowing a few simple ways to determine the age of traces and the direction of movement of the person or car that left them will allow you to feel more confident in the zone of armed conflict.

For human footprints the following rules apply:

When walking, a person consistently leaves traces of heels, soles and socks;

When running, only a small part of the foot remains, most often the toe, while the distance between the prints is more than 90 cm;

Trained people (athletes, tourists, hunters, etc.) walk with even steps, with an energetic back push;

The person carrying the load puts the feet parallel and slightly wider than usual, while the step size is reduced;

A very tired, sick or injured person can take extra steps to the sides, which is why the line of movement turns out to be winding;

If a person is lame, then the steps of a healthy leg may be noticeably larger than a sick one; in addition, the trace of a sore leg is less clear;

The absence of pronounced signs of a rear shock and a short step indicate the slowness and caution of the walker;

The imprint of the soles of a standing person is more deeply depressed in the region of the heels.

Direction of movement of people

The greatest depth of the trace is in that part of it that is turned in the direction of movement;

Ground shift occurs from the front of the track in the direction opposite to the direction of movement;

The sharp ends of the drops falling from the shoes are directed in the direction of movement;

In viscous soil, vertical furrows or scratches are formed on the walls of the track, curved with their upper ends in the direction of movement;

Traces of frozen mud on the crust are surrounded by cracks, the sharp ends of which are directed in the direction of movement;

Separate small lumps of soil are thrown out when walking forward;

At footprints in sand or snow, if the foot sinks deep, a small roll of soil is formed on the side that is turned against the direction of movement;

The trampled grass is directed in the direction of movement.

Direction of traffic determined by the following features:

The vertices of the corners in the track of the tread of the off-road tire are turned in the direction opposite to the direction of movement;

Drops of liquid or oil that have fallen in the direction of movement, with elongated thin ends point in the direction of movement;

Soil particles are thrown by wheels and caterpillars in the direction opposite to the direction of movement;

Grass and shrubs are crushed in the direction of travel;

Water or liquid mud, when moving through puddles, ditches, swamps, is sprayed to the sides and forward, and a wet trail remains in the direction of movement;

The end of a broken stick at the fracture site is usually directed in the direction opposite to the movement;

The trail of the braking distance grows gradually and abruptly ends on the side where the car was going;

When leaving a dirt road on a highway, especially when the ground is wet, soil particles remain on the asphalt, indicating the direction of movement.

Age of traces. In winter, fresh tracks are clearly visible. On loose snow on the sides of a fresh track, small lumps of snow are clearly visible. In frost, they quickly disappear, while larger lumps round out and decrease in size. A fresh trace crumbles if you carefully pry it off with your hand, the old one retains its shape. A crust forms on old tracks at low air temperatures.

In dry, calm weather, traces left on sand or soft ground are very clear, clearly visible, and therefore it is not difficult to determine their age, however, with the slightest wind, they quickly collapse and after 2-3 hours become almost invisible, and then disappear altogether. In strong winds, the tracks may disappear within a few minutes. Traces of equipment in such conditions can last up to 4 hours or even more, but the pattern of prints is also erased quickly.

It is much easier to determine the age of a trace left on wet soil. Such a trace usually undergoes slow changes and retains its contours for a long time. In depressions on wet ground, the soil looks somewhat darker than the surrounding ground, as it retains moisture longer. Lumps of soil that have fallen to the bottom of the track dry out after 3–4 hours, brighten and differ markedly in color from the bottom of the track. If the soil is viscous, then after 2–3 hours (depending on temperature conditions) a crust forms at the bottom of the track, after 4–5 hours cracks appear, after 1–2 days individual soil particles separate from the bottom of the track and swell, and after 2– 3 days the contours of the trace first crumble, and then completely disappear.

Hazardous weather phenomena

Dried feather grass can be used to predict the weather. It sensitively reacts to all changes in the atmosphere: in dry, clear weather, its panicle twists into a spiral, and when the air humidity increases, it straightens.

Homemade barometer. To do this, you need to cut off a branch of a young spruce or juniper with a piece of trunk 10-15 cm long and peel it from the bark. The trunk is fixed motionless, the branch remains free. The branch will respond to changes in the weather by lowering the end before rain and raising it before the onset of clear weather (Fig. 1.1).

Rice. 1.1. homemade barometer

The amplitude depends on the length of the branch: for example, for a 30–40 cm branch, it can reach 10–15 cm. like a normal barometer.

If there is a danger of falling into the epicenter of a thunderstorm, it is necessary to take, if possible, a dry or slightly wet place 1.5–2 m from rocks or stand-alone trees that rise 10 m or more.

Most often, lightning strikes standalone trees, in the forest - higher ones, such as oaks, poplars, spruces and pines, a little less often - willows, beeches, lindens, acacias and birches, almost does not touch maples, hazel, laurel trees.

During a thunderstorm, you can not hide in the niches of rocks, slope depressions, be at the entrance or at the far end of the cave. It is dangerous to be on the edges and large clearings. It is extremely dangerous to move or stop in places where water flows.

In open areas, sandy areas, scree and moraines should be chosen; the most dangerous are water-saturated soils and clay soils. You can not be located in the immediate vicinity of the fire.

During a thunderstorm, you must:

The group on the way to disperse, if necessary, continue to move - go one at a time, slowly;

In the forest, hide among low trees with dense crowns;

In the mountains, stay no closer than 3–8 m from vertical walls;

Fold all metal objects, including watches and equipment, 10–15 m away from you;

In open areas, descend from hills and hide in a dry pit, ditch, ravine;

Try to create a dielectric layer by placing branches, spruce branches, stones, logs or clothes under you;

It is best to sit grouped, bending your back and lowering your head to your knees, bring your feet together;

In shelter, change into dry clothes, in extreme cases, carefully squeeze out wet ones;

On the water - remove the mast or flood it through the keel or oar, and in a boat without a mast, remove the oars from the water and sit still; swim slowly, without swinging your arms.

During a thunderstorm it is forbidden:

Take cover near the lone or (in the forest) the tallest trees;

Leaning or touching rocks, sheer walls and trees;

Stop at the edges of the forest, large glades, hills;

Walk or stop near bodies of water or in places where water flows (crevices, streams, couloirs);

Hide under rocky canopies and in small structures;

Move in a tight group, run, fuss;

Wear wet clothes and shoes.

Actions in case of a forest fire caused by lightning activity:

Remove all synthetic clothing;

Wet exposed areas of the body and natural clothing with water or mud;

When smoking, cover your face with a wet cloth;

Move quickly towards scorched earth or burn the area before the main fire approaches;

If it is necessary to cross the line of fire, choose a place with the least amount of vegetation.

Hurricane, tornado, storm

In case of a hurricane, tornado, storm, you must:

Take shelter as soon as possible in places protected from the wind - behind monolithic obstacles, in a dense forest;

Move away from isolated trees that can be blown down by the wind;

Find any depression in the soil - a ravine, ditch, pit, etc., lie down on the bottom, press firmly against the ground, covering your head with your hands;

Fasten loose clothing with all buttons and tie around the body in several places so that it does not create additional windage.

When a blizzard approaches, you need to build the most durable shelter as quickly as possible.

With a sufficient thickness of the snow cover, it is desirable to build a low igloo (see p. 204, fig. 5.19), the domed shape of which provides minimal wind resistance. In front of the igloo, you can additionally build a windproof wall in the shape of a horseshoe, open to the leeward side.

In an open, snowless area where it is not possible to build a major snow shelter, you should find some kind of stable object, such as a fallen tree, take cover behind it and regularly discard and trample the arriving snow mass with your feet. Thus, you will gradually get a narrow shelter trench.

In critical situations, it is permissible to burrow completely into dry snow, for which you need to put on all warm clothes, sit with your back to the wind, cover yourself with plastic wrap or a sleeping bag, pick up a long stick and let the snow sweep you. At the same time, it is necessary to constantly clear the ventilation hole with a stick and expand the volume of the formed snow capsule in order to always be able to get out of the snow drift.

For a blizzard, you need:

Stop driving immediately;

Leave hills and funnel-shaped depressions;

Build a safe shelter in an avalanche safe place;

Warm up as much as possible, fasten clothes, put on a hood;

Leave the shelter only with a rope belay;

Have a tool in the shelter to dig out the entrance.

During a blizzard it is forbidden:

Wait it out without building a shelter;

Move;

Sleep with insufficient thermal insulation properties of clothing;

Leaving shelters without a rope belay.

5.1. The concept of the human environment. Normal and extreme conditions

habitat. Survival

5.1.1. The concept of human habitat

A person during his life is surrounded by objects of the material world that make up the human environment, or the human habitat (habitat). It consists of inanimate (earth, water, plants, buildings, tools, etc.) and animate (people, animals and etc.) objects.

The content of the human habitat depends on the place, time and conditions. The human habitat in the southern regions of the country differs from that in the northern regions due to differences in climatic conditions. At the same time, the climate itself changes over time, the temperature of the atmospheric air - during the year and day. Differences in the habitat in everyday life and at work are especially significant.

The living environment of a person is determined by the conditions of a person’s stay in his home, in the bosom of nature (rest, work on a personal plot, etc.), in public places, on the street, in transport, if this is not related to the person’s performance of his official duties.

The production environment of a person is determined by the working conditions of a person in production, in an organization, or an institution. In most cases, the conditions of the production environment are less favorable for humans than domestic ones. However, in some cases, the impact on a person of some factors of these environments may be close. For example, the effect of solar radiation on a person resting under the sun is close to that of a worker doing outdoor work at the same latitudes and under the same weather conditions.

In the process of human life, the environment has a certain influence on him. For example, atmospheric air can heat or cool the human body, a falling object can cause injury. Long-term environmental impacts of the same nature eventually cause certain changes in the human body, and under their influence a person adapts to the environment, changing physiologically and psychologically.

From the point of view of human impact, the environment can be represented as consisting of factors that are divided into natural (natural) and anthropogenic, or artificial, generated by human activity. In the historical aspect, in the beginning there were only natural factors. Later, anthropogenic factors began to join them.

A number of human habitat factors can have an adverse effect on it.

Natural unfavorable factors are essential in the domestic environment. For everyday life, for example, the climatic factor is of great importance, which largely determines the conditions of indoor living and outdoor recreation. Of great importance is the aquatic environment, which supplies a person with drinking water, irrigates gardens, but at the same time can bring with it great destruction and casualties (floods, storms at sea, etc.). Equally important in everyday life are the effects of harmful natural substances (dust, poisonous gases, etc.), the temperature factor (burns, frostbite), etc.

With the development of human society, the role of anthropogenic adverse factors increases. At present, they are as important as natural factors. Suffice it to recall the electric shock, the fall of people with their own erected structures, gas poisoning, including carbon monoxide, and many other examples. In the mining industry, for example, the main dangers are rock falls in workings as a result of human activity in the bowels of the earth, as well as vehicles in mines: they account for about half of the fatal accidents that occur in coal mines.

What environmental factors are unfavorable for the human body? When answering this question, it is necessary to proceed from the following.

The development of the human body adapted (adapted) it to certain average values of environmental factors and to a certain range of their change relative to average values. But in the course of the life of an organism, it is also possible for the values of environmental factors to go beyond the usual limits for it. The body is not accustomed to such values. The more the factor values deviate from the usual limits, the more unfavorable it is. We come to the conclusion that an environmental factor is unfavorable, the values of which periodically, but not often, go beyond the range of its values habitual for a given organism. For example, for the inhabitants of the middle latitudes of Russia, the outside air temperature is from +20°C to -20°C. Their body has adapted to this temperature diagnosis and in such temperature conditions it functions normally, on average, a person feels comfort (convenience). The temperature of + 30 ° C or - 25 ° C is already perceived uncomfortable, and with large deviations from the usual temperature range, a person may experience adverse consequences. Therefore, in this example, temperatures above +25°C and below -20°C can be considered as unfavorable values for the factor temperatures. If deviations in the range from +25°С to -20°С are regular, but small (for example, deviations from the upper limit of usual temperatures by +5°С and from the lower limit by -5°С), a person gets used to them and they expand the range of comfortable temperatures. Hence the conclusion follows: in principle, any environmental factor can be unfavorable. For example, oxygen in atmospheric air is essential for human life. Its content in the air is about 21%, and the human body is adapted to such a content. With a significant decrease (increase) in the oxygen content in the air, a person begins to change the functions of a number of organs, which can lead to serious disorders and even death. Thus, oxygen is a favorable factor for human life, if its content is within 21%, with a significant deficiency or excess, it becomes an unfavorable factor. A similar example can be given with atmospheric pressure: normal atmospheric pressure is favorable for a person, its values, which differ significantly from normal, make atmospheric pressure an unfavorable factor.

Therefore, we should not talk about favorable environmental factors, but about unfavorable values of factors. The nature and degree of influence on a living organism of one or another environmental factor depends on the quantitative value of this factor. The further the value of the factor under consideration is from the zone of its comfortable values, the more unfavorable the effect of the factor on the living organism.

5.1.2. Normal and extreme living conditions. Survival

Comfortable or close to them values of human environmental factors take place, as a rule, in normal human life, in peacetime. They are often referred to as normal living conditions.

Normal life-giving conditions provide for the life support of the population for a normal life, life in peacetime. Almost every Russian lives in these conditions.

In the event of emergencies, people in the emergency zone may find themselves without shelter, water, food and medical care. In most cases, it is extremely difficult to solve the most important issues of life support for the affected population in these extreme conditions promptly and in the required volumes, because the supply system will be destroyed or its ability to fully meet all the needs of the victims will be insufficient.

In such cases, it turns out to be important to establish a priority life support for people, which at first provides for the satisfaction of only the physiological needs of a person, primarily in food.

In addition, in some emergency situations in the initial period of their occurrence, even the physiological needs of a person for energy cannot be satisfied. There are difficulties with housing, water, cooking, medical care, etc. Similar difficulties can also occur under other circumstances, when a person, regardless of the planned actions and the route of movement, geographical location, is cut off from the outside world and must rely only on himself. This is the extreme conditions of human life. For a person who is in extreme conditions, the desire to survive is natural, i.e. save your life.

The behavior of a person left to himself in extreme conditions, the purpose of which is to save his life, is survival.

Extreme conditions in which a person is fighting for survival are characterized by: the absence or lack of food (food); lack or shortage of drinking water; exposure to low or high temperatures on the human body.

Food provides the body's needs for energy and the functioning of all human organs and systems.

The composition of food should include proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins.

Proteins form the basis of every living cell, every tissue of the body. Therefore, a continuous supply of protein is absolutely necessary for the growth and repair of tissues, as well as the formation of new cells. The most valuable proteins are meat, milk, eggs and vegetables, primarily potatoes and cabbage and some cereals - oatmeal, rice, buckwheat.

Fats and carbohydrates are the main sources of energy and determine mainly the calorie content of food. Animal fats are considered more complete than vegetable fats. The most useful fats contained in milk, cream, sour cream. Carbohydrates are especially rich in cereals, vegetables, fruits, a certain amount of carbohydrates is found in milk.

Vitamins are necessary for the proper growth and development of the body, for the normal functioning of the gastrointestinal tract, neuromuscular apparatus, vision, etc. The most important for the body is vitamin C, vitamins of group B, vitamins A, D, E.

In addition, the composition of food should include minerals (calcium, magnesium, phosphorus) necessary for the skeletal system, as well as cardiac and skeletal muscles. The need for them is fully covered if the food consists of a variety of products of animal and vegetable origin.

In the human body, processes of oxidation (combination with oxygen) of physical food substances (proteins, fats, carbohydrates) are continuously occurring, accompanied by the formation and release of heat. This heat is necessary for all life processes, it is spent on heating the released air, on maintaining body temperature, thermal energy ensures the activity of the muscular system. The more muscle movements a person makes, the more he consumes oxygen, and, consequently, the more he produces costs, but more food is needed to cover them.

The need for a certain amount of food is usually expressed in thermal units - calories. The minimum amount of food that is necessary to maintain the human body in a normal state is determined by its needs at rest. These are human physiological needs.

The World Health Organization has established that the physiological needs of a person for energy are about 1600 kcal per day. The real energy needs are much higher, depending on the intensity of labor, they exceed the indicated norm by 1.4-2.5 times.

Starvation is a state of the body in the complete absence or insufficiency of the intake of nutrients.

Distinguish between absolute, complete and incomplete starvation.

Absolute starvation is characterized by a complete lack of intake of nutrients - food and water.

Complete fasting is starvation when a person is deprived of all food, but is not limited in water consumption.

Partial starvation occurs when, with sufficient quantitative nutrition, a person does not receive some nutrients with food - vitamins, proteins, fats, carbohydrates, etc.

With complete starvation, the body is forced to switch to internal self-sufficiency, consuming fat reserves, muscle protein, etc. It is estimated that a person of average weight has energy reserves of approximately 160 thousand kcal, 40-45% of which he can spend on internal self-sufficiency without a direct threat to his existence. This is 65-70 thousand kcal. Thus, spending 1600 kcal per day, a person is able to live in conditions of complete immobility and lack of food for about 40 days, and taking into account the implementation of motor functions - about 30 days. Although there are cases when people did not eat for 40.50 and even 60 days and survived.

In the initial period of fasting, which usually lasts 2-4 days, there is a strong feeling of hunger, a person constantly thinks about food. Appetite rises sharply, sometimes there is a burning sensation, pain in the pancreas, nausea. Dizziness, headaches, stomach cramps are possible. When drinking water, salivation increases. In the first four days, a person's weight decreases by an average of one kilogram daily, and in areas with a hot climate - up to 1.5 kg. Then the daily losses decrease.

In the future, the feeling of hunger weakens. Appetite disappears, sometimes a person even experiences some cheerfulness. The tongue is often covered with a whitish coating, and the smell of acetone can be felt in the mouth. Salivation does not increase, even at the sight of food. There is poor sleep, prolonged headaches, irritability increases. A person falls into apathy, lethargy, drowsiness, weakens.

Hunger undermines the strength of a person from the inside and reduces the body's resistance to external factors. A hungry person freezes several times faster than a full one. He gets sick more often and endures the course of the disease more difficult. His mental activity weakens, his working capacity drops sharply.

Water. The lack of water leads to a decrease in body weight, a significant loss of strength, thickening of the blood and, as a result, an overstrain of the heart, which expends additional effort to push the thickened blood through the vessels. At the same time, the concentration of salts in the blood rises, which serves as a formidable signal that dehydration has begun. Dehydration of the body by 15% or more can lead to irreversible consequences, to death. If a person deprived of food can lose almost the entire supply of tissue, almost 50% of proteins, and only after that approach the dangerous line, then the loss of 15% of the fluid is fatal. Starvation can last several weeks, and a person deprived of water dies in a matter of days, and in a hot climate - even hours.

The need of the human body for water in favorable climatic conditions does not exceed 2.5-3 liters per day.

It is important to distinguish true water hunger from the apparent one. Very often, the feeling of thirst arises not due to an objective lack of water, but due to improperly organized water consumption. Therefore, it is not recommended to drink a lot of water in one gulp - this will not quench your thirst, but can lead to swelling, weakness. Sometimes it is enough to rinse your mouth with cold water.

With intense sweating, leading to leaching of salts from the body, it is advisable to drink slightly salted water - 0.5-1.0 g of salt per 1 liter of water.

Cold. According to statistics, from 10 to 15% of people who died in various extreme conditions became victims of hypothermia.

The wind plays a decisive role in human survival in low temperatures. At an actual air temperature of 3 0 С and a wind speed of 10 m/s, the total cooling caused by the combined effect of the actual air temperature and the wind is equivalent to the effect of a temperature of –20 0 С. And a wind of 18 m/s turns a frost of 45 0 С into a frost of 90 0 C in the absence of wind.

In areas devoid of natural shelters (forest, relief folds), low temperatures combined with strong winds can shorten human survival to several hours.

Long-term survival at sub-zero temperatures also depends largely on the condition of clothes and shoes, the quality of the built shelter, fuel and food supplies, and the moral and physical condition of a person.

Clothing is capable of protecting a person from the cold in extreme conditions only for a short time, yet sufficient for the construction of a shelter (even a snow one). The heat-shielding properties of clothing depend primarily on the type of fabric. Finely porous fabric retains heat best of all - the more microscopic air bubbles are enclosed between the fibers of the fabric, the closer they are to each other, the less such a fabric transmits heat from the inside and cold from the outside. There are a lot of air pores in woolen fabrics - the total volume of pores in them reaches 92%; and in smooth, linen - about 50%.

By the way, the heat-shielding properties of fur clothing are explained by the same effect of air pores. Each villus of fur is a small hollow cylinder with an air bubble "sealed" inside it. Hundreds of thousands of such elastic microcones make up a fur coat.

Recently, clothing made from synthetic materials and fillers such as synthetic winterizer, nitron, etc. has found wide application. Here, air capsules are enclosed in the thinnest shell of artificial fibers. Synthetic clothing is slightly inferior to fur in terms of warmth, but it is very light, does not impede movement, and is almost not felt on the body. It is not blown by the wind, snow does not stick to it, it gets wet a little.

The most optimal clothing option is multi-layered clothing from different fabrics - best of all from 4-5 layers.

Shoes play a very important role in winter emergencies, because 90% of all frostbite occurs on the lower extremities.

By all available means, we must strive to keep shoes, socks, footcloths dry. To do this, you can make shoe covers from improvised material, wrap your legs with a piece of loose fabric, etc.

Refuge. Clothing, no matter how warm it is, can protect a person from the cold only for hours, rarely for days. No clothing can protect a person from death if a warm shelter is not built in time.

Cloth tents, shelters from the wreckage of vehicles, wood, metal in the absence of a stove will not save you from the cold. After all, when building shelters from traditional materials, it is almost impossible to achieve hermetic sealing of seams and joints. The shelters are blown through by the wind. Warm air escapes through numerous cracks, therefore, in the absence of stoves, stoves and other highly efficient heating devices, the air temperature inside the shelter is almost always equal to the outside.

An excellent shelter in winter can be built from snow, and very quickly - in 1.5-2 hours. In a properly built snow shelter, the air temperature rises to minus 5-10 0 C only due to the heat emitted by a person at 30-40 degree frost outside. With the help of a candle, the temperature in the shelter can be raised from 0 to 4-5 0 C and above. Many polar explorers, having installed a couple of stoves inside, heated the air up to +30 0 С!

The main advantage of snow shelters is the ease of construction - they can be built by anyone who has never held a tool in his hands.

5.2. Major Human Factors Contributing to Survival

Will to live. With a short-term external threat, a person acts on a subconscious level, obeying the instinct of self-preservation. In extreme conditions, with long-term survival, the instinct of self-preservation is gradually lost, sooner or later a critical moment comes when exorbitant physical and mental stress, the seeming senselessness of further resistance suppress the will. A person is seized by passivity, indifference, he is no longer afraid of the possible tragic consequences of ill-conceived overnight stays, risky crossings. He does not believe in the possibility of salvation and therefore perishes without exhausting his reserves of strength to the end, without using food supplies. 90% of people who find themselves on life-saving equipment after a shipwreck die within three days from moral factors. More than once, rescuers removed dead people from boats or rafts found in the ocean in the presence of food and flasks of water.

Survival, based only on the biological laws of self-survival, is short-lived. It is characterized by rapidly developing mental disorders and hysterical reactions - a psychogenic damaging factor acts. The desire to survive must be conscious and purposeful. This is the will to live, when the desire to survive should be dictated not by instinct, but by conscious necessity. The will to live implies first of all actions. Inaction is inaction. One cannot passively expect help from the outside, one must take actions to protect oneself from adverse factors, to help others.

General physical training, hardening. The usefulness of general physical training for a person who finds himself in an extreme situation does not need to be proved. In an extreme situation, strength, and endurance, and hardenedness are needed. These physical properties cannot be acquired under conditions of extreme training. This takes months. Servicemen-rescuers acquire them during physical exercises, tactical and special training, as well as during individual lessons in certain sports in their free time.

Knowledge of self-rescue techniques. The basis of long-term survival is solid knowledge in the most knowledge - recipes for cooking dishes from caterpillars and tree bark.

A box of matches will not save a person from freezing if he does not know how to properly build a fire in winter or in the rain. Incorrectly provided first aid only aggravates the condition of the victim. It is tempting to have comprehensive knowledge of self-rescue in any climatic zone of the country, in any extreme situations. But this is associated with the assimilation of a large amount of information. Therefore, in practice, it is enough to confine ourselves to studying a specific climatic zone and possible extreme situations in it. However, it is important to study in advance those self-rescue techniques that are suitable for any climatic zone, typical extreme situations: orienteering, determining the time, making fire in primitive ways, organizing a camp, preserving food, "extracting" water, first aid, overcoming water obstacles etc. We must remember the motto: "To know is to be able, to be able is to survive!".

Survival skills. Knowledge of survival techniques must be supported by survival skills. Survival skills are acquired by practice. Having, for example, a weapon, but not possessing the skills of hunting, one can die of hunger with an abundance of game. When mastering the skills of survival, one should not "scatter around", trying to immediately master the entire amount of information on a particular issue of interest. It is better to be able to do less, but better. It is not necessary to practically master the construction of all types of snow shelters (there are about 20 of them), it is enough to be able to build three or four shelters of various designs.

Proper organization of rescue operations. The survival of a group that finds itself in an extreme situation largely depends on the organization of rescue operations. It is unacceptable that each member of the group does only what he considers necessary for himself at a given time. Collective survival allows you to save the life of each member of the group, individual - leads to the death of everyone.

The work within the camp should be distributed by the head of the group in accordance with the strengths and capabilities of each. Physically strong, especially men, should be entrusted with the most labor-intensive work - arranging firewood, building shelters, etc. Weakened, women and children should be given work that is time-consuming, but does not require much physical effort - maintaining a fire, drying and repairing clothes, collecting food, etc. At the same time, the importance of each work, regardless of the labor costs invested in it, should be emphasized.

All work should, as far as possible, be carried out at a calm pace with an even expenditure of energy. Sudden overloads followed by a long rest, irregular work lead to a rapid exhaustion of forces, to the irrational expenditure of the body's energy reserves.

With the proper organization of work, the expenditure of forces of each member of the group will be approximately the same, which is extremely important with a ration, that is, an equal diet for everyone.

5.3. Survival in the natural environment

5.3.1. Fundamentals and tactics of survival in the natural environment

The basics of survival in the natural environment are solid knowledge in a wide variety of areas, from the basics of astronomy and medicine, to recipes for cooking from non-traditional "foods" that may be in the place of survival - tree bark, plant roots, frogs, insects, etc. d. It is necessary to be able to navigate without a compass, give distress signals, be able to build a shelter from bad weather, light a fire, provide yourself with water, protect yourself from wild animals and insects, etc.

Of great importance is the choice of tactics for survival in the natural environment.

In conditions of survival, three types of human behavior are possible, three tactics of survival - passive survival, active survival, a combination of passive and active survival.

passive survival tactics- this is the expectation of the help of rescuers at the scene of the accident or in its immediate vicinity, the construction of housing facilities, the equipment of landing sites, the extraction of food, etc.

The tactics of passive waiting justifies itself in cases of accidents, forced landings of vehicles, the disappearance of which involves the organization of rescue operations to locate and rescue the victims. It is applied in situations where there is absolute certainty that the missing will be searched for and when it is known for certain that the rescue units know the approximate area of the location of the victims.

Passive survival tactics are also chosen when among the victims there is a non-transportable patient or several seriously ill patients; when the group of victims is dominated by women, children and unprepared for action, poorly equipped people; under especially difficult climatic conditions, excluding the possibility of active movement.

Active Survival Tactics- this is an independent exit of accident victims or rescuers to the nearest settlement, to people. It can be used in cases where the hope of an ambulance is excluded; when it is possible to establish your location and there is confidence in reaching the nearest settlements. Active survival is also used in cases where there is a need to urgently leave the original place due to severe weather and other factors and start looking for an area convenient for passive survival. Active survival is also used in the event of evacuation of victims from the disaster area.

In some cases, combined, that is, including an active and passive form of survival tactics, is possible. In this case, a long-term camp (bivouac) is organized by the joint efforts of the victims, after which a route group is created from among the most prepared. The purpose of the route group is to reach the nearest settlement as soon as possible and, with the help of local search and rescue services, organize the evacuation of the rest of the group.

5.3.2. Location orientation. Orientation by sun and stars

A. Determining the sides of the horizon during the day

If you do not have a compass, you can determine the approximate direction of the north from the sun (and knowing where the north is - all the other sides of the horizon). Below is a method by which you can, at any time when the sun is shining brightly enough, determine the sides of the horizon from the shadow of the pole (Fig. 5.1).

Find a straight pole one meter long and do the following:

1. Drive the pole into the ground on a flat area free from vegetation, on which the shadow is clearly visible. The pole does not have to be vertical. Tilting it to get the best shadow (in size and direction) does not affect the accuracy of this method.

2. Mark the end of the shadow with a small peg, stick, stone, branch, your own finger, a hole in the snow, or any other means. Wait until the end of the shadow has moved a few centimeters. With a pole length of one meter, you need to wait 10-15 minutes.

3. Mark the end of the shadow again.

4. Draw a straight line from the first mark to the second mark and extend it approximately 30 cm beyond the second mark.

5. Stand so that the toe of the left foot is at the first mark, and the toe of the right foot is at the end of the drawn line.

6. You are now facing north. Define the other sides of the horizon. To mark directions on the ground (for orienting others), draw a line crossing the first in the form of a cross (+), and mark the sides of the horizon. The basic rule when determining the sides of the horizon. If you are not yet sure whether to put your left foot or right foot on the first mark (see paragraph 5), remember the basic rule that distinguishes east from west.

The sun always rises on the east and sets on the west (but rarely exactly east and exactly west). The shadow moves in the opposite direction. Therefore, in any place on the globe, the first mark of the shadow will always be in the western direction, and the second - in the East.

For an approximate determination of the north, you can use an ordinary clock (Fig. 5.2).

In the northern temperate zone, clocks are set so that the hour hand points to the sun. The north-south line lies between the hour hand and the number 12. This refers to standard time. If the hour hand is set one hour ahead, then the north-south line passes between the hour hand and the number 1. In summer, when the clock hands are moved another hour forward, the number 2 should be taken into account instead of the number 1. If you are in doubt which side line is north, remember that the sun in the Northern Hemisphere is in the eastern part of the sky before noon, and in the western part of the afternoon. The clock can also be used to determine the sides of the horizon in the southern temperate zone, but in a slightly different way than in the northern zone. Here the number 12 should be directed to the sun, and then the line N-S will pass in the middle between the number 12 and the hour hand. When moving the hour hand one hour ahead, the N-S line lies between the hour hand and the number 1 or 2. In both hemispheres, the temperate zones are between 23 and 66 ° north or south latitude. In cloudy weather, put a stick to the center of the clock and hold it so that the shadow from it falls clockwise. In the middle between the shadow and the number 12, the direction to the north will pass.

Rice. 5.1. Determination of the direction to the north by the shadow of the pole.

Rice. 5.2. Determination of the direction to the north with the help of a clock.

You can also navigate by the constellation Cassiopeia. This constellation of five bright stars is shaped like a tilted M (or W when low). The North Star is right in the center, almost in a straight line from the central star of this constellation, about the same distance from it. as well as from the Big Dipper. Cassiopeia also rotates slowly around the North Star and is always almost opposite the Big Dipper. This position of this constellation is of great help for orientation in the case when Ursa Major is low and may not be visible due to vegetation or high local objects.

In the Southern Hemisphere, you can determine the direction to the south and from here all other directions can be determined by the constellation of the Southern Cross. This group of four bright stars is shaped like a cross tilted to one side. The two stars that form the long axis or rod of the cross are called "pointers". From the base of the cross, mentally extend a distance five times the length of the cross itself and find an imaginary point; it will serve as the direction to the south (Fig. 5.4.). From this point look straight at the horizon and choose a landmark.

Plants can also help in determining the cardinal points. Tree bark, individual stones, rocks, walls of old wooden buildings are usually thicker covered with moss and lichen on the north side (Fig. 5.5). The bark of trees on the north side is rougher and darker than on the south side. In wet weather, a wet dark stripe forms on the trees (this is especially noticeable in pines). On the northern side of the trunk, it persists longer and rises higher. In birches on the south side of the trunk, the bark is usually lighter and more elastic. In pine, the secondary (brown, cracked) bark on the north side rises higher along the trunk.

In spring, the grass cover is more developed and dense on the northern outskirts of the glades warmed by the sun, in the hot period of summer, on the contrary, on the southern, shaded ones. The anthill has a flatter side facing south.

In spring, on the southern slopes, the snow seems to “bristle”, forming southward ledges (thorns), separated by depressions. The border of the forest along the southern slopes rises higher than along the northern ones.

Rice. 5.5. Determination of the direction to the north by the anthill, annual rings and moss on the stones.

The most accurate are astronomical methods for determining the cardinal points. Therefore, they should be used in the first place. Use all others only as a last resort - in conditions of poor visibility, inclement weather.

5.3.3. Definition of time

The method of determining the north direction by shadow (Fig. 5.6) can be used to determine the approximate time of day. This is done in the following way:

1. Move the pole to the point where the east-west and north-south lines intersect and place it vertically on the ground. In any place of the globe, the western part of the line corresponds to 6.00 hours, and the eastern part -18.00.

2. Now the N-S line becomes the noon line. The shadow of the pole is like the hour hand on a sundial, and with its help you can tell the time. Depending on your location and time of year, the shadow can move either clockwise or counterclockwise, but this does not interfere with the determination of time.

3. A sundial is not a clock in the usual sense. The duration of the "hour" varies throughout the year, but it is generally accepted that 6.00 always corresponds to sunrise, and 18.00 to sunset. However, a sundial is quite suitable for determining the time in the absence of a real clock or for setting the clock correctly.

Determining the time of day is very important for scheduling a meeting, conducting a planned concerted action by individuals or groups, determining the remaining length of the day before dark, and so on. 12:00 solar time will always actually be noon, however, other hour hand readings compared to normal time vary slightly depending on location and date.

4. The method of determining the sides of the horizon from the clock can give erroneous readings, especially at low latitudes, which can lead to "circling". To avoid this, set your watch to the sun, and then determine the sides of the horizon from it. This method eliminates 10- the minute wait required to determine the sides of the horizon from the movement of the shadow, and in this time you can get as many readings as needed to avoid "circling".

Rice. 5.6. Determining the time of day from the shadow.

Determining the sides of the horizon in this modified way will correspond to determining the north direction from the shadow of the pole. The degree of accuracy of both methods is the same.