Eight: Communications

 

In the event of a doomsday event occurring our modern communication devices will more than likely become next to useless.

In truth, it depends on the event that is occurring as to what is going to get knocked out. If the doomsday event is a health pandemic, then actually the radio and television networks will still be broadcasting and cell phones are likely to still work. A massive solar flare, however will wipe all of those out.

Cell phones are likely to be the first thing that disappears. If doomsday is caused by solar influences the satellite system will be destroyed instantaneously anyway. If social unrest starts to occur then governments are likely to switch them off even if the satellite system is unaffected. The recent riots in London and the rest of England were found to have been planned on smart phones. Any government in such a position will be forced to switch cell phone signals off. Assume that you won’t have a cell phone.

The same is true for the internet; you are going to have to assume that you don’t have it. For many young people this is going to be one of the biggest adjustments that they are going to have to get used to. The internet works through our phone system, if the phone system is down, the internet will be as well.

You need to be kept informed of the changing situation as much as possible when you are in your location. Therefore, you need to equip your location with a television (hoping that the power is still on) and a radio. You can either get a battery powered radio or a wind up one. Radio is likely to survive for longer than television so having two radios could be a good idea. You will need to monitor a range of wavelengths and frequencies especially as the situation deteriorates and radio stations go off the air.

For communications between ourselves then we need an alternative method. A CB radio system, such as those that were popular in the 1970s, would seem to be an obvious choice. You can search the different channels and see if other people are broadcasting and then converse with them to build up a picture of events outside of your location. CB radio systems are still easy to purchase with many specialist stores on line. Like everything you should research what you are buying and how you go about using it. It stands to reason that the more you pay the better your system will be.

In the Hollywood film Independence Day various pockets of the human race communicated with each other via Morse code to coordinate a strike on the alien invaders. This is probably not a viable method for us as individuals, you aren’t likely to have the equipment, but it is something to be aware of. A copy of Morse code should be in your location just in case a message is received by you in this format.

Both televisions and radios are used for monitoring events as they unfold, you can’t interact with people on them. CRB radio is a completely different matter; you will be able to speak to the person on the other end. You need to consider carefully what you tell the person you are speaking to. For example, it wouldn’t be wise to disclose your location to the person on the other end of the line. Indeed this is the golden rule of post doomsday communication. Remember everyone is looking after themselves and the person you are talking to might simply be in search of additional resources. Simply put, don’t trust anyone, no matter what they say. It might be very exciting to get human contact after a few months of nothing, but you have to curb your excitement and remember to keep calm and stick to the golden rule.