Essential Fire Devices

A lot is written about fire in survival texts and I won't go into details about all the different ways of creating a fire, but rather the essential items you will want in your kit, and why.

Matches

Forget about matches. They are an outdated method for creating fire and are problematic. They take up a lot of space for relatively few "lights", and you may need to strike several matches to start a fire if the wind gets to them. They are prone to breakage. If standard matches get wet, they are useless. You can keep them in a waterproof baggy, with the striker, or you can buy or make waterproof matches, but as you will see, waterproof matches are not necessary.

The only benefit to matches is they come attached with a small amount of fuel (ie, the wood) but if you can't find a matchstick worth of fuel, you're not going to get a fire going anyway.

Standard Cigarette Lighters

For roughly the same volumetric space as a standard packet of matches, you can carry a lighter. Carry 5 what the hell.
I have only ever bought Bic lighters for as long as I remember and for good reason - they are safe and reliable. Every time you need a new lighter, buy 3 and stash 2 away.

A quote from their site:

Every BIC® lighter undergoes more than 50 separate, automatic quality checks during the manufacturing process. This includes testing of each and every finished BIC® lighter by lighting and extinguishing it to ensure the lighter performs properly before it ever leaves BIC’s factory.
[source]

They boast around 2000 "lights" each* - far more than the 50 you will get from matches (unless you do that splitting the matchhead thing which is just stupid).

*unless you smoke bongs

And one of the biggest benefits of a cigarette lighter: they are WATERPROOF. Well, not entirely, if you get it wet it might not spark immediately, but it takes very little to get it dry enough to spark and sustain a flame - even if it has been fully submerged.

1. Remove the child proof strip. This is easily done by levering it out with a small screwdriver or the tip if a knife. I do this anyway because I hate them. Leaving these strips on will provide some protection against getting the flint wet in the first place however.
2. Put the lighter to your lips and suck air through the striker.
3. Strike the flint without pressing the gas if you can avoid it.

Repeat steps 2 and 3 until you get a spark, at which point you will get a flame which will dry the flint completely in short order.

The entire process will take less than 30 seconds to get a flame from a lighter that has been completely submerged.

Fire-Lighters

You don't need a fire-lighter every time you start a fire, but they are worth carrying for when materials are wet, or a little green, or you just need a little boost. I prefer to carry the fibrous kind, they are made from wood pulp and some sort of fuel. The ones I have are made from 45% wood fibre and 55% wax.

The reason I like the fibrous kind is that they are very easy to slice up into small sections. You do not need a whole fire-lighter every time you start a fire.

If materials are wet, circle them around the initially small fire and let them dry without smothering the delicate flame. Start with the smaller kindling on the outside surrounding the central fire, and the larger fuel surrounding that. Bring the outer material in as it dries and feed the fire, gradually building it up and providing more heat for the larger wet material surrounding it.

If it has been pouring with rain, fuel on the ground will be initially too wet to start a fire (while trying to conserve precious luxuries such as liquid or solid fuel). Don't look on the ground for your kindling, but rather look to the trees. Almost every tree or bush will have dead twigs attached. Snap these off as they will be far more dry than material that is laying on the ground, and much easier to get burning.

Larger sticks and logs on the ground that have been sitting in standing water will be wet on the outside, but will still be dry in the core unless they have been soaking in water for a long long time. Dry the surface of such materials next to your fire, with the smaller materials closer to the centre.

By following this logical process you will always be able to get a fire going in the wild no matter how long it has been raining.

Notes on Other Fire-Lighting Devices

Firesteel is a compact and convenient device. If you are skilled with it, you will get even more fires from it that from a cigarette lighter. While these tools don't last forever, they will last a LONG time, and are essentially waterproof and will produce a spark easily when wet. I definitely recommend stocking one or two of these in your kit.

Fire-Pistons are an ancient device for creating an ember with which to kindle a fire. If treated properly, a good fire piston will last a lifetime. While not completely waterproof, by design they are sealed tight when not in use, making it very hard for water to penetrate, even if totally submerged for long periods.

Zippo-style lighters are robust and will last a lifetime if properly cared for, providing you have spare flints and can find fuel for it. Substitute fuel includes:

• Alcohol: works well, but evaporates quickly
• Lantern fuel: hard to light, but will burn admirably when ignited
• Kerosine: works well.
• Camp stove lantern fuel: essentially the same as lighter fluid (naphthalene) 
• Nail polish remover: probably would work

You may be tempted to try diesel or petrol (gasoline). Don't. Diesel won't ignite from a spark, and petrol will puncture your face with exploding lighter parts. If you have petrol and a sparking lighter, soak something with a SMALL amount, and ignite that.

10 Natural Disasters Caught on Surveillance

      This article was kindly contributed by Raghad Rabah of 2MCCTV Surveillance     

Throughout history, natural disasters have been a perpetual a burden on us all. They have destroyed cities and taken the lives of many. Videos of the disasters are usually recorded at a safe distance from a video camera or helicopter. What you don’t see is what happens at the moment an earthquake or tornado hits. What would you do if there was an earthquake or tsunami in your area? Do you have a plan? We have put together a list of the 10 most astounding natural disasters caught on a surveillance camera. These videos are a reminder to us all of the merciless disasters that can occur and a reminder that we should be preparing for them before they are upon us.

St. Bernard Transmitter Hit by Hurricane Katrina August 29, 2005

This video shows minute-by-minute CCTV footage of hurricane Katrina approaching a transmission tower located in St. Bernard. You can see the high-speed winds across the screen and the water approaching. In real-time, the water only took about 7 minutes to reach 4 feet high.

Tornado in Parkersberg, Iowa May 2008

No security camera lasted more than 17 seconds when the tornado hits this bank. They were snatched from their positions and flung away from the walls. It is crazy how the tornado just picked up everything and tossed it aside.

Haiti Earthquake Footage January 12, 2010

Below is a video of security footage of the quake in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. This CCTV footage was from a security building, which was left intact. The rest of the city, though, was hit with a 7.0 magnitude, leaving many people homeless, and burying people in the rubble as well.

Pep Boys Store Getting Flooded in Nashville, TN May 2010

This is amazing footage of how things get destroyed during floods. The doors weren’t open at first, but the pressure from the water forced them to open and the water poured in, bringing in with it debris and signs from outside.

Security Cameras Capture Kentucky Flood May 2010

This video shows you what the property of one family was like before and after the flood in Kentucky. At 0:37, you can see that a river has come into place, where there was nothing before. Also, most of the land in the background is submerged with water.

Fire near Haifa, Israel December 3, 2010

In the first few seconds, you can see some fire in the bottom left corner of the screen. Then at about 1:16, you can see the smoke rise up, creating a large black cloud. At 1:30, the camera is turned and records the fire, and ten seconds later, a lot of areas are up in flames. This is an amazing video that shows how powerful Mother Nature is.

Turkey Earthquake October 23, 2011

In October of 2011, the city of Van was struck with a 7.1 magnitude earthquake. It seems like quite a frightening experience. At the beginning of the video, you can see a couple walking when the security camera and everything start to shake vigorously. What would you do in a situation like that? At 0:24, you can see people exiting the buildings onto the streets. Luckily, everyone in this video made it to safety. People in other areas weren’t that fortunate.

Volcano Erupts in Sakurajima, Japan July 24, 2012

Located in southwestern Japan, the Sakurajima volcano is one of the most active ones in Japan, and it erupted on July 24, 2012. The cloud of smoke reached 1000 kilometers into the air. At 0:08 seconds, you can see the lava and other debris drop like rain from the eruption. And at 0:13, it seems as though it creates a sonic boom, that’s how effective it was.

Tornado Tears House from Ground in Parkersburg, Iowa May 25, 2008

An EF-5 tornado ripped through Parkersburg on Sunday, May 25, 2008. This footage, captured from an ATM surveillance camera, and unlike other videos, you can see the tornado itself sweeping through and tearing the house apart. Very few materials can withstand an EF-5 tornado, so it comes at no surprise that this house did not withstand it.

Collection of Earthquake CCTV Footage

Am I seeing things, or is there a man in the first video? I could not imagine being in his place, I would be so scared! Everything is shaking intensely and falling to the floor. In the video from the hotel, people are waiting for the automatic doors to open. Shouldn’t they be able to push them open because it’s an emergency?