Home Security for WTSHTF – Part 3, by T.Z.
(Continued From Part 2. This concludes the article.)
Areas Two and One
Area Two consists of the inside of your home. Area One should be the most defendable room in your home. This is the same regardless in a rural, suburban, or urban environment. These areas are discussed together in this section because they are so closely linked in the home defense. The key to Areas Two and One is overwhelming force.
While the windows should have been barricaded from the outside before attackers ever appeared, the doors should be barricaded from the inside. Just locking the doors will not stop someone from kicking them in. Deadbolts should be at least one full inch thick. Longer, more sturdy deadbolts are readily available at Home Depot, Lowe’s, and other stores. Furthermore, the lock and deadbolt have to fit the frame of the door to be most effective. Many are not, and a one-size-fits-all approach is dangerous. Assessing, and replacing, the locks if necessary is a very important part of home defense.
In a TEOTWAWKI situation, I also recommend a barricade that will help prevent attackers access from the outside. There are many permanent barricades available on Amazon. They are easy to install and much less expensive than one might expect. For inner doors, there are portable barricades that you can use to buy you time. If all else fails, just placing furniture in the way of the door can work. Remember that no obstacle is impenetrable, it exists only to buy you time.
Such time is important, as it will allow you to position your defenders to secure your home. Those that are not actively part of the defense, such as young children, elderly members of your group, and pregnant women, should be hidden in Area One. This should be a room with as few windows as possible, and preferably only one entrance. A room in the basement or an attic both work very well. If you have body armor, prioritize giving them the body armor or helmets to keep them safe. Hide them and make sure they do not scream, otherwise they would be easily discovered.
Once the door is barricaded and the vulnerable members of your group are hidden in Area One, all members of your defense must be oriented towards the points of entry. Giving each defender a sector to be focused on helps him or her stay focused on that specific point of entry. Each door and window should be prioritized by risk. The most high-risk point of entry, usually the front door, should have the most emphasis in the defense. The second highest risk, either a back door or a first floor window, should have the second most emphasis. This continues until each and every point of entry is prioritized and planned for. Prioritize the first floor, as they are the most likely points of entry for attackers. The second floor, if present, should be left open to allow defenders to fire on attackers as they cross Area Three.
The more able-bodied members in your group, the more defenders you have available. A small family with young children, therefore, will find it much more difficult to defend a home than a large group. The less defenders you have, the larger their sectors need to be. For a young couple with two kids, I would recommend having one parent hide the kids in Area One and keep them from crying or screaming, while the other parent secures the most high-risk points of entry. It is possible, in most homes, to find a position that allows one or two people to adequately secure most or all of the points of entry.
The points of entry are funneling points. You know where they are coming through, but they do not know where you are inside the home. It is essentially a chokepoint in which all the attackers will be close together. The moment attackers enter, open fire on them. This is why we call it the ‘fatal funnel.’ Overwhelming force is key here, and the split second it takes for them to enter should be their last. If they do get inside the home, it is significantly more difficult to get them out. You need to stop them before they enter.
Each defender should have a fighting position he or she will stay in. While this sounds like a large investment of time or energy, it does not have to be. Just behind a countertop is a great fighting position for home defense. These positions should be behind cover and at least six inches away from any walls. This is because bullet fragments travel parallel to walls. The defenders should be able to maneuver effectively so they can cover the points of entry with ease while still being protected.
If attackers do get inside your home, you will need to retrograde to another fighting position. Each defender should hold their ground and retrograde only when the attackers have gained a foothold in the room he or she is defending. Usually this is the case when two or more attackers have entered the room.
Retrograding to another fighting position will require lots of planning and practice. Each position must avoid crossing another defender’s sector in order to prevent friendly fire. Everyone should practice the retrograde plan incessantly so that each defender knows exactly where everyone else is. This is also done to prevent friendly fire.
The last retrograde position should be in Area One. Once one defender retrogrades to Area One, everyone has to retrograde with him. The entrance to Area One should then be barricaded, and every available weapon should be aimed at that entrance. This is your last ditch effort to protect yourself and your group before getting overrun.
Training
Firearms are the optimal weapon for home defense. However, there are important considerations to take when using a firearm for home defense. Firstly, bullets can go through walls, doors, and other commonly used barriers. As the person behind the trigger, you are responsible for knowing what is in front of, to the side of, and especially what is behind your target. If you miss, your bullet can go through a wall and kill one of your neighbors or family members. This is especially important in an apartment, where the walls are particularly thin. Make sure you train with trigger discipline, ensuring that defenders understand that they have to have positive identification of an enemy before engaging and that they have a clear shot before pulling the trigger. Nerf guns or airsoft guns are really fun ways to bond as a family as well as engage in good training. Now is the time to train together and flush out any mistakes, so if the time comes where you do need to defend your home in TEOTWAWKI, you family and group are prepared.
Edged weapons are very effective in home defense, especially in Areas Two and One. Make sure that you have enough room to slice and stab properly in your home, otherwise your weapon will become cumbersome and give the attackers an opportunity to go through you to other parts of your home. I recommend fixed blade knives that you can use equally well in large rooms or small entryways. Train with rubber knives often, utilizing them with striking and ground fighting to develop a well-rounded approach to hand-to-hand defense. Grappling is of special importance when fighting with knives, so enroll your family in Brazilian Ju Jitsu classes. Pepper spray is another great option, especially for younger members of the defense. Just make sure you clean the room thoroughly after using it!
Home defense requires initiative, and an active defense where sentries are posted 24/7 is best able to anticipate, and alert the rest of the group of, potential intruders. Effectively covering the four areas I have discussed to make a layered defense is the best way to secure a home. By training your group and family to work together to defend all four areas in the home defense, you can effectively defend your home in TEOTWAWKI. By preparing, you can protect your family when SHTF. By preparing, you can thwart attackers’ plans. By preparing, you will not fail.