In 2019 there were 25,000 terrorism related fatalities in the world.
Sooner or later, you may become one of those fatalities.
Unless you learn how to survive a terrorist attack.
Know Before You Go
The best way to survive a terrorist attack is a lot like surviving a gunshot wound- you
don't get shot in the first place.
Terrorism may still be a hot buzzword in the US, but the fact is the United States is one
of the safest nations in the world when it comes to terrorism.
That's not to say the US hasn't suffered- when it's been hit, it's been hit big- but
there's no need to fear a terrorist hiding around every corner.
In fact, you're far more likely to end up in the middle of a terrorist attack if you
live in Europe, where multiple ongoing religious and ethnic conflicts continue to this day.
Plus, it's a lot easier and cheaper for the type of terrorists Americans are afraid of
to simply attack Europe instead.
However, the nations with the highest number of terrorist attacks in 2019 were Afghanistan,
Syria, and India- figures for the last two years haven't yet been completely veted.
Afghanistan and Syria are perhaps not surprises, they are after all largely active and on-going
war zones.
But you may be surprised to learn that India faces a very wide range of terror groups,
from Islamic jihadists, to separatists and revolutionaries trying to topple the government
altogether.
To make matters worse, next-door neighbor Pakistan is well known to have aided terrorists
in India through the use of its intelligence agencies.
A good way to survive a terrorist attack is to control where you travel to.
The US State Department has a list updated daily of nations it doesn't recommend travel
to, and the reasons why.
If you have any questions, simply phone a friendly State Department official for clarification-
for example, which areas of India should you specifically avoid?
Don't Be Conspicuous
You're at your greatest threat of being involved in a terrorist attack if you're traveling
overseas.
In that case, you may inadvertently be caught up in the midst of a planned attack.
Or, you could be the specific target of a terrorist attack.
The world is overwhelmingly a friendly place, but Westerners are at increased risks when
traveling to certain areas of the world.
You can largely thank colonialism and interventionism for that fact, but either way it would probably
be best to avoid being very conspicuous.
Don't draw unnecessary attention to yourself when out in public, and by all means avoid
deliberately making yourself a target by the clothing you're wearing.
This one's looking at you, our fellow Americans- the American flag may be a popular fashion
symbol here in the US, but best skip on the free advertising when traveling the more shady
areas of the world.
Many terrorist groups hate America for ideological and political grounds, and any opportunity
to strike is golden- specially if it happens to be in your backyard wrapped in an old glory
wife beater.
Try to blend in with the locals where you travel, and always travel in a group.
Avoid ever being left alone in a situation, and if worse comes to worse, tell people you're
Canadian.
We're not kidding, this is very common advice in the counterterrorism world.
About the worst thing most terrorists are mad at Canada about is being America's tophat.
Know When To Cooperate, Know When To Fight
A terrorist attack could be of a variety of different natures, but one attack you might
experience is an attempted kidnapping.
Terrorists commonly carry out kidnapping attacks for one of two reasons- ransom and seizing
high propaganda value individuals for ceremonial execution.
Throughout much of the sixties through the eighties, Americans were quite a prize for
South American terrorist groups, but today even terrorists who may not be ideological
or political enemies of the US may snatch an American for one reason- Americans are
typically a good ransom, or of great value in attracting international attention.
Nothing grabs international headlines quite like “Two Americans Taken Hostage In...”,
and that media attention can be of great benefit to a terrorist group looking to draw attention
to its causef.
In this case, cooperation with your abductors is the best way to survive a terrorist attack.
The United States government will not pay a ransom for a kidnapped citizen so that it
won't encourage further terror attacks.
However, many private groups and even some companies will happily pay out a ransom and
terrorists know this.
You may also simply be an object of attention for a group looking to cash in big on some
international recognition- either way, you are worth something alive, and cooperation
with the angry men holding guns is the best way you stay alive.
However, some terrorist groups such as ISIS and Al Qaeda routinely take victims for their
propaganda value, and it never ends pretty.
Throughout the 2000s until two or three years ago, ISIS and Al Qaeda popularized the production
of ceremonial executions of western citizens.
These videos have an extraordinary value in recruiting new members, as well as legitimizing
a movement or ideology.
In this case, your best bet would be to resist as much as possible, as otherwise the ending
will be quite grim for you.
If you're going to get your ticket punched anyways, might as well risk having it punched
in an escape attempt.
Be Aware
If however you are a victim of a more kinetic attack, it can help to first be aware of when
exactly you might be a victim of said attack.
Terrorists pursuing more kinetic forms of terrorism will look for targets with the greatest
propaganda value- which means either most victims or most economic damage inflicted.
These targets can include things such as crowded markets, government buildings, concerts, rallies,
and high-value corporate interests.
By being aware of where you are and where you'll be throughout your day, you can dramatically
lessen the chance of even being in a terrorist attack.
If overseas, try and learn the local schedule and hit up markets and other normally crowded
areas in non-peak hours.
The smaller the crowd the less a chance a terrorists is going to think it's a valuable
target- terrorism is after all a high risk operation, and one you only undertake once
in many cases- better to strike when you're going to get the most bang for your buck.
Being near or inside government buildings is also something to actively avoid- especially
if said buildings are embassies to nations with well- known terrorist enemies.
Try and limit your time spent around these and buildings that house high-value corporate
interests.
Anything from new processing plants to corporate or even regional headquarters represent a
high financial and human loss to a company or a nation in the eyes of a terrorist, and
can be a tempting target.
If forced to be in a crowded area, try and always keep an eye towards the nearest exit,
and an additional backup exit just in case.
Knowing where to go and how far to get there can give you a huge leg up in the immediate
aftermath of a kinetic incident.
Situational awareness could also help you predict from where an attack may take place.
In a crowded area for instance, an attacker would seek to maximize casualties, and thus
move to the center of a crowd in case of an explosive attack, or to shut off avenues of
exit thus forcing panicking individuals into narrower funnels in case of a gunman attack.
Being aware also means being aware of the individuals around you.
Is someone wearing a heavy jacket even though it's very hot outside?
That could mean the individual is attempting to hide something- such as explosives or guns.
Look for irregularities in the patterns of a crowd, and like a good comedian learn to
read a room.
Get To Safety
In the event of an attack, your first priority should be to get to immediate safety.
Before you try to treat any wounds or look for missing group members, you should first
get to a place safe from an ongoing attack or secondary threats.
An explosive attack after all could still set off secondary dangers that are still deadly-
building collapse or secondary fires could both pose a risk of death.
It does you no good to escape the primary attack only to be caught in the secondary
effect.
In case of an attack, it's very likely you'll have to apply first aid either to yourself
or a companion.
Getting to safety first should trump even treating an obviously mortal wound- otherwise
the end is likely the same.
Only once safety has been guaranteed should the focus be on carrying out first aid.
Know First Aid
It's likely you won't survive a kinetic terrorist attack if you don't know even basic first
aid.
Puncture wounds should be treated immediately, with firm pressure to stop blood loss.
The pressure should be constant, and bandages should never be re-applied- re-applying a
bandage to a puncture wound will often mean ripping away blood clotting, and re-opening
the wound to flow again.
If a bandage becomes soaked or doesn't seem to be very absorbent, simply add additional
bandaging over the old.
If an object is embedded in you, you should not remove it unless it is somehow impeding
you from immediately getting to safety.
As long as the object remains impaled in you it's also sealing the wound- pulling it out
now would only leave you with a massive hole in your body leaking a lot of blood.
Simply apply bandaging around the site where the object is impaling you, and take great
care to make sure the object remains immobilized so it doesn't cause even greater damage.
A sucking chest wound can occur from penetration of the chest cavity and the collapse of one
or both lungs, and is often characterized by pink or reddish frothing of blood.
It's important to attempt to form an airtight seal over the wound, a credit card can be
an excellent tool in helping create said seal.
Then apply continuous pressure to the wound after wrapping with a bandage.
If a credit card isn't available, plastic of any kind such as from bags or even tape
can make for a good seal- and ideally you'd be using the cleanest plastic you can find.
Don't forget to check for an exit wound, and seal that one as well, then ensure no air
enters the wound while you minimize bleeding.
Then you want to lay the victim on their side, as they attempt to exhale as much excess air
as possible.
If this makes it more difficult for them to breathe however, don't move them.
If you must treat burns, make sure to immediately remove any restrictive items such as jewelry
or belts, as burn areas can swell quickly.
Contrary to instinct, you want to actually avoid simply pouring water over a burn area-
if large enough it can lead to hypothermia.
It can also contaminate a burn area and pose future infection risk.
Simply cover in a clean, damp bandage, avoiding using pressure unless there is serious accompanying
bleeding in same area.
As with most wounds, you'll want to elevate the wounded area so that it's above the heart.
This will make it more difficult to pump blood to the affected area, lessening the bleeding
at the wound site.
More severe injuries can be outright amputations or extremely severe bleeding, and require
more immediate and aggressive attention.
If bleeding can't be slowed or stopped, or if a limb is partly or fully amputated, you'll
want to immediately apply a tourniquet.
You can make a simple and effective tourniquet with a belt, or if you have access to rope
or thick string, you can also make one with the help of a stick.
Simply wrap the rope or string around the stick after wrapping the victim's limb, and
then twist the stick to tighten.
The aim of a tourniquet is to apply mechanical pressure and stop the bleeding, and can be
very effective in the case of severe bleeds that can't be stopped or slowed through pressure.
However you make your tourniquet, the goal is to wrap it around the affected limb and
then apply as much pressure as you can to cinch off the bleeding.
You should never re-apply a tourniquet, and if another is needed or the first doesn't
seem very effective, simply apply a second one over the first.
Loosening and reapplying a tourniquet will open the wound up to immediate re-bleeding.
Tourniquets should however be a last-ditch effort- the proper application of a tourniquet
could very likely mean the loss of the affected limb.
Getting yourself some immediate first aid can very well mean the difference between
life and death.
Now go check out How to actually survive getting shot, or click this other video instead.