DOOMSDAY preppers fork out a fortune to stockpile foods that can survive the apocalypse, nuclear masks as well as hazmat suits for their kids.
The survivalists might be seen by some as paranoid conspiracy theorists with fears of the end of the world but they just might have a point.
Fears of World War 3 are growing with Vladimir Putin threatening nuclear destruction of the West over his invasion of Ukraine.
The Israel-Hamas war could easily spark a wider battle in the Middle-East and also a global conflict.
The Doomsday Clock, which measures how close the world is to a disaster, is currently at 90 seconds to midnight.
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The chair of Nato’s Military Committee Admiral Rob Bauer has warned people should make basic preparations for a possible “full-blown war”.
He said: “You need to have water in the house, a battery-powered radio and a battery-powered flashlight. So you can survive the first 36 hours.”
“It starts there, the realisation that not everything is plannable.”
The UK’s fragile food supply chain was exposed in the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic as shoppers stocked up on supplies, leaving supermarket shelves empty.
I read about the concept of prepping in magazines and thought it made a hell of a lot of sense. In the past couple of years, it’s just exploded.
Lincoln Miles
The preppers may actually have a very good point which needs to be heard.
This growing band of people have been preparing for the worst-case scenario for years.
Cupboards are crammed full with tinned food, cars are loaded with blankets and even emergency bags are filled with flares, just in case the worst should happen.
PREPPER STORES
In the UK, specialist shops have opened up, dealing leftover military stock are selling pallets of freeze-dried food, wind-up torches and radios, water purifiers and even full nuclear survival kits.
Preppers Shop UK, in Wadebridge, Cornwall, was founded a decade ago by Lincoln Miles who says business has been booming since the lockdowns.
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He told The Guardian: “I read about the concept of prepping in magazines and thought it made a hell of a lot of sense.
“In the past couple of years, it’s just exploded.
“There are some people in full hazmat suits talking about nuclear war and stuff, but there’s so many different levels to prepping; [people] have become worried about natural disasters.”
Miles says Covid was the big boost to his business as people now realise if disaster did strike “we are on our own”.
His store sells a kit containing a month’s supply of freeze-dried meals for £478.71.
While another site, UKPreppingShop, sells a one-person nuclear survival kit – complete with a gas mask – for £564.95.
There’s a lot of people in high positions saying we’re on the brink of World War 3
Tom Blakey
Anyone wanting to get their hands on a hazmat suit – which comes in both adult and children’s sizes, can get one for £95 from Sgt Preppers, based in the Pennines, along with guides on how to live “off grid".
Former soldier Tom Blakey, who served in Kosovo, Northern Ireland, Iraq and Afghanistan, told Metro: “There’s a lot of people in high positions saying we’re on the brink of World War 3.”
Tom, 52, served in an elite unit called the Pathfinders, which acts as the “eyes and ears” for the British Army’s 16 Air Assault Brigade, operating behind enemy lines to relay back vital information as soon as possible.
He warned that while the first 36 hours of a disaster are crucial, that is just the start.
What if your car breaks down? What if the bridge you wanted to cross has collapsed? What if you don’t have a water supply? You need to be prepared for the ‘what-ifs…
Tom Blakey
Tom says: “An attack may not come in the traditional way we view war, with a physical invasion or bombs dropping.
"It could be a cyber attack which could wipe out our phones, energy supplies and water infrastructure in one big hit.
“Whatever the threat is – whether it’s the weather, other human beings, a natural disaster – the first step is getting away from it and having a plan B.
“What if your car breaks down? What if the bridge you wanted to cross has collapsed? What if you don’t have a water supply? You need to be prepared for the ‘what-ifs…’”
As a youngster, Tom’s dad, a Vietnam veteran, would carry out fire drills at their home along with Tom’s brother and sister.
They would climb out of windows as the pretend ‘fire’ blazed around them.
The children weren’t even allow to wear hoods or headphones, as their dad said they should be aware of anything and everything around them.
During the last three years of his Army career as a reservist with the Red Devils parachute display team he was injured and when the Covid pandemic hit, he had plenty of time to search the internet.
He came across prepping videos on YouTube and realised he had skills he could teach the growing community.
The movement first got going in the US but has since spread across the pond and around the globe.
Tom says: “I think there’s a bit of a stigma around the word ‘prepper’. People think we’re conspiracy theorists who hide away in the woods.
“That might be down to the Americans stereotype, especially as preppers over there can really focus on guns and weapons over basic skills.
“For a lot of us in the UK, it’s a lot more practical. I do think it’s important to have an inquiring mind and to question things, but I’m no conspiracy theorist.”
'INSURANCE POLICY'
Former soldier Leigh Price sees prepping as a form of “insurance policy”.
After serving his country in the 1990s he spent 20 years in the building trade.
Nowadays, he is the owner of the Bug Out shop in Builth Wells, Wales, which supplies prepping and survival kit and clothing.
His most popular item is a range of freeze-dried tinned food which can last until 2047.
In the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Leigh says, the price of food tins shot up by 56 per cent.
He says that people are now realising the importance of being able to survive.
Leigh thinks that nowadays everyone believes the government will provide for them when things go wrong, but this might not actually happen.
The reality is we’re on the knife-edge. We are close to war and people are only now realising that
Leigh Price
He said people should go back to when communities supported one another.
While Leigh doesn’t think the biggest threat comes from a nuclear strike, a tech-based attack is more likely.
He says: “The reality is we’re on the knife-edge. We are close to war and people are only now realising that. I don’t think nuclear war will happen, they don’t want that.
“But a cyber attack or energy black-out can still lead to mass panic. Desperate people will do desperate things to survive.”
Should the worst actually happen, both Tom and Leigh people will learn from each other rather than relying on those in power.
Tom says: “In the case of cyber attacks hitting the UK, they’re relentless. We can no longer sit here and think everything will be alright.
“Taking small, basic steps can be the difference between life and death in the future.
“The risks are out there, online and in real life, and they’re unpredictable.
“We need to be ready to face them head-on.”
