BY EMERSON LAYNE

While zombies and ghouls are primarily rooted in fiction, after the COVID-19 pandemic and the lingering bird flu, the undead has slowly been creeping into our thoughts. A zombie apocalypse, let alone a zombie virus, is highly unlikely to happen, but for the sake of this scenario, what if it did happen? What would you do? How would you survive?

A lot of zombies in the media are of the slow moving, shambling type that can easily be killed and eradicated. So, for a more realistic scenario of zombies taking over the world, zombies at the very least would be at a jogging pace and at most the fast moving zombies from World War Z. For the sake of simplicity, a zombie or an infected person would infect others similar to how rabies can be spread, which would be passed through touch, exchange of bodily fluids, and close airborne contact. The incubation period of this zombie virus would roughly be how long a common cold can appear, being 12 hours or up to 3 days, before a person has symptoms of turning into a zombie which would happen a few hours afterward. Now that the scenario description is in place, how would you survive?

During the very start of the apocalypse, keep up with the news and any media so you can have as much information as possible. Learn how the virus can spread, symptoms of infection, areas of high population of infected people, and any information on a vaccine. If you’re in a relatively safe area, stock up on as much food, water, weapons, and batteries from your local stores or gas stations. Also make sure to pick up a radio if you don’t have one, you’ll use this later. At your home or a specific room in your house, block off all windows with furniture and blinds. Now that you have a protected shelter, charge up all your electronics as soon as you can since the power grid would soon shut off due to humanity ending. For now, you can sit and wait, keep quiet as much as possible, and conserve as much supplies as possible. 

During the middle of the apocalypse, you’re probably running out of supplies, the power went out, and you’re getting tired of staying inside your home for the past few months. Before you go out, you’ll need to wear the proper attire. Wear your thickest and snug clothing, a helmet, and boots if you have any. If you have any elbow, knee, or shin pads, wear those too. Also make sure to wear glasses or goggles and have a bandana around your face, just in case any fluids or airborne particles can’t enter your system. Grab a backpack with some supplies and a few weapons and head out. When wandering outside, be as quiet as you can and keep to side alleyways to not draw attention to yourself. Stay clear of infected and other people you see, since they can be infected themselves or bandits that could steal your supplies. Make sure to raid local stores and supply stores for food and water. Remember that radio from earlier? Make sure to check it now and again for any other people trying to communicate or a broadcast for locating a safe haven. When camping out at night, make sure to find a safe building and barricade yourself in a small room or storage closet. 

In the case you do come into contact with an infected person trying to attack you, aim for the head. While it’s cliche to “destroy the brain” in a zombie apocalypse, it’s the fastest way to incapacitate an attacker. 

During the late stages of this timeline, you’ve been wandering around a few states, raiding stores for supplies, and checking your radio for any safe havens or groups. It’s been a few years since the apocalypse happened, cities and towns are desolate with an encompassing smell of decay. Most of the zombies have become slower and decomposing to the point some zombies are dying on their own. You’ve seen signs of groups surviving like you with stomped out campfires, recent graffiti, and blips on your radio. But you’ve never seen them in person. At this point no major government has reformed yet nor any large societies. Then there’s you, surviving out on your own, scavenging for food, and slightly smelly. Most people in this scenario aren’t lucky like this, since most people either died during the beginning of the zombie apocalypse or some died to other causes during the aftermath. You know there’s people out there, surviving, scavenging, and searching like you are. You just need to keep going. Maybe someday you’ll see humanity rise again or see a government start to reform. So, where should you go next?

While zombie apocalypse’s are strictly for fiction, it isn’t foolish to think these steps or actions can’t be applied to real world situations, minus the bashing in a sick person’s head or raiding stores. During the COVID pandemic, we had to quarantine ourselves indoors and stock up on food and water while checking the news and social media waiting for answers. When we’re outside we have to wear masks and avoid other people to not risk getting infected. So in the very rare occurrence a zombie apocalypse did happen, would humanity crumble easily?