CAMP HYGIENE:
Keeping healthy is an important factor for survival, so strict hygiene should be practiced, not only personally but in the
planning and running of a camp. Rubbish and latrines MUST BE kept away from the camp to reduce the threat from flies.
Food scraps and other rubbish should be burned in the fire if possible. Since most of the common diseases in a survival situation are water-born, pollution of drinking water MUST BE RIGOROUSLY AVOIDED.
INCINERATOR:
If there is too much waste for the camp fire to burn, make a separate fire in the latrine area. If a large can is available use it as an incinerator. Bury any unburned refuse in a garbage pit.
CAMP DISCIPLINE:
Do not prepare game in camp: bleed, gut and skin on the trap line or kill site. This attracts game to the traps where you want them, not into your camp. Keep food covered and off the ground. If kept in trees MAKE SURE it is proof from tree-dwelling animals.
Replace lids on water bottles and containers IMMEDIATELY after using them. Stow spare clothing and equipment in your shelter. Do not leave it lying where it can get wet or burned. Have a place for everything & keep things tidy. A tree for mess tins & cooking utensils-hook them on twigs and branches, a place for mugs and spoons & keep everything off the ground. Fix a box as cupboard on a tree trunk.
NEVER LEAVE THE FIRE UNATTENDED
SOAP:
Washing with soap removes natural oils, leaving the skin less waterproof and more prone to attack by germs. In survival
circumstances it is a mistake to wash with soap too often. However, soap is the most widely used antiseptic, better than
many others, such as iodine, which destroy body tissue as well as germs. It is ideal for scrubbing hands before administering first-aid for wounds. Save supplies for this.
FIELD EXPEDIENT SOAP MAKING:
Two ingredients-an oil and alkali- are needed to make soap. The oil can be animal fat (including fish) or vegetable but not
mineral. The alkali can be produced by burning wood or seaweed to produce ash. Wash ash with water. Strain and boil with the oil. Simmer until excess liquid are evaporated and allow to cool. This soap will clean the skin but it is not antiseptic. Adding horseradish root or pine resin to the brew will make it antiseptic. Experimentation will be necessary to get the balance in the mixture right. Start with more oil than alkali because too much alkali will dry the skin, leaving it sore.
LATRINES AND RUBBISH DISPOSAL:
Latrines and rubbish disposal should be well away from the camp and preferably downwind. Rubbish, after checking that it really has no USEFUL value, should be burned, and what cannot be burned should be buried. The latrine point should not be so far away that is inconvenient and people are tempted to go elsewhere. If necessary cut a track to it to make access easier.
It is important that proper latrines be established, even for the lone survivor. With a group separate latrines for the sexes may make a mixed group feel more comfortable and as much privacy as possible should be provided. Even if you have it, do not use disinfectant in a latrine. Lime or disinfectant would kill the USEFUL bacteria that break down and then it will start smelling! After defecating cover the feces with earth. Add small amounts of water that will promote the bacterial breakdown. Make a latrine cover to keep out flies and REMEMBER ALWAYS to replace it, or flies that have walked all over feces may walk all over your food, & start a cycle of infection. If, after a time, a latrine starts to smell, dig a new one. Fill in the old latrine. Build a new seat and burn old timbers & covers.
DEEP TRENCH LATRINE:
Dig a trench about 1.25m (4ft) deep and 45cm (18in) wide. Build up the sides with logs or rocks and earth to make a comfortable sitting height, sealing the gaps between them. Lay logs across to leave only a hole for use or (several if you
are a large group and making a communal latrine). Empty wood ash on the logs to make a seal. It will also deter flies. Make a lid of smaller wood to cover the opening or use a large flat rock or a large leaf weighted down with stones.
ALWAYS REMEMBER to replace it.
URINAL:
Dig a pit about 60cm (2ft) deep. Three-quarters fill it with a large stone and then top up with earth, with a cone made from bark set into it as a funnel. Site it close enough to the camp to ensure that people bother to use it.
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