Let me be honest. Writing this was
not pleasant. Researching the information on death and burial and reviewing
what I already knew was depressing, to say the least. The topic of death is one
that the living naturally try to avoid, but if any group understands that
avoiding reality does not remove it from our lives, it is the
peppers/survivalists. Modern management of death has removed the need to know
from our current lives. A SHTF experience can quickly remove those modern death
management services.
I’m a grey-headed, stiff-jointed
prepper, who is at that age when loved ones and friends are leaving this world
at an increasing pace. However, that will likely be the experience of all of us
in a post-SHTF world. Prior to the most recent generations, caring for the dead
was a common set of skills. Some of you may be as ancient as me and have
personally experienced some of what is written, but if you are like me, that
was long ago and not practiced recently. Regardless of your current
understanding, it is my hope that after reading this article you will have the
basic skills for dealing with the certain death of others around you.
Most deaths, in our current times,
are handled by the death services industry. Over two and one half million of
our loved ones die from old age, disease, or accidents each year. That breaks
down to only two per one hundred Americans per year. Their bodies are quietly
moved to a morgue or funeral home, where they can be kept cold until such time
that services are convenient. Before hand, some undergo an autopsy, which is
the process a pathologist undergoes in their attempt to verify or determine the
cause of death. Some have body parts harvested to be used to sustain the
living. Morticians embalm and clean the body, dress and groom it, and make it
suitable for viewing, if that is desired. When we view the deceased, they are
often so carefully prepared that they appear almost to be sleeping. Cremation
or burial follow, all guided and provided by professionals. Family and friends
gather for support. Often the largest task might be taking a suit of clothes to
the funeral home, making decisions about details of the funeral, or preparing a
dish of food to take to the surviving family.
Death rates increase during harsh
times. Just look around at our nation’s population. Twenty-eight percent are
medically obese, this condition shaving decades off of a normal life span. One
in seven of us is diabetic. One in eight are over the age of sixty-five, many
with medical conditions that require access to medications, equipment,
supplies, and healthcare professionals to sustain their lives. Listen to the
news during any heat wave and you will hear of elderly people found dead from
the heat. These represent the most frail of the population whose very life is
dependent upon modern utilities and technology. Stop the electricity and you
stop the air conditioning, thus you stop someone’s life. What will be the
effect of a widespread, lengthy or even permanent absence of running water,
electricity, sewage treatment, and trash collection? Or what about rampant
violence? People will die. It is reasonable to assume that some of those
reading this article at this moment will die during such times, naturally or
not, from violence or not. Their bodies will not neatly evaporate away.
It was only in the last century that
mortuary services became the prominent and indispensable industry they are
today. Embalming was born during the Civil War, for preserving and transporting
the bodies of the fallen sons of wealthier people. Rather than have them buried
at some distant battlefield, they desired the return of the soldier’s corpse.
Over the next century embalmers evolved into morticians and funeral homes. A
business was born, and somewhere along the way we lost the common knowledge of
how to care for the dead. My grandparents had it, and if you are not quite as
old as I, it is likely that your great-grandparents had such knowledge and
experience, as well.
Many rural communities in their day
had a “shroud woman” who was usually an older woman with experience in helping
people prepare bodies for burial. She was sent for as soon as the death had
occurred. Think of her as the counterpart to the midwife; she was someone who
had been through the event many times and contributed her knowledge and aid to
the community. Within hours of death, women of the family were engaged in the
work of preparing the body for viewing and/or burial. The men dug a grave and,
if possible, prepared a coffin.
In the case of localized disasters,
even large number of the dead can be handled by organized teams of volunteers
or responders. There remains the structure of society and government to
function, perhaps less than ideally but more or less effectively, to remove and
dispose of the dead. It is not that scenario we will be addressing here. There
are ample resources for information as to the disposal of large number of
bodies on FEMA, Red Cross, and government web sites. Rather, we will consider
SHTF scenarios that temporarily or permanently disrupt the death care industry–
scenarios in which we may find ourselves dealing with death up close and
personal and find ourselves preparing and disposing of the bodies of our family
and friends.
Let’s dispose of a big myth that
bodies need to be buried to prevent epidemics of disease. This is not true.
Most pathogens in a body die with it, within hours after death. Disease is
rarely an issue. Humans have a natural aversion to touching or even staying in
the presence of a corpse. God has so equipped nature that your own corpse will
surely return to the dust from which it was formed, buried or not. So why bury
them at all? First of all, it’s because a corpse looks and smells very bad in
very short order. Secondly, it’s because we are human. We are made in the very
image of God, and even those that do not believe in God recognize the need for
dignified treatment of human remains. It is part of what we consider
civilization. Can you imagine living in a society where corpses were left to
decompose wherever they happened to die, being eaten by stray dogs and rats?
Neither can I. Such scenes are properly left to horror movies.
How we deal with death impacts how
we live as a civilized society. The U.S. Marines are well-known for the fact
that they do not leave their dead behind. Every Marine understands this. A
major reason is that the body of the Marine will not be left for desecration by
the enemy, but it is only the retrieval of each future dead Marine that will
preserve that belief and the value it has to the comfort and morale of those
who are in combat. Likewise, the way that we handle the bodies of the dead in a
future post-SHTF scenario will offer comfort and morale to the living or serve
to worsen it and degrade what civilization remains.
To understand what we do with the
dead requires that we understand what happens to a body after death. It’s an
unpleasant topic but a necessary one. Decomposition begins immediately after
death. The rate at which a body decomposes is affected by many factors,
including the weather, for example. The higher the temperature above freezing,
the quicker it progresses. Other factors include what the deceased was eating
before they died– the contents in their stomach and gut– and what medications
they had been taking. Decomposition has been seen to be so rapid that the body
was not recognizable within a few days, while in other cases, say that of a
thin, small body, it might seem to be more of a case of mummification rather
than decomposition. Normal bacteria in the body during life are active in
death. Everything works together to liquify and break down soft tissues of the
body, until all that remains are bones. Depending on how they were buried,
bones may degrade in years or thousands of years, but eventually we do as God
promised in his curse—we return to dust.
Bodies go through common changes
within the first hours after death. There are color changes. The highest parts
of the body will turn pale as the blood in our veins and capillaries follows
gravity down and pools in the lowest areas. The skin in the lowest parts will
turn dark reddish-purple. The highest areas then become grayish in color.
Within a few hours of death, the electrolytes in our muscle tissue will have
become so imbalanced that the muscles appear to be frozen stiff. From there
comes the word “stiff” that movie gangsters use to refer to the body in the
trunk. The rest of us know it as rigor mortis. Some of you may have woken to
find that a pet had died in the night and its body was stiff. That is rigor
mortis. After a few more hours, this normally begins to go away, making the
joints supple again.
Without going into too many details,
over the following days very ugly things happen, causing the skin to turn
black, the eyes and tongue to bulge, and fluid to leak from the mouth, nose,
and ears, as the internal organs liquify. The activity of bacteria produces
methane that bloats the tissues and produces that horrible smell that is unique
to a dead human body. If you have ever smelled that odor, it is one that you do
not forget. None of us would wish our loved ones and friends to be seen or
remembered like this.
As we have noted, it is a myth that
dead bodies represent a risk to the health of the living, but let’s add the one
small caveat of people who die of extremely infectious diseases. There is
nothing to know more than you already know for handling infected people when
they are alive. Wear gloves. Rubber boots or boot covers are also helpful. A
mask is optional, since a corpse does not sneeze or cough. Avoid touching body
fluids or touching your own body while working with the body. Wash your hands
thoroughly when finished and especially before eating. Any of us who watched
the collection of bodies in Africa from the recent Ebola epidemic observed
workers spraying the body and effects with an antiseptic. A strong beach and water
solution is adequate. Keep in mind that while HIV and Ebola may hang around for
days, what killed the person dies with the person. Is there ever a need for a HAZMAT suit? If I was
collecting bodies of Ebola victims and they offered me one, you bet I’d wear
it. Until more is known, why take chances? Most survivors do not have a HAZMAT
suit in their bags, however, but they are likely to have access to disposable
gloves, soap, and water.
Just how long do we have to work
with the body? Much will depend upon the individual body and the climate.
Indeed, in the colder climates of the world, where the ground freezes hard during
winter, burials often do not occur until spring thaw. The same freezing weather
also provides a natural storage solution during the wait. In temperate
climates, things happen more quickly, but it’s not so quickly that we have to
bury the body by sundown. Depending upon the corpse and weather, you may have
several days. In no case is the process of decomposition so fast that you
cannot take time to clean and prepare the body.
Upon death, there is the natural
concern that the person is actually dead. There is no need for immediate
determination when life-saving resuscitation is not a concern, as when death
has been expected. If not immediately apparent, the natural changes that will
occur shortly after death will serve to confirm that the person is indeed dead.
Color changes occur within hours. Body temperature drops but will not be as
noticeable as the changes in color and rigor mortis.
Upon death, loved ones or friends
can take early actions that will help with possible viewing. It is common for
humans to die with some degree of eyelid retraction. The eyes may be fully open
or, more commonly, slightly open. At this point they can be gently pulled
closed most or all of the way. An old custom is to place a heavy coin on each
eyelid to maintain the closed position through rigor mortis. Medical tape can
be used as well. If rigor mortis sets in before the lids are closed, closing
them can be a difficult task. But closure is not necessary, even if
aesthetically more pleasing. If the open eyes are troubling to those handling
the body, the body can be respectfully covered or a cloth placed over the face.
Similarly, it is good if a length of cloth, a scarf, or cord is used to keep
the mouth in a closed position until rigor mortis has set in. Simply tie the
cord or cloth over the top of the head with a simple knot.
In most cultures, it is the women of
the group that take up the task of preparing the body for viewing or burial.
The key here is to have at least three to four people, if not more. Turning a
dead body for purposes of cleaning and dressing is not light work. Thus the
term “dead weight”. Additionally, having a group of people assists mentally and
emotionally. The presence of several people will allow for quiet discussion and
sharing of the moment. Some cultures engage in reciting scripture, singing of
hymns, or ritual chanting during the preparation of the body. You will sense
what feels appropriate to your group.
The goals of preparation of the body
are to remove soiled clothes, medical devices, bandages, and to clean the body,
as in performing a sponge bath. A plastic sheet or tarp and ample towels can be placed under
the body to assist with the liquids. Standing to one side of the body, the
group can lift and roll the body up to allow those cleaning to reach difficult
areas. There may be leakage from the anus and the bladder. This can be assisted
by pressing down over the lower abdomen, helping to empty the contents of the
lower bowel and the bladder. Using cotton or cloth, the anus
and vagina should then be plugged closed. The penis can be placed in a condom,
or gently snugged with a cord to prevent further leakage. Disposable diapers can also
be placed or applied as a means of catching any fluids that might escape later.
Wounds should be be bandaged, with a waterproof dressing if
available, or with tape. Powders can be used to
cover excessively moist tissues. The oral cavity can be cleaned with swabs and lemon water or
vinegar water.
Once the body is cleansed and the orifices
plugged, the team can work to remove the soiled plastic sheeting and replace it
with a sturdy sheet or blanket.
This will serve to make moving the body much easier. The body can then be
rolled from side to side to facilitate dressing and grooming. Hair can be
groomed and makeup applied, as desired. You may find it comforting to add
pleasant scents or scented lotion, as well.
Moving the body, after cleaned,
dressed, and groomed, is best done by many, not few. The ideal is three to four
on each side if the body if it is to be lifted for sliding onto another
surface. The limbs may be awkward to arrange or position if the body is stiff
from rigor mortis. It is also possible to move the limbs and joints with
massage and stretch. This will not damage any of the body tissues. Keep in mind
that rigor mortis will subside hours later and the body can then be manipulated
with ease. Generally the body is positioned as though at rest, the hands folded
across the chest or abdomen. A small pillow placed under
the head will enhance that appearance and bring some comfort to those later
viewing the body.
It was common custom to place a body
for viewing in the home of the deceased, upon a table or a bed. In ideal times,
dry ice is perfect for slowing decomposition. It can be crushed and placed
below the blanket or sheet the body rests on. Be sure to place something
waterproof underneath to catch any condensation moisture. After the body has been
allowed for viewing for whatever time period the family desires, burial can
proceed. Keep in mind that there is no set time or limit for this period as the
vast majority of bodies are not a hygiene risk. A period of viewing not only
assists the survivors to grieve and say their goodbyes, but allows for the time
needed to complete the digging of a grave and, if desired, the making of a
coffin.
Let’s deal with the prospect of
cremation as many of us have become accustomed to it in modern times. Cremation
is not a historical treatment of bodies in Western culture. It originated in
England two centuries ago, due to the concerns of physicians for the hygiene of
the dead body. As we have stated, hygiene is not an issue. Nonetheless, modern
crematories allow for the rapid reduction of the body to bone fragments that
can be then crushed into what we have all come to consider ashes. Not only does
it require a furnace, but over 1,000,000 BTUs of energy and several hours at
temperatures between 1400 and 1900 degree Fahrenheit. This is not something
most of us expect to have available post-SHTF. Are their options? Yes, but
they’re not practical ones.
Outdoor cremations require extensive
amounts of wood. Worse, they generally leave remains that are far from what a
modern cremation furnace produces. They still require further disposition. The
Hindu’s in India can shove the remains of the cremation, still a partial
corpse, into the Ganges River, as they are accustomed to. I don’t think most of
us will accept or prefer that option. We would be left with burial, which begs
the question as to why we carry out a cremation to begin with. There may be
religious reasons that you desire to do so. If so, be prepared to have at least
100 lbs of cured wood, and that you are emotionally prepared for the smell as
well as the remains that will be left. There is also one important additional
aspect to keep in mind; if the body contains a pacemaker or other
battery-powered medical device, it must be removed, or it can explode as the
body is burned, which would be an unsettling if not potentially dangerous
event.
Sky burial is certainly an option
for some. Various cultures around the world have practiced it, usually because
there is not sufficient wood for cremation and because they find burial in the
ground to be objectionable. The body is simply placed on the open ground in an
area where animals and birds can remove the soft tissues from the bones. The
bones are then cremated or moved to a storage site. For Westerners, we are not
likely prepared mentally or emotionally for such a site and experience. Again,
sights, smells, and horror movies comes to mind.
That leaves us with the choice of
burial in the ground. Burial in the earth is common to many cultures but not
all. There is evidence that the earliest humans in Europe buried their dead.
There are many obvious reasons– animals, smell, and dignity. Burial was and is
a way to place the body within the soil where it can be broken down with
respect. Positions of the body have varied. We are accustomed to being buried
face up in a supine position. Some cultures bury their loved ones in a fetal
position. Warrior societies have even had the custom of burying them standing.
Much of these had to do with beliefs concerning the afterlife. In a similar
way, some Christians are opposed to cremation, as it might prevent the rising
of the dead taught in the Bible. I have not addressed burial in a crypt,
assuming that in a post SHTF scenario that will not be an available luxury, but
there is nothing to say that a body could not be properly buried in a tomb cut
out of the rock with a stone rolled over the opening, as was done with the body
of Jesus Christ.
Johnny Horton used to sing, “When
it’s springtime in Alaska, I’ll be six feet below.” If you are old enough to
remember that tune, as I am, you aren’t too far from a grave, either. However,
if you are buried by current standards you won’t be buried under six feet of
dirt. Some state regulations, for those that have them, require a coffin or
body to have only two and a half to three feet of soil once buried. If in a
burial vault, only two feet are required. So where did the six feet come from?
Historically, it was believed that the grave needed to be dug to six feet to
prevent unpleasant things, such as animals, from disturbing the remains. In
some cases the grave might go a bit deeper, but such was to accommodate two or
three coffins stacked one on top of the other. There is one good reason not to
dig a deep grave, and that is that they can collapse on the digger, burying him
instead of the intended person.
Besides the emotional and spiritual
issues involved, there are only a few considerations. Graves should be dug well
away from sources of running water. They should not be dug where the water
table might rise and displace the remains. Various organizations recommend
specific distances from a water source. Fifty feet is considered the norm for a
single grave. In hilly or mountainous terrains, digging on the low side of the
water source is generally preferable. If soil varies in the area, you will find
it best to dig in a area without much clay or stones. Digging in frozen areas
in the winter can be done, but it is very difficult if the frozen earth goes
down more than a few inches. Sandy or loose soil will present the problem of
slipping back into the grave or making it unsafe to use the edges of the grave
to support the body or coffin. In such cases you may need to use timber or
boards to secure the first foot or so of the grave walls with a framework. If
the soil is exceptionally saturated with water, you will need to consider a
different location or if in a very rainy season and all the soil is saturated,
you may need to wait, keeping in mind that the body can be wrapped in plastic
or in a body bag, if available, or just placed in a well-fitted casket until
the soil condition is dry enough.
Provided the ground is not
thoroughly frozen, digging a hole is a six or more hour affair for one healthy
person, assuming he has never dug a grave before. Much will depend on the soil
conditions and your equipment. Flat spades are excellent
for creating neat walls, but obviously a survivalist will use whatever shovel
or tools he has. An old hatchet makes a good tool
to smooth the sides, if that is all you have. Keep the soil excavated in one
pile at the side of the grave for easy return to the grave. Lay long timbers or
boarding along the top of the sides of the soil before you dig. If you are
blessed to have a back hoe there is certainly nothing wrong with using it for
the digging. In modern cemeteries, such equipment has replaced most of the work
formerly done by grave diggers.
Measure the body or the coffin, if
used, and add one foot to the width and 18 inches to the length. Add 30 inches
to the height of the body or coffin. Square the walls and bottom as much as
possible but certainly enough to keep the dimensions uniform. Some cultures dig
a grave within a grave. Upon reaching the bottom, they dig a smaller hole, the
size of the body or casket. This allows people to stand on the lower ledge to
receive the body and then place the body down into the smaller hole.
If no coffin is to be used, it is
helpful to wrap the body as snuggly as possible in a blanket, tarp, or similar
fabric. Place ties around the body several times along its length. This will
prevent it from unwrapping during the burial and also make handling it much
easier. A tightly-wrapped body or a coffin can be lowered via cordage or nylon
strapping. One method is to place three or four cross timbers over the grave to
allow the body or casket to be supported over the grave. Three straps are
placed under the body, with each end of the strap held by a strong person; the
straps are then used to lower the body with the handlers working together to
lower the body smoothly. This can be managed with the body to the side of the
grave, but it is much more difficult as the body has to be drawn over the grave
and then lowered. If you do not have the means to lower the body that way, you
will have to place one end of the body in at a time. Remember, you are going to
be lowering the body less than four feet. This situation is one that can be
facilitated by using the larger grave previously discussed, with a smaller
grave centered at the bottom, giving a ledge upon which one or more persons can
receive the lowered body. Safety is an issue. Burying a loved one, only to find
that you have a disabling back injury, should be avoided.
Refill the grave with the excavated
soil. You will have more than you took out. This remainder should be mounded up
over the grave to account for settling of soil over time. Refilling is also a
lengthy task, although it’s not nearly as difficult as digging the grave. Some
older resources suggest applying lime above the body before refilling. This is
of no use, as it was based on the myth of a hygiene issue. Further, it will do
nothing to preserve the body or delay decomposition, if that is the thought.
For some situations, mound burial is
a very practical option. It’s a method employed across Asia even into modern
times. A very shallow grave—just enough to level the body or casket with the
ground—is dug. Soil is then mounded over the grave in the shape of a small
hill. It serves as a marker and may be a better option in certain soil
conditions. Keep in mind that you will want to provide at least 30 inches of
soil over all portions of the body or casket. Another advantage of a mound
burial is that the body will be much easier to remove, if you desire to
relocate the body later.
In most states in the nation,
conducting your own burial in the fashion we have described is perfectly legal.
There may be permits involved and restrictions on locations of burial, but
there is no law requiring your loved one to be embalmed under most
circumstances, nor are you prohibited from preparing the body for burial.
Despite common beliefs, the use of a mortuary service is not a legal
requirement in almost all scenarios.
Caring for the bodies of our loved
ones and friends is not only a practical skill set for survival preparation,
but it’s a historical reclamation of cultural traditions. At this point, I hope
that you feel prepared to deal with the body of the dead in a humane and
dignified manner. If there are questions that remain, I would be pleased to
address them to the best of my ability. In writing this, my greatest concern is
that I do not leave the reader with the thought that the other events that
surround death have been purposely ignored. There is simply too much to include
in one article. Care of the dying in a compassionate and helpful way, funeral
concerns and rituals, and issues of mourning are surely as much of our humanity
as is burial. They vary widely with families, cultures, and people of different
faiths. I may have wrongly assumed that most of us are more knowledgeable in
those areas. If there is interest, I will be glad to write more concerning
those topics, which by nature, are easier to write and read. The nature of
survival topics, I realize, can seem to dehumanize a very human affair, which
was not my desire. Other topics that I would be willing to write on would also
include the design and building of a simple coffin. This is an area I am hoping
some of the more creative survivalists can contribute to, specifically the
fabrication of a coffin or casket when common wood tools are not available.
From the Survival Blog
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