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A run on survival gear Mail Tribune / Bob Pennell Sparky Judson of Swede & Sons Surplus in White City tries out the store's only remaining gas mask. Masks have been a hot item since the terrorist attacks Sept. 11, though government officials say they offer little but peace of mind. Gas masks, blankets, MREs fly off the shelves; it's always good to be ready for an emergency, merchants note By PAUL FATTIG WHITE CITY - Only one gas mask remains in the large metal camouflage-painted building housing Swede & Sons Surplus. And MREs - meals ready to eat - are selling like hotcakes, along with water purifiers, chemical suits and wool blankets. "People want to be able to protect their families right now," said Reg Hastings, whose family owns the store that's chock-full of everything from camo clothing to camp stoves. "That's not a bad idea anytime," he added. "You have a storm, you might not have electricity for awhile. It's good to be ready for any emergency. It doesn't necessarily have to be a national disaster." But the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11 was a national disaster that left the public feeling vulnerable to domestic terrorism, he noted. "This is real - this isn't like Y2K," he said, referring to Jan. 1, 2000, when a feared worldwide computer glitch that never materialized prompted a run on "survival" gear and grub. The story was the same over at Military Surplus & More in Grants Pass. "We are out of gas masks - we sold out two weeks ago, the same time we ran out of American flags," said part-time employee Candi Wisener. Both stores have ordered a new supply of gas masks. A Rogue Valley man who didn't want to be identified said he bought two gas masks, for him and his wife, immediately after Sept. 11 out of fear that terrorists would use biological or chemical weapons in their next attack. Stressing that they don't consider themselves "survivalists," he said they just wanted to feel like they had some protection. They also have stored water and food, he said. The masks are equipped with NATO-approved "NBC" filters, which protect against nuclear, biological and chemical agents, he said. "I don't think we're being paranoid - we just want to be ready," he said. "Nobody knows what is going to happen next." Both the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta and the FBI aren't recommending that folks buy gas masks, observed Gary Stevens, program manager for Jackson County's environmental health division. "But if people feel more comfortable by buying one, then they should do it," he said. However, preparing for a common emergency such as a power outage caused by a winter storm would be more practical, he said. "That wouldn't hurt any of us to be prepared for something like that," he said. "That's something that happens every year." Requests for copies of a survivalist manual, "Nuclear War Survival Skills," published by the nonprofit Oregon Institute of Science and Medicine in the Illinois Valley, have skyrocketed since Sept. 11, said founder Art Robinson. The updated booklet, available on the Internet at amazon.com for $19.50, was originally published as a manual for military personnel and national emergency responders by Uncle Sam during the Cold War. "There is a tremendous renewed interest in survival skills," said Robinson, an independent research chemist. "It hasn't been in demand since Y2K." Robinson, who has a doctorate in chemistry from the University of California at San Diego, where he taught chemistry for five years, established the institute in 1980 to address, among other things, the issue of survival. But the former president and research director of the Linus Pauling Institute in Menlo Park, Calif., refers to it as civil defense, not survivalism. Describing civil defense as the protection of civilians from chemical, biological or nuclear attacks from terrorists or a hostile nation, he said the nation's civil defense infrastructure was dismantled by the Clinton administration. Since 1985, Robinson has been promoting the creation of a civil defense system nationwide. To him, that would require building shelters that would filter air for groups of people. "People are being scared unnecessarily - they have a government that has provided no protection," he said. He estimates there are fewer than 5,000 private shelters in the nation and fewer than 50 in Southern Oregon. "I favor rooting out these people who are a danger to us, but it will cost more to do what they're doing now than to build a civil defense system for the nation," he said. But he reiterated that a stocked shelter with a filtered air supply is the best civil defense against today's terrorist threats. "The world is a dangerous place," Robinson concluded. "You can't rid the world of all its nuts." Grants Pass area resident Wisener, who described herself and her husband as "mild survivalists," agreed that people interested in self-reliance need to educate themselves. "Once you choose to go along those lines, all you have to do is make a mellow adjustment," she said. "You don't have to change your whole lifestyle. It's just a matter of common sense, of being practical." It can be as simple as setting aside water containers or dried food in the pantry, she said. "You don't have to spend $3,000," she said. Hastings, who is married with children, echoed similar sentiments. "People think of it as survivalism, but it's really just plain old living - being prepared for an emergency," he said. Reach reporter Paul Fattig at 776-4496 or e-mail him at [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.