The Rule of Threes Can Save Your Life
Every
few news cycles we seem to hear a story about someone who has been lost
in the wilderness or become stranded somewhere due to weather or
mechanical failure.
Occasionally
there is a happy ending to these stories where the person or persons
are found, maybe suffering from a little exposure or dehydration, but
after a couple days in the hospital they get to go home no worse for the
experience.
Far too often we read of tragedy where they are found dead, maybe not even found until months or years later, if ever.
Why the Rule of Threes?
Ask
the average person what the first thing they would do if they were
stranded in the wilderness, and you will probably get some variant of
the answer, “I would look for something to eat.”
Ron
Hood of Hoods Woods fame came up with The Rule of Threes to help people
prioritize what is most important in any survival situation.
What Does the Rule of Threes say?
The
rule of threes says “You can live three minutes without air, three
hours without shelter, three days without water, and three weeks without
food.”
This statement is all about approximation, but it holds true in application.
As
you can see this all about staying alive. The less time you can stay
alive, the more important the statement is. For example you can live
three weeks without food, but only live three hours without shelter.
So
if you are in light clothes in freezing rain, it is much more important
to find suitable shelter than it is to be looking for something to eat.
If you get your priorities out of order that is how you end up dead.
Let’s break this down and look at each statement.
Three Minutes Without Air
You can live three minutes without air.
Yes,
I know there are people out there who can hold their breath for five
minutes or longer but in general if you can’t breath for three minutes
you are done for.
The
two applicable scenarios that come immediately to my mind would be
drowning or a fire. Possibly python wrestling but that isn’t likely for
most people lost in the wilderness.
So
a car in the water, a boating accident, or trapped in a fire unable to
breath you have approximately three minutes to fix your situation or you
will die.
Three Hours Without Shelter
You can live three hours without shelter (in extreme weather).
A
person must maintain their body heat or they do not continue to
function well. A wet and cold person can slip into hypothermia and die
very quickly if they are not careful. Most people think about exposure
to being cold, but extreme heat can kill you as well.
Shelter
is a very important aspect of staying alive in an emergency. You have
just a couple hours in extreme conditions to do something about it. In
less extreme conditions you will still need to take care of your shelter
before most other things.
Your
clothing and the ability to make fire can be considered shelter as
well, in addition to any structure or other means of maintaining body
temperature.
So
if you are not drowning, in a fire, or being smothered, your number one
priority in a survival situation will be adequate shelter.
Three Days Without Water
You can live three days without water.
Potable
water is important to survival. Staying hydrated will help keep your
mind clear so that you can make good decisions about your situation.
There
are many techniques and products on the market for purifying or
filtering water. Many are not at all expensive and are a good
investment. The price of a compact water filter small enough to stash in
your car or pack is well under $50.
A
little online research will give you an idea of the skills that are
available to learn about purifying water. Taking the time and effort to
become proficient may just save your life.
Three Weeks Without Food
You can live three weeks without food.
With
few exceptions, people stranded in the wilderness do not starve to
death. They usually die of exposure or dehydration. Yes, there is a
famous case in Alaska but circumstances such as this are few and far
between.
Looking
for food is the last thing on your list to get squared away if you are
stranded. Once you have your air, shelter and water in place, then food
becomes important.
Like
water, there is a plethora of information online for those who wish to
know how to forage food in the wild. A wild edibles book for your area
is not a bad investment.
As
you can see, the Rule of Threes is simple and lays out a plan of action
to follow. It is easily memorized ( I taught it to my children at a
young age) and it just may someday save your life.
