Aftermath: Population Zero
National Geographic is airing a special this coming month similar to the History Channel’s “Life Without People”. The NatGeo special, Aftermath: Population Zero ”investigates what would happen if every single person on Earth simply disappeared. This is the astounding story of a world we will never see. Explore an interactive world without humans.”
Much as we discussed previously, this begs the question, how similar are these video specials to life after a zombie attack? Even though there will surely be some level of a human presence left, nature will slowly be overtaking some of the manmade structures that now dominate the landscape.
Could a zombie outbreak in effect cause buildings to decay and roadways to disappear? Would the lack of human attention to its own creations introduce new problems that survivors of an undead attack would have to contend with?
After thinking about this for some time now, I am left with one important question: Can we honestly prepare for such a time? We can debate our zombie plans and scenarios until we are blue in the face, but can the average person prepare for such a time as depicted in the above preview?
Not only is there physical preparation of supplies, weapons, clothing, and any other item deemed necessary for survival in a post-zombie world, but one must consider the emotional preparation involved. Are you ready to lose all of your family in a single day due to a zombie attack? Are you ready for what the world could possibly turn into after the dead walk the earth?
It has become a harsh belief of mine that the average person would not be adequately prepared to survive a high-level zombie outbreak. Though they might make it through the initial outbreak, the days, weeks, months, and even years to come would dwindle the population of the living down to even smaller numbers.
With all of that said, I would like to pose two questions to you:
- Do you feel that the average person will survive the initial attack and post-zombie world?
- How can one reasonably prepare for such long-term, long-lasting events?
Stay safe. Stay informed. Stay alive.
Comments (29)
Toebo23 on 29 Feb 2008 at 2:36 am #
The average person is doomed there mind will not be able to register what is going on until it is to late. the only ones that will live are the few who know what is going down and what to do. then there will me the government.. u know they will be bunkered up before we even get news theres an outbreak. then the lucky, right place right time guys. but all in all I don’t think mankind will survive we may hold out for a few years but in the end the zeds will win.
Splint Chesthair on 29 Feb 2008 at 11:25 am #
It’s going to people that camp and hike in a reasonably rustic way that will have the best shot. I was lucky enough to have a family that enjoyed those things and my father was in construction so I have a fairly above average level of or ability to build/maintain/improvise. Of course I didn’t realize I was above average until I started living on my own and with roommates in college. People who couldn’t even figure out how to run a television cable into a bedroom, or install a new telephone outlet, or to even change a tire. Not that they couldn’t if shown how but they lacked the experience to even have a starting point or the confidence to try.
Building shelters, building fires, reading maps, planning routes, hiking long distances, recognizing edible wild plants and berries, isn’t hard to do but not something you want to try for the first time in the midst of a zombie attack.
Sam on 29 Feb 2008 at 11:38 am #
It’s interesting you should posit these questions, as I have just done a write up on proper personal defensive gear over at The Undead Report.
You’ll want at least some form of armor, survival items and a strong and resolute mind. That’s the most important thing.
No, I don’t think the average person will survive - that’s why we’ll get so many millions of zombies. The people who will survive are those like us - thinking about it now, writing, informing and sharing our ideas.
However, I don’t think you can prepare for the long run. It must be taken day-by-day, perhaps always on the move. It will bea step backward technologically, but a step forward socially.
Bryan on 29 Feb 2008 at 6:04 pm #
By the time the situation gets as depicted above, a great many years will have passed - trees that big don’t appear overnight. If you’re still alive by then you’ll have had all those years to get ready for it. I think the main challenge is ensuring that you _are_ still alive by then, ie, surviving the “main event” itself. Once that’s done there’ll be time to plan out what to do next. Worrying about it now is too early, there’s too much uncertainty about what the situation will be like.
Toebo23 on 29 Feb 2008 at 6:40 pm #
You are all welcome to Tonikaku and I’s island :)
jediwannabe1 on 02 Mar 2008 at 1:32 pm #
I have no idea how well an average person would fare in a long term zombie outbreak, all I know is that my brother freaking crazy, so if I just stick with him I’ll be all set. He’s got an M4 assault rifle and is working on making it automatic, he’s always ready for a fight and he’s intuitive as hell, so F*** it , he’s my best shot.
jediwannabe1 on 02 Mar 2008 at 2:21 pm #
Question: I’ve played resident evil far too many times. and in the game, the female playable character, Jill, has a taser. would a taser really be useful against a zombie, considering they don’t feel pain?
Toebo23 on 02 Mar 2008 at 9:15 pm #
owwwwwww good queston
Robert Morrison on 03 Mar 2008 at 2:36 am #
Considering that Zach still moves so long as it has an intact central nervous system and spine, a zombie’s nervous system would still be susceptible to the “overloading” a taser causes. A tazer doesn’t function from pain, the electricity basically overrides the signals from the brain on when to contract or relax. So yes, it would still stop a zombie from moving so long as you kept a charge going through it.
However, if you have a zed within reaching distance, there are probably more, and you probably would rather have a handy cross-functional weapon like a crowbar or survival knife.
As far as surviving past the initial outbreak, I believe it is possible for some, but not many. Many millions have grown up in very small communities, or in rural areas with hardly any outside contact. These societies seem sustainable, so long as they aren’t wiped out by disease or inbreeding.
If you were alone, however, I doubt any of us, except a very few, could live the remainder of their natural lives without the hope of ever speaking to another person. We are naturally social creatures, and years or decades alone would drive most of us to insanity.
saeferth on 03 Mar 2008 at 4:35 am #
i imagine it would incapacitate a zombie by firing off their muscles? kinda like a huge spasm. but you’d probably be better smashing it over the head with the thing
maratuzero on 03 Mar 2008 at 11:42 pm #
I have to disagree about people not being able to survive alone. Going a little crazy isn’t the worst thing in the world (at least not in a zombie infested world). The human mind is extremely adaptable, and people can do some amazing thing if given no other choice. The only reason we’re the dominant species on Earth is our ability to adjust to most situations. Of-course its been a few hundred (maybe even thousand) years since we really needed to adapt to a new environment, and unlike other lower animals we help our weak, sick, and stupid. That will cause a good chunk of those that could survive to be thinned out with the those that can’t. Just make sure to be careful around or completely avoid the lone survivors. They could be more dangerous than the undead(can anyone say cannibalism?).
Toebo23 on 05 Mar 2008 at 5:01 am #
cannibalism
Toebo23 on 05 Mar 2008 at 5:02 am #
see i can say it
ZzDeuceX on 05 Mar 2008 at 9:14 pm #
Im tired of people suggestig that the undead menace would be to much for mankind to handle! the fact is, in the evnt of an zed attack, with the modern weapons and warfare of today, the zeds would be about as menacing as the aids virus. sure, life would change, and of course you can never get them all, but the fact remains that the undead are just as mortal as we are, and can be effectively mowed down by one man on a turret. they dont take cover, they’ll only run for the first few days, and they can’t use weapons! if/when a situation occurs, id hope that people could show a little more faith in mankind. this doomsday scenario is fun to speculate on for some people, but it is nearly impossible. ((knock on wood)) is the threat of zeds great? yes. is it unstoppable? not in the least! people deal with horrors all the time, only the truely weak would find themselves overwhelmed by the fear of zombies. the rest of the humans? hate. we would hate them to our core. fear? no. hate is what we feel when we are confused, or surprised by the unknown. Zeds would go down one by one until they were all Dead as the day they died.
ZAC Admin on 05 Mar 2008 at 9:19 pm #
“the fact is, in the evnt of an zed attack, with the modern weapons and warfare of today, the zeds would be about as menacing as the aids virus.”
I would challenge you to take a look at your neighborhood, be it the average neighborhood, apartment complex, etc. What would you say the average age of the person living there is? Also, do they have a “turet” to gun down zombies? Chances are, they don’t.
People panic. People make mistakes. People perform poorly under stress. This is common across the board. So to think that my 65 year old female neighbor would run to her 2nd floor and start gunning down zombies from her spinning turet gun is a little out of the question.
ZzDeuceX on 06 Mar 2008 at 8:41 pm #
Maybe not your sixty-five year old granny, but how about the united states national gaurd? the army? how about the marines? there’s a few in every neighborhood, and they can be in your en-masse within the hour. im not saying no one would die, im saying that to think that the world would end over a zed crisis is a little extreme. i just cant fathom the idea of the entire U.S., let alone the world, being taken down by a shambling hoard of, what can basically be described as, infectios-violent-retardation. granny may not be able to handle a turret, but even granny knows to get the hell outta dodge when the zombies start popping up.
Ardin Kal'Moore on 15 Mar 2008 at 12:03 am #
I can agree with ZzDeuceX for the most part. The main problem I see happening if/when a Zed uprising happens, is people saying “Oh my God, Mom! Snap out of it it’s me! Ahhhh!” *die* Eventually people would realize what is happening, accept the reality of it and have the military take drastic measures. Unfortunatley that means “taking no prisoners,” ie aim to kill, don’t go anywhere alone, don’t hesitate, and don’t ask questions. Which means pleanty of innocent bystanders will die.
The only way I see a Zed apocolypse happening is if they are like the “28 days later” Zed’s. In which case we may just be doomed if the realization isn’t in time.
ZzDeuceX on 15 Mar 2008 at 11:04 pm #
Thanks man. And that is true, “28 days later” zombies would change the situation by a huge margin, but i still believe in the military of not only the U.S. but of all nations around the world. Any military, hell, any militant unit can learn how to fight zombies. it’s not like there is a lack of resources to educate yourselves on strategies and plans about how to deal with zombies. Any site can tell you the most important part, SHOOT THEM IN THE HEAD! thats about 70% of what you need to know, and the rest is usually picked up by trial and error. people will die, but we can survive the…excuse me, “zombpocolipse” if we work together and have a little faith in mankind.
Dr. Detroit on 16 Mar 2008 at 6:21 pm #
Do you feel that the average person will survive the initial attack and post-zombie world?
No. Most people, myself included, lack basic survival skills (well i can shoot fine, that counts for something). We depend on others for virtually all we have. We just make money and exchange it. We don’t know how to work without electricity, we can’t grow crops, we can’t hunt/prepare game, we can’t make clothing etc so on so forth. Society will need organization and rebuilding, along with education in how to do basically everything from the ground up. Sure not everyone needs to know each thing, but enough people must cooperate to make human society work again. Remember: Almost everyone will be dead.
How can one reasonably prepare for such long-term, long-lasting events?
Learn long term knowledge. Supplies only last so long. Theres the Zombicaust and then theres AFTER the Zombicaust.
splint.chesthair on 18 Mar 2008 at 9:30 am #
I think there’s a difference between the military getting organized for a zombie attack and the zero hours when infection starts taking place, like the eerie beginning of the new Dawn of the Dead. When nobody knows what’s going on and the infection causes and transmission aren’t known a lot of mistakes are going to happen. Military and police/security personnel will become infected during this stage and likely spread the infection to others. If the average military personnel sees one of their mates getting sick, with no other knowledge, the first inclination isn’t going to be “shoot them in the head”. I think we might underestimate how fast 1 infected person could spread the infection to a military group in the initial stages. If military leaders are part of that infection, then future organization of the military becomes less likely. All it take is for a group of guys coming back from a weekend leave all infected to spread the infection across the base.
ZzDeuceX on 22 Mar 2008 at 12:06 pm #
The question is: How long would it really take to figure out that these people are not sick? the question is not IF we will find out. Assuming that the military was not ready, and the infection took out whole cities, if you take cues from movies like “dawn of the dead”, an entire military instillation can be taken down, but a few ragtag people can lay the smack-down all day. I dont even mean the main characters, I mean the “search and destroy teams” seen on the tv in the movie. They said it outloud. “just shoot’em in the head. they seem to stay down permanantly if you just shoot’em in the head.” if some ragtags can figure that much out, are you suggesting that the military cannot? or even the basic level grunt? The answer to that question is: Not long. we’ve all seen the movies, and read the books, and played the games. Everyone knows the rules. Panic? maybe. Full extinction of the human race? not by far. Unless the Zeds take a cue from Resident Evil (sorry about all the movie references, im just in that kind of mood…) And start turning into giant monsters, We dont just have a chance, we have the advantage.
Zach on 23 Apr 2008 at 4:59 pm #
As Im reading this I’ve noticed that most people, especially the uber gung-ho kill`emall folks, are assuming that the deadheads will be slow shuffling things that are only dangerous in a herd. So what Im wondering is, should we be contemplating, instead of weak little “infectios-violent-retardation” victims, that a small child good take with a bit of luck, the possibility that the Zeds will be fast deadly killing machines. After all, since we assume that deadheadness is caused by a virus, and evolution and survival of the fittest would lean towards the virus improving, at least temporary, the effectiveness of the host, so that it (the virus) might be spread further and faster, since they primary mode of transfer is through the bite. Also in this scenario there is no reason to assume reduced intelligence, just hampered judgment skills. What I mean is the zombie would still be smart enough to know guns hurt, but would still be savage enough to crave man flesh. I ask about the intelligence because brain damage kills, so that would imply the brain is more or less whole and functioning to begin with.
ZzDeuceX on 27 Apr 2008 at 10:53 pm #
It is not the whole of the brain that functions, but the frontal loba and the madula oblongata(although weakly) in the back. This is what causes the drop in intelligence. Zombies would be slow because their muscles can no longer repair themselves and would breakdown at a faster rate than ours. During the first hour, or even day, we may deal with fast moving zombies, but afterward the constant moving at maximum speed would slow them to little more than a crawl. Fresh zombies run, unless they are cold, deads get dead easy when their nine days old.(anyone catch that nursery rhyme?) Lets assume for a moment that we ARE dealing with relatively smart, fast moving, strong as they were the day thaey died Zombies. Thats little more than a massive riot. which anyone who has ever lived in detroit will tell you, they get put down pretty fast. Throw in the use of deadly force, and you have a pile of deader bodies in no time. Im not pro gung ho kick zombie ass guys, but I am anti-lets all assume the zombies just roll over us like were all a bunch of numb skulls like them.
Jesse L on 30 May 2008 at 3:11 pm #
I think that the only people that are capable of surviving are the ones that are prepared, such as the people that use this site and others like it. If we don’t stay informed we will most likely be totally unprepared for a zombie apocalypse.
ZombieSlayer on 04 Jun 2008 at 1:59 pm #
I feel like such a nerd for saying this, but in the MArvel Zombies story by Kirkman (author of the Walking Dead) Mr Fantastic sees the virus as the ultimate form of evolution. You no longer need your lungs or your liver to survive, the body is doing without it.
Now, in response to the slow vs fast, classic vs 28’s, the problem is that depending on your mythos that you adhere to, the problems are entirely different (rigor mortis vs starvation). Frankly, I’d rather deal with running zombies that die in a month than slow walkers that will out-last you.
But what I’m “in favor” of doesn’t matter in the slightest. What matters is that when the fecal matters hits the air oscillator, you remain calm, have a plan and stick to it to the best of your ability.
In response to Dr Detroit, it doesn’t matter that we don’t necessarily know HOW to do a lot of things (survive without electricity, grow a garden, etc). What matters is that you know ABOUT these things. Realizing that you might want to grow something is a lot smarter than never trying. At least knowing THAT things grow will allow you the forethought to put some seeds in the ground and water them on a semi-regular basis. The HOW comes in later with seasons and soil and pests etc, but simply knowing sbout these things may be enough to survive.
My biggest fear is really the fact that in situations like these, the food supplies will evaporate quickly and then people panic once again (almost as bad as Z-day) when they realize they have no food. Then every game animal within 100 miles will be dead as a door nail, poached so one person can eat a steak before he dies. Any plant worth eating berries or leaves? Gone, uprooted by some backward executive still trying to think outside the box.
If you want to survive long enough to see if the Nat Geo’s or History Channel’s predictions are correct? Learn to grow a garden, save some seeds, try fasting once a month to allow your body to recognize the pangs of hunger. Exercise and stay in good health. Being healthy and fit when Z-day comes could very well be the best survival choice you could make!
Stay alert. Stay alive.
callan mcauliffe on 10 Jun 2008 at 6:22 pm #
i do belive that the best thing to do would be, altough a very sad thing to do, kill anyone who has been bitten, get to the tops of buildings and whithout nourishment, the zombies would become slow and weak, allowing for an armoured assault from the army and any forces we have, support from other parts of the country could come in from around the citiy, exterminating roaming zombies. the lack of food could be fixed by forms of air delivery, droping crates from planes full of healthy food and communication devices.
the fact is that a zombie attack would not be that hard for the world to handle, if the whole world was at stake, blow up the town, and if not that, extinguish the zombies with heavily armoured soldiers, with all skin covered to prevent biting, no rocket launchers only heavy machine guns and armoured cars with turrets, get proper bull bars on the fronts of all assaulting vehicles, with bullet proof, unbreakable windows. air assaults with small bombs and extended millimetre bullets. helicopters flying around lloking for survivers, picking people up and dropping off soldiers, taking the people to safe cities.
we have the stuff to take down the zombies, the only problem is saving yourself, not extinguishing the zombies, it might cost alot of lives as everyone woul have to be killed, everyone.
Kasper on 25 Jun 2008 at 7:24 am #
Somewhere there is probably a formula for survival rate set up in a geek’s excel, taking into account speed and spread. I think humanity will survive, the question is how many. If the initial police central response to the reports is too low-powered, an urban outbreak will be bad. But imagine a rural one. Small town-ships have disappeared from time to time without anyone knowing for several days (improper treatment of nitrous fertilizer have been involved in at least two such cases). If the zombies spread evenly throughout the landscape, infect a trucker or two, it all starts getting complicated.
The current military of most countries could put down the infection, if spotted in time. But what of those that could not? In much of Europe, obtaining a gun requires at least a fair amount of paper-work, and many don’t have one. I doubt the Russian military truly could contain an area the size of Siberia, or the Canadians control their huge forests. And what about the billions of Indians and Chinese, many of which are close together and poor? The US would likely face a whole new brand of unwanted immigrants from it’s south, not to mention the refugees who would want to hide behind the most advanced army in the world. When they closed their borders to the refugees, transportation of illegals would become immensely more valuable, and someone infected is bound to tag along now and then, resulting in recurring “uprisings”. This influx of refugees of unknown virulence could possibly collapse the big players, depending on the speed with which the zombies die out.
I believe humanity would survive, but greatly decimated. There are too many islands in Micronesia for all to get infected, that’s one. There are many very isolated, militarized, or just plain old fortified position that could last a fair while, and likely outlive the crisis. Gibraltar is pretty much a fortress, Taiwan is heavily militarized for it’s size, Greenland would likely dispose of most zombies by means of weather and distance.
I don’t think big, “open” cities could be properly controlled, even by good response squads, because the zom-vir incubation time would make it difficult to trap all zombies at once. The moment people hear the authorities commanding anyone with a scratch mark to turn themselves in for quarantine, some scratches are gonna make a run for it instead, that’s human nature. Some will succeed, that’s the thing with large populations.
Head for the hills, and stock up on canned food. Owning a copy of “Gardening for Dummies” would surely help anyone after out-lasting the zombies in a high-casualty scenario, but many farmers live in the Middle of Nowhere, or at least Far from Anywhere. With a variety of heavy machinery, tools, dogs, frequently used muscles and livestock, I suppose farmers would likely have a decent survival rate as compared to the nurses treating the first wave of victims. With surviving food production, a very large survivor population is really quite unnecessary.
Rufomagus on 06 Jul 2008 at 9:18 pm #
Reading through the post I think there is a very good chance of us as a species surviving - regardless of whether it is a classic z outbreak or a 28 days type of outbreak.
One of the posts talks about quarantine, I think after a few days people will get pretty nervous about anyone with injuries, so there will probably be quarantine by default, if you know what I mean. There will be evidence of cause and effect, people will know that a zombie inflicted injury means you become a zombie because they or those they trust will have seen and told others. This is the way humans work, especially in a crisis.
I can seem people getting thrown out of secured areas because of scratches, people get mighty jumpy when their lives are on the line. This sort of thing used to happen during historical plague outbreaks. Towns would get sealed from “outsiders” and if anyone thought you might be diseased, out you went into the wilds. Of course that just meant the plagues spread better, but I digress.
The adjustment to a post z apocalypse is probably the easy part, surviving the initial outbreak the hardest. Things like food supplies, fuel, medical supplies etc will diminish over time - the big problem will be fuel, get water in gasoline stores and you got problems.
Yes, being ex-military I think at least armed groups of soldiers would figure out what was going on and do some serious culling pretty quickly. Probably set up secure compounds as well, depending on how far into chaos we fall, which in turn is determined by how quickly the “powers that be” figure out that one, there is a problem and two how to deal with it.
The serious modifier of outcomes though is from the time of initial outbreak to the time of “realisation”; figuring out what the problem is and what the solution is. If if the infection transmission is as effective as one bite one zombie - 10zeds could make 10 new zeds in seconds, that could equate to 1zed creating 60zeds per minute in a best case senario, this would then be exponential. Plug that into your excel spreadsheet and then reaction time by the government is explained.
The only really bad outlook scenario is one where the zombification carries over to animals - then, bye bye, we are done for.
fullmetal d-ross on 31 Oct 2008 at 12:07 am #
I think one of the larger problems here is, yeah, it’s great to have a zombie action plan, but when it comes down to it: can you really pull it off? It’s like how you can’t know if you could ever kill someone until you are put IN THAT SITUATION. Also; I highly doubt the government will have any clue as to how to deal with the undead, so expect most of them to be cleaned out before they get a firm grasp of it. As for me, my choicest situation would be to first secure an island large enough to be self sustained, and live out my days without the fear of zombies breaking through my fortress.