IMPROVISED EMERGENCY SIGNALING

when your survival emergency equipment has failed because of loss or damage you should have the knowledge to replace it by making improvised signals signals that can readily be used and seen to enable the search crews to locate and rescue you your first concern and emergency signaling is to select the best site it should be visible from the ground as well as the air it should be large enough so that signals can be seen and won't be hidden by shadows from surrounding trees or terrain features and if materials are needed for signaling there should be an adequate supply nearby a location that meets all these requirements is an ideal site for contacting either air or ground search one of the most effective visual signals is fire in the daytime it's the smoke that attracts attention signal fires have to be prepared well in advance so they can be quickly lit when needed along with the dry fuel you will also need tender and kindling that will ignite quickly and burn hot you need smoke producing materials to such as green foliage or vegetation well these are woven into a protective cap they also serve to protect the fire materials from weather green foliage or vegetation gives off a greyish white smoke which can be seen clearly against a dark background in heavily wooded areas such as jungles it takes a hot fire to carry the smoke above the foliage when the fire is hot enough you'll get a rippling in the foliage caused by the strong updraft of heat it also takes a hot fire to carry smoke through the inversion layers caused by variations and upper air temperatures black smoke is better for light colored backgrounds such as desert sand or snow this kind of smoke is produced by burning rubber materials from your aircraft or personal equipment the pitchi root systems of coniferous trees such as spruce or pine also produced black smoke at night it's the life of a fire that scene three signal fires form an International distress signal they are arranged in either a triangle or a straight line so that their smoke columns do not overlap the tree torch is another kind of signal fire for this you need a conifer such as spruce or pine in an open area high on the top or side of a hill it takes a great deal of preparation to produce enough heat to ignite one of these trees but once it's burning a tree torch fire is equally effective day or night and because of its location and size it can be seen from great distances different locations may require different kinds of fire preparation a green log platform or a raised platform base will keep a fire from drowning out in snow or swampy areas another type of visual signal is the ground to air emergency code which is made up of signals designed to attract attention and convey a message in order for the symbols to be seen they must meet certain requirements they should be as large as possible never less than 20 feet long on the shortest leg the width of each leg should be at least 3 feet wide or proportionately wider a 6 to 1 ratio should be used when the symbol is made larger thus for each six feet added in length each leg must be proportionately widened by one foot each signal has a special meaning and they can be combined for example f means need food and water k asks for the direction the survivor is to take X means unable to proceed a triangle indicates that it's probably safe to land here the appearance of the symbol is also very important the line should be straight in the corners sharp so that we get an obviously angular or man-made pattern effect which helps set the symbol apart from its natural surroundings straight lines and angularity always stand out because they are foreign to nature the background of the signal is also extremely important there should always be enough contrast between the signal and its background so that it clearly stands out reddish parachute material should never be used against a green background under certain conditions this red will not be visible contrast can be further heightened by constructing the symbol so that shadows are also produced or by emphasizing the outline of the symbols following these principles symbols and snow covered areas would be made of the colored sections of your parachute or of dark materials such as pine boughs shadows can be used in snow-covered areas when nothing else is available these symbols have to be stamped or dug deeper to get a good shadow the spoil is always piled on the Sun side to make the embankment higher and increase the shadow in northern latitudes symbols are laid out east to west to take advantage of the position of the Sun a desert or barren terrain which provides a light background will also require signals made of dark materials here again shadows are produced by digging trenches and piling up the spoil on the Sun side of the symbol or by building embankment sub sand rocks and brush the shadows produced by these materials make effective signals in tropical regions the symbol should be white if possible however symbols can also be stamped or cut into grassy areas when the grass is high enough you'll also get shadows but the legs of the symbol must be made wider the color contrast remains substantially the same but the texture changes and produces the necessary contrast shadows can also be obtained by building the symbol above ground level using materials stretched out on Stakes or poles dark materials such as freshly turned earth can also be used to darken the shadow improving the contrast in equatorial regions the symbols are laid out north to south to take advantage of the position of the Sun in temperate zones or transitional areas where the background changes with the seasons and the weather the materials used to make the symbols must also be changed to provide necessary visual contrast there are other ways of improvising visual signals for example when a parachute is caught in the trees it serves as a marker particularly if it is spread out however you can't rely on this method alone and it should be supplemented with other signals whenever possible often clear land cannot found and it would require too much work to clear an area in these situations parachutes can be spread over low trees or brush if possible your parachute should be arranged to form a symbol but when this can't be done simply spreading it out will serve to attract attention river banks or sandbars can also be used for signaling in dense areas such as jungles a parachute can even be spread across small streams large parachute strips can also be used to make a marker flag the flag should be attached to a pole long enough to raise it above the surrounding foliage sometimes parachute shelters can also be used for markers at night a small heating or cooking fire transforms the shelter into a large lamp however in order to be seen the shelter's have to be located in open areas the more survival equipment you have the easier it will be to improvise for example a signal mirror can be made from a ration can or a shiny metal object the special advantage of mirrors is that they can be seen from great distances sound can also be used as an emergency signal for ground recovery gunshots whistles shouts or any other man made noises can be used but they should be given in series of threes your main object is to attract attention and you're limited only by your own ingenuity don't rely on one signal the more you use the better your chances of being found and remember the basic principles of emergency signals whether you're using smoke fire parachute or symbols the basic principles are the same size shape angularity and contrast remember too that it is not enough to make good signals you must keep them in good shape so they will remain visible when you're in hostile territory your methods of emergency signaling are necessarily more limited it's more important than ever to attract the attention of search and rescue but at the same time you must avoid detection by the enemy signaling under these conditions becomes far more demanding not only must you keep them sealed and follow your local emergency instructions but you must rely on signals that can be put down and picked up quickly or rely on using the natural environment to make your signal in that case recovery depends on how well you are prepared to use your environment and to take advantage of any and all opportunities you