A survivalist should always be aware of his or her surroundings, but I’ll take that a step further by saying the survivalist should also be aware of the advantages and disadvantages inherent to the buildings they occupy. Doing a visual analysis of the structure you inhabit can help determine its defensibility, even if you’re only going to be there for a few minutes.

I always do a visual scan of any room or building I enter, even though the SHTF hasn’t happened. I usually look for escape routes, but I look for defendable positions too. 

I didn’t notice this habit of mine until I met with a friend for lunch at the Downtown Hyatt in Houston, Texas. He was running late, so I sat in the lobby and casually looked around the building. 

What I Saw

The open trapezoidal interior of the structure allows occupants to have a line of sight to the lobby from almost any floor. However, what truly makes the building a potential fortress are the triangular structural supports. These are cosmetic by design, but allow defenders to use them as make-shift embrasures (similar to medieval castles). 

A defender could position himself behind one of these and have a wide field of view and fire. 

The problem is in the cosmetic nature of the supports. I don’t have access to the building’s blueprints, and I’m not going to red-flag myself trying to get them[1]. So, there’s no way of knowing how much of the support strut is hollow. It’s a good guess the triangular supports enclose a circular concrete beam, which is pretty standard for buildings such as this hotel. 

But, that’s just a guess. 

Why am I going into such technical details?

Well, there’s a difference between the support pillars on the first and second floors, which is where any serious defense would take place. The pillars on the first floor are covered in stone or marble, but the triangular pillars on the second floor have drywall. That means the first-floor supports are more likely to provide complete coverage, than those on the second floor. 

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That’s as far as I got in my initial observation of the building before my friend showed up. We ate lunch and chatted as we normally do. When he went back to work, I decided to hang around and take notes on the details that make the building a good or bad place to occupy if civilization were to collapse. 

The Good

The good points are based on the benefits the building itself can provide. I’ll cover what will make this building useless later. 

1. Natural light shines from the opaque roof and can easily light the entire hotel. 
2. There’s plenty of places to hide and each floor offers a vantage point to target any invader walking through the lobby. 
3. The building has access to Downtown Houston’s Pedestrian tunnel system. Assuming the tunnels aren’t flooded, an army could discretely send forces to neighboring buildings. This could allow the defenders to flank a sieging force and catch them off guard.
4. Multi-floor buildings with floors that aren’t sealed off tend to provide natural air conditioning. This is possible, even if all the hotel windows are shattered, because natural subduction of cold air from the upper floors will ensure the lower levels remain cool. 

The Bad

There are a lot of things which make this particular building a bad home for a survivalist.

1. The building is located in the heart of the 3^rd largest city in the USA and probably won’t even exist if a nuclear war happens. 
2. Even if nuclear war isn’t the cause of a civilization-ending disaster, our government loves to repurpose hotels as hospitals, troop/refugee housing, and storage facilities. Meaning, the building will likely be occupied before you try to stake a claim.
3. If you’ve noticed how this building could be a good asset, someone else has too. You’ll need to fight off wave after wave of people trying to take this stronghold away from you. But, as previously mentioned, at least the building is built for defense.

The Takeaway

I used this hotel as an example of how someone can evaluate the strategic advantages a building or room may have, so they stand a better chance of survival. However, a hotel in the heart of a city is not be the same as a house in the wilderness, but the same principles apply. A visual analysis can help you recognize where the sturdiest places are, so you can plan out where to go for shelter or escape if attacked.

For example, everyone should know that sheetrock is not bulletproof. Hell, most exterior doors and walls aren’t bulletproof either. If anything in a house is going to stop the average bullet[2], it would be brick. But not that façade crap. That shit is barely 1-inch thick! I’m talking about the brickwork around a fireplace.

If you don’t have a fireplace, another relatively safe location is a basement or sub-floor.

Evaluate the defensibility of your home and make emergency plans with your family… and practice those plans. Practicing helps to make sure your family automatically knows what to do when a real attack happens.

Modern-Day Application

I’ll close by saying that being more aware of your surroundings and the buildings you occupy can benefit you while doing every day activities… before the SHTF. Do a quick review of your surroundings every time you enter a structure. Be sure to look for possible escape routes and places where you can hide or take cover.

Examining your surroundings could help you survive longer.

The tiniest details can make a difference to your survival. Even something as simple as locating the nearest fire exit could help you survive in an emergency. I can’t tell you how many times I worked in an office and learned that my colleagues didn’t know where the fire exit or freight elevator[3],[4] was located.

Don’t be like those ditzy coworkers of mine.

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[1] Public Blueprints & Red-Flag: Once a blueprint to a structure has been submitted to a municipality for approval, they are generally public records and available to anyone wanting to view them… technically. 

Requesting such documents could make the city official suspicious and that person may report your inquiry to the authorities. They’re still required to produce the records, if they still exist, but a suspicious government employee will work EVEN SLOWER than you though possible. You will get your records, but now the government knows you have them and will pay more attention to your activities.

[2] The Average Bullet: Did you notice how I added emphasis when I said “the average bullet?” I did that to preempt the typical AR-loving know-it-all who may feel compelled to point out the exception to anything. Yes, if you’re being attacked by armor-piercing assault rounds… nowhere is safe. The only shield you can rely on in that situation is a combination of stealth and luck.

Unless you have ESP or are clairvoyant, you can’t possibly know what an attacker will throw at you until it happens. So, any plan is better than no plan.

[3] Freight Elevator to Escape: Use your best judgement when evaluating how to react to any hostile or deadly situation. A freight elevator could be used as a potential escape route, but they usually make an audible “ding” or “beep.” Such sounds could alert an attacker to where more victims are located.

Also, always follow the instructions of emergency response personnel. They are trained to handle many situations and may have more knowledge of the situation than you.

[4] Freight Elevator before the SHTF: In addition to being a possible escape from an active shooter, a freight elevator could be a convenient shortcut to get to the ground floor. Hardly anyone uses them, which means you probably won’t have to stand in a crowded elevator that stops at almost every floor in the building.

Although, the maintenance workers may start giving you side-eye glances.