With Halloween coming up – and a certain popular zombie-themed show coming back to TV with a new season – a lot of us have zombies on the brain…pun intended. Have you ever thought about where you would hide if the walking dead came looking for a meal in your neighborhood?
According to a set of data created by Hopper.com, Nebraska scores very low on the list of states that would survive a zombie apocalypse. Because the state is mostly flat, zombies will be able to cover ground quickly. There’s a lot of space between towns, so there aren’t enough places for survivors to stock up on and replenish their supplies. But with some careful planning and a lot of luck, you may be able to wait out the oncoming apocalypse by heading to one of these safe(ish) places.
- An abandoned farm in the Sandhills.
flickr/susincameron Getting away from the infected and into an isolated place might be your best bet. The Sandhills is so sparsely populated that it wouldn’t be hard to find an isolated place to set up camp. Without any big buildings in the way you’d be able to see for miles around, so you’d spot any hordes of roving zombies headed your way.The negative aspect of this plan? Being in the middle of nowhere, there’s nowhere to restock your supplies. And if you aren’t as vigilant as you should be, a farm can quickly be taken over by brain-eaters.
- The buttes and bluffs of western Nebraska.
flickr/J. Stephen Conn Zombies can’t climb these big rocks. Let’s be honest - most living humans can’t, either. Hiking up to the very top would be arduous, but may help keep you from becoming zombie food. Be sure to keep away from wooded areas, though. Zombies love to hide in the woods and pounce on tasty brains.The downsides of this plan are many. You’re far away from supplies, you’re likely to fall on the rocks and sustain serious injuries (good luck finding a doctor to help you out), and once you get up to the top, you’d be trapped there if zombies started to congregate at the base of the rocks.
- Far from the cities.
flickr/Katrina J Houdek In densely-populated places, the virus or infection or whatever is turning humans into killer zombies will spread like crazy. Get away from the cities to increase your chances of surviving the disaster.The drawbacks of this plan? Leaving the city behind means leaving vital supplies behind.
- If you get stuck in Omaha, head for the Civic Auditorium.
Wikimedia/JonClee86 The huge, now-disused compound could be a safe place to hunker down, provided you could fortify all of the entrances and glass doors and windows against zombie break-ins.Of course, if the situation is anything like The Walking Dead, you’d likely be stuck inside with a ton of strangers. Those strangers may or may not be friendly when it comes down to dividing rations and deciding how to govern the little population.
- Offutt Air Force Base.
flickr/Offutt Air Force Base Provided the military personnel are un-zombied and willing to take in refugees, Offutt would be a reasonably good place to seek refuge. There are underground bunkers to hide out in and tons of weapons, food, and other supplies…for a while, at least. Plus, there are planes there - as long as someone who knows how to fly them has survived, you might be able to evacuate.The negatives: if one person is infected on the enclosed, secure base, it’ll spread like wildfire. And unless you’re a VIP or in the military, your chances of getting into the compound at all seem pretty slim.
- Fort Atkinson.
Wikimedia/MONGO This reconstructed 19th century Army post is located on a bluff, giving you a good view of your surroundings. Zombies would have a very hard time climbing up the rocks to get at your tasty, fresh brains. You’d have an amazing vantage point from which to shoot any approaching living dead. The barracks can house around 1000 people, so you’d be able to get a nice little community started. It’s close (but not TOO close) to a couple of cities, so you’d have the opportunity to restock supplies easily.The downside? You’d have to descend from the sort-of safe bluff to restock, leaving you vulnerable to attack on your way there and back. Plus, there are bound to be some power struggles when that many people try to live together in a stressful situation.
Obviously we don’t really believe a zombie apocalypse is actually on the way, but maybe it wouldn’t hurt to think like a survivalist for a minute. That way you’ll be prepared for whatever the future does bring.
flickr/susincameron
Getting away from the infected and into an isolated place might be your best bet. The Sandhills is so sparsely populated that it wouldn’t be hard to find an isolated place to set up camp. Without any big buildings in the way you’d be able to see for miles around, so you’d spot any hordes of roving zombies headed your way.The negative aspect of this plan? Being in the middle of nowhere, there’s nowhere to restock your supplies. And if you aren’t as vigilant as you should be, a farm can quickly be taken over by brain-eaters.
flickr/J. Stephen Conn
Zombies can’t climb these big rocks. Let’s be honest - most living humans can’t, either. Hiking up to the very top would be arduous, but may help keep you from becoming zombie food. Be sure to keep away from wooded areas, though. Zombies love to hide in the woods and pounce on tasty brains.The downsides of this plan are many. You’re far away from supplies, you’re likely to fall on the rocks and sustain serious injuries (good luck finding a doctor to help you out), and once you get up to the top, you’d be trapped there if zombies started to congregate at the base of the rocks.
flickr/Katrina J Houdek
In densely-populated places, the virus or infection or whatever is turning humans into killer zombies will spread like crazy. Get away from the cities to increase your chances of surviving the disaster.The drawbacks of this plan? Leaving the city behind means leaving vital supplies behind.
Wikimedia/JonClee86
The huge, now-disused compound could be a safe place to hunker down, provided you could fortify all of the entrances and glass doors and windows against zombie break-ins.Of course, if the situation is anything like The Walking Dead, you’d likely be stuck inside with a ton of strangers. Those strangers may or may not be friendly when it comes down to dividing rations and deciding how to govern the little population.
flickr/Offutt Air Force Base
Provided the military personnel are un-zombied and willing to take in refugees, Offutt would be a reasonably good place to seek refuge. There are underground bunkers to hide out in and tons of weapons, food, and other supplies…for a while, at least. Plus, there are planes there - as long as someone who knows how to fly them has survived, you might be able to evacuate.The negatives: if one person is infected on the enclosed, secure base, it’ll spread like wildfire. And unless you’re a VIP or in the military, your chances of getting into the compound at all seem pretty slim.
Wikimedia/MONGO
This reconstructed 19th century Army post is located on a bluff, giving you a good view of your surroundings. Zombies would have a very hard time climbing up the rocks to get at your tasty, fresh brains. You’d have an amazing vantage point from which to shoot any approaching living dead. The barracks can house around 1000 people, so you’d be able to get a nice little community started. It’s close (but not TOO close) to a couple of cities, so you’d have the opportunity to restock supplies easily.The downside? You’d have to descend from the sort-of safe bluff to restock, leaving you vulnerable to attack on your way there and back. Plus, there are bound to be some power struggles when that many people try to live together in a stressful situation.
What do you think? If zombies did start to take over Nebraska, where would you go to hide?
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