BLUF: The following is an experience shared from John, a Close Protection Officer with Diplomatic Security operating in Lebanon, Syria and South Africa. He is the founder of Charlie Mike Concepts and below is a story that implores the prepared civilian to carry essential tools, such as a flashlight.
John’s Story
“This was a regular Tuesday. As I lived in a relatively low-income area of Beirut, the power outages, being a daily occurrence, bathed the whole area in a state of darkness. Moonlight that night offered compensation. It was around 0230. I escorted my lady down the stairs from my second story flat, to the obscured entrance of a 60 year-old building.
“Her car, parked parallel to mine, which was parallel to my building, was about 10ft from the entrance, in a closed-for-circulation street, doubling as a parking lot. She got in, rolled down the windows and we got to chatting.
“Leaning back in my car, I kept my head on a swivel, given the time of night, the level of darkness and certainly the type of neighborhood (at the time, we had a couple of prostitutes renting the ground floor flat, attracting thugs, drug dealers and similarly unsavory individuals).
“I noticed a young man, slender, about 5’7”, with a hoodie and a small backpack, approaching from the right-side end of the street. He passed the entrance, alongside my car, all the way to the other end of the street, turned and headed back – minding his own business. With hands in his pockets, he made an effort to keep his face concealed, and had a totally unfamiliar build and demeanor. He made the trip twice, then the third time, vanished near the entrance.
“The lady I was with immediately noticed a change in my posture.
Her: What’s wrong?
Me: He entered the building.
Her: Meaning?
Me: Meaning I’m gonna have to deal with him.
“At that point I asked her to leave, waited till she was gone and headed back to the entrance, knowing all too well there’s a chance the young man could be lurking in there.
“The tricky part about my building entrance is that it’s a hallway of about 40ft, no illumination, with the stairs in a U-shape, starting at the far-right side, towards the end, after a corner wall. That corner offered ‘THE’ tactical spot, for someone whom, hidden from sight, could just as easily knock you out with a surprise blow, and you wouldn’t even know what hit you. The best prey being an unconscious one.
“As I have to clear that corner in order to reach the stairs, I made it another habit to navigate that hallway entrance by clearing first the left one, a 45 degree corner, and then the right one. That procedure was applicable irrespective of company, illumination, or time of day. The way to do that is to clear the left corner by progressing on the right-side wall, then crossing to the far left, in order to clear the right corner with as much reactionary gap as possible.
“My EDC always consisted of a tactical flashlight, among other essentials “tools,” in addition to an ankle worn I-FAK (Individual First Aid Kit).
“I slowly entered the hallway (using the blade of my feet), flashlight in my right hand, and shone it (using its brightest setting) towards the end. I cleared the left corner, while making sure I am [sic] aware of the situation on the opposite one. Then, switching hands, proceeded to clear the right corner, shining the light at head level, with my left hand extended all the way to the side.
“And there he is, pressed against the wall, standing there facing me with his hands in his pockets like a deer in the headlights. I kept the light on his face for a couple of seconds, then lowered it to his torso.
“Me (in a thick, assertive tone): What are you doing here, sir?
Him: Hummmm, I’m waiting for an Uber. (I could tell he was lying.)
Me: Why don’t you wait outside.
Him: I dunno the area and I’m uncomfortable being outside.
Me: If you wanna wait inside, go ahead and stand in the middle of the hallway, towards the entrance, so that people will notice you before they get in. Your current position, in complete darkness, will baffle someone and they might overreact by hitting you.
Him: Ok.
“He then proceeded to stand in the middle, takes out his phone, and starts texting. The whole time, the flashlight was kept on him, and he could tell neither my age, size nor build.
“Leaving him be, I then took the stairs, naturally clearing the path ahead with the flashlight, got to my flat, went outside and waited on the balcony overlooking the street. Sure enough, 5 minutes later, he stepped out as his friend showed up, then both went inside, for some good time. As they say, all’s well that ends well.
“The reason I had the flashlight at arm’s length, to the side, is that in case it becomes a target, my head/torso are still in the clear, and I have time to react. Had I been on my phone, distracted, and walking by the right wall, taking the shortest path towards the stairs, and had he meant to rob/harm me, I would have made the perfect prey.
Debrief:
“Learn how to tactically navigate your environment (street, building, work). Always test your gear (EDC) in relevant operational conditions; you will find out any failure points BEFORE you actually need it in a hairy situation. Stay off your phone in transitional spaces. Always carry a DEDICATED flashlight, with high lumen/candela instead of relying on your phone’s flashlight for the following reasons:
“Flashlight
– Focused beam that can blind attackers
– Long throw over a good distance
– Good grip, hard to knock out of your hand
– Quickly deployable and easily activated in a stressful situation/with wet hands
– Good strike weapon, especially the sharp-beveled ones (or DNA catchers)
– Does not reveal your face (no backlighting)
“Mobile Phone
– No focused beam
– Ambient light, short throw
– Lousy grip, easily knocked out of your hand
– Takes time to deploy, difficult to activate in similar conditions
– Not ideal as a strike weapon (expensive)
– Screen light will reveal your face, decreasing your ability to see in the dark.
“You are your own protector and first responder. Invest in acquiring the necessary skills (Situational Awareness, First Aid, Body Language), and train until you reach ‘Unconscious Competence.'”
– John
BRIEF: Carrying essentials on your person can aid in daily tasks or survival. Your carry varies day-to-day but a baseline set of EDC should be worn/carried and adjusted to increase preparedness when expecting a LAE.
Baseline Carry: Basic supplies for daily tasks.
》Basics – Wallet/Purse, Cash/Credit/ID, Keys, Phone
》Supplies – Pen/Pencil/Marker, Paper/Notepad
》Wear – Sunglasses, Hat, Watch, Handkerchief
》Tools – Multitool, Lighter, Knife, Flashlight
Prepared Carry: Circumstantial equipment for heightened threats.
》Defense – Handgun (concealed), Spare Mag/s
》Medical – Tourniquet, IFAK, N95
》Survival – Handcuff Key, Whistle, Compass, Map, PSK (Personal Survival Kit), SERE Kit
Note: While this is a lengthy list, if carefully selected and positioned in an appropriate carry location, most items can go unnoticed and will not be cumbersome. A more detailed explanation and walkthrough is available in the 💾EDC/PSK Guide.
This article was originally written by the Grayman Briefing. Stay in the know. Sign up for Intel and Situational Awareness alerts pushed to your phone on emerging threats and preparedness warnings. Click HERE to subscribe to the Grayman Briefing.
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