Survivalist spends tens of thousands of dollars stockpiling 18 MONTHS worth of supplies, including 192 tins of spam (which he doesn't even like), as he fears coronavirus outbreak could cause financial collapse
- Jesse Colombo has 240lbs of rice, 192 cans of spam, and large bags of uncooked beans, among masses of other items stockpiled in his Texas home
- He has spent 'easily tens of thousands of dollars' and says it's 'basically an insurance policy against chaos'
- 'What you're seeing right here is about a year and a half's worth,' Colombo told CBS DFW in a TV interview
- He doesn't like spam but the product, originally created by Hormel for the U.S. military, was designed to have a very long shelf-life
- 'Ever since the global financial crisis hit, that was a wake up call to me that I need to be prepared,' the financial analyst said
- His favorite meal is Texan-style BBQ ribs and vanilla Keto ice cream but he's preparing for a possible economic collapse caused by the coronavirus outbreak
A North Texas man has spent tens of thousands of dollars on stockpiling non-perishable goods amid the coronavirus outbreak, even though the state has no confirmed cases of COVID-19.
Jesse Colombo has 240lbs of rice, masses of dried beans and even 192 cans of spam in his stash that could last 18 months, but admits he doesn't even like the canned meat.
He joins other Americans and people across the world who have rushed to buy items as panic spreads and infections increase.
'What you're seeing right here is about a year and a half's worth,' Colombo told CBS DFW. 'Easily tens of thousands of dollars. It's basically an insurance policy against chaos.'
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Jesse Colombo has 240lbs of rice, among masses of other items stockpiled in his Texas home. The state has no confirmed cases of COVID-19
Colombo said: 'What you're seeing right here is about a year and a half's worth. Easily tens of thousands of dollars'
Colombo joked Tuesday alongside an image of his shopping cart piled high: 'I've just cleaned my local Walmart out of its supply of Vienna Sausages and DAK ham'
Colombo, who is a financial analyst in Dallas, Texas, tweeted a photo of his emergency food pile, including rice, Spam, freeze-dried foods and beans
Colombo has six cases of Spam in his living room as a backup because the product, originally created by Hormel for the U.S. military, was designed to have a very long shelf-life.
The ham product sits alongside a dozen 20-pound bags of rice and mounts of canned Vienna sausage.
He wouldn't usually chose to eat this way: His Twitter profile last month showed him enjoying his favorite meal of Texan-style BBQ ribs and vanilla Keto ice cream.
But Colombo is an economic analyst and claims he learned a lesson in preparation from the 2008 financial crisis.
'Ever since the global financial crisis hit, that was a wake up call to me that I need to be prepared,' Colombo said.
Colombo warns about dangerous bubbles and was recognized by the London Times for predicting the Global Financial Crisis, according to his Twitter profile.
He wouldn't usually chose to eat this way: His Twitter profile last month showed him enjoying his favorite meal of Texan-style BBQ ribs and vanilla Keto ice cream
He's falling back on large bags of uncooked beans in case times get tough and an economic collapse occurs due to the coronavirus outbreak
Colombo has also made sure he has access to clean drinking water amid the COVID-19 panic. Right, he demonstrates to how to use a device to purify water
He's convinced medicine, water and meals that are ready to eat should be hoarded at a time like this.
'My immediate concern is not so much getting coronavirus, it's more so economic collapse is caused by the coronavirus outbreak,' he continued. 'I believe everyone should be prepared.'
For long-term food storage he has a preparedness pail in his home.
The 40 days and 40 nights kit contains formulas for pancakes, rolled oats, miso, superfood, green lentils, brown rice, quinoa, black beans, pinto beans, garbanzo beans and millet.
Colombo joked Tuesday alongside an image of his shopping cart piled high.
'I've just cleaned my local Walmart out of its supply of Vienna Sausages and DAK ham. I was definitely getting some interesting looks!' he captioned the picture.
One purchases he made can store up to a gallon of fresh drinking water in an emergency
For long-term food storage he has a preparedness pail (left) in his home. There's also a medical kit on hand (right)
His home is piled with boxes of disposable utensils and he has a backpack on hand
Colombo has collected items to store up to 100 gallons of fresh water. He also has boxes of disposable utensils, medical kits and protective nose and mouth masks.
However the government has advised citizens against using in an effort to protect themselves from contracting coronavirus.
Still, the masks have been selling out in many areas as the number of global infections reached 94,102 on Wednesday and 3,220 deaths.
In the US 137 people were confirmed with the infection and nine people had died.
Colombo keeps a backpack beside his stash just in case.
Colombo said he's preparing for an economic collapse caused by the coronavirus outbreak. 'It's basically an insurance policy against chaos,' he said. Pictured, shoppers at Costco in Brooklyn panic buy water, tissue and Clorox products after New York confirmed its second case
Other people on social media have shared images of their hoarding.
An LA couple's stash included instant lunches, noodle cups and saltine cracker boxes piled high.
'I'm deeply concerned for our sodium levels,' Esmerelda Bermudez joked about her husband's shopping choices. 'But this made me laugh so hard and love him even more.'
Another Twitter user was more concerned with amassing medicines, vitamins and teas to soothe symptoms.
Across the world people have been collecting toilet paper en mass too.
One man with vacuum sealed tissue rolls tweeted: 'Everyone makes fun of the prepper until s**t hits the fan.'
A woman in LA showed off her collection of saltine crackers and noodle cups (above)
The LA woman's husband had stocked up on ready-to-eat meals that were high in sodium
One prepared Twitter user amassed teas, medicines and roasted hazelnuts amid the panic
Around the world supermarket carts have been filled with large quantities of toilet paper
In Australia people were baffled about why toilet paper was in such high demand
But one social media user explained that preparation is key at a time like this
In the US, 137 people were confirmed with the infection and nine people had died by Wednesday morning
