Car Bomb Kills Libya's Spy Chief as Drone Strikes Ignite Oil Refinery

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Imagine a cracked molar at 10 PM on a Saturday. Pain bad enough to keep you awake. The emergency dentist can’t see me until Monday. A $17 dental emergency kit would have changed your weekend from agony to annoyance.

Here's what I've got this morning:

Dental Emergencies: The Pain Nobody Prepares For

We've covered medical kits extensively (Issues 7, 38, 53, 67). Dental emergencies have been completely absent. Yet tooth pain, broken teeth, lost fillings, and oral infections are among the most common medical complaints during disruptions, and among the least prepared-for.

Temporary filling material (like Dentemp) is the single most important dental prep item. It fills a cavity or replaces a lost filling for days to weeks, reducing pain and preventing further damage. A tube from any pharmacy, about $5 to $9 depending on where you buy it, belongs in every medical kit.

Clove oil (eugenol) is a natural dental analgesic that's been used for centuries. A drop on a cotton ball applied to a painful tooth provides genuine relief. It's available at pharmacies for about $5 and stores for years. The Altons recommend it as a first-line dental pain treatment in austere settings.

Pain management for dental emergencies: ibuprofen is the best OTC option because it reduces both pain and inflammation. Alternating ibuprofen and acetaminophen (every 3 hours, alternating) provides stronger pain control than either alone. Follow dosage instructions on the label.

For a knocked-out tooth: handle it by the crown (not the root). Rinse gently with water. If possible, reinsert it into the socket and bite down on gauze to hold it in place. If you can't reinsert, place the tooth in milk (not water) to preserve it. Get to a dentist within 30 minutes for the best chance of reimplantation.

For a broken tooth: rinse with warm salt water. Apply dental wax or temporary filling material over sharp edges to protect your tongue and cheek. Take pain medication. See a dentist as soon as possible.

For an abscess (swelling, severe pain, possible fever): this is an infection that can become serious. Warm salt water rinses (half teaspoon salt in 8 ounces of warm water) help draw out infection. OTC pain medication manages symptoms. An abscess ultimately requires professional treatment and possibly antibiotics.

The dental emergency kit: Dentemp or similar temporary filling (about $9), clove oil ($5), dental wax ($3), ibuprofen, and a small mirror. Total: about $17. Fits in a zip-lock bag. Belongs in your medical kit.

Add a tube of Dentemp and a bottle of clove oil to your medical supplies.

Total cost: about $14. Both are available at any pharmacy. They address the two most common dental emergencies (lost filling and tooth pain) that leave people miserable for days when professional care isn't available.

America's Dental Access Crisis by the Numbers

183 million Americans go without preventive dental care in a given year, and just 45% saw a dentist at all in 2022, according to the ADA Health Policy Institute. The gap shows up in emergency rooms: 1.8 million ER visits a year are for non-traumatic dental pain, costing $3.4 billion for treatment that doesn't fix the underlying problem. HRSA counts a shortfall of roughly 10,900 dentists nationally, with 58 million people living in designated dental shortage areas.

A $17 dental kit won't close the workforce gap, but it closes the distance between "in pain" and "can wait for an appointment."

Source: ADA Health Policy Institute, HRSA

The Altons address dental emergencies in The Survival Medicine Handbook with a dedicated chapter, noting that dental problems are among the most debilitating non-life-threatening medical issues in any disruption. Their clinical perspective: untreated dental infections can become life-threatening if they spread, and dental pain degrades cognitive function and decision-making.

Their recommendation: a basic dental kit is as essential as a wound care kit. The tools are cheap, compact, and address the most common dental emergencies effectively enough to bridge the gap to professional care. They also recommend Where There Is No Dentist (free PDF) as a comprehensive reference.

The Survival Medicine Handbook: about $30 for the paperback (3rd edition).

Libya's Fragile State Unravels: Assassination, Refinery Strikes, and a Central Bank Exodus

A car bomb killed Gen. Fawzi al-Mansouri, military intelligence chief for eastern Libya's Haftar-aligned government, as he left a mosque in Benghazi. Within 48 hours, drone strikes hit the Zawiya refinery, Libya's largest operational facility, igniting a fire at a 4.5-million-liter fuel tank and destroying a nearby electricity station that cut power to the area. The National Oil Corporation declared a maximum state of emergency, and days later the central bank governor resigned without explanation.

None of this makes headlines domestically, but it's a live example of how fast "stable" energy infrastructure can become a target, and how quickly institutions wobble when one node fails.

Source: ZeroHedge, The National

Dental Emergency Kit (Custom Build)

Our dental kit lives in our medical supplies: Dentemp temporary filling material, clove oil with cotton pellets, dental wax, a dental mirror, floss, ibuprofen, and a printed reference card with instructions for common dental emergencies (from Where There Is No Dentist).

We've used the Dentemp once (on a cracked molar) and the clove oil twice (once for one of us, once for a family member with a toothache). Both worked as described. The kit fits in a sandwich-size zip-lock bag. About $17 total.

Budget alternative: Dentemp (about $9) and ibuprofen. These two items alone handle the most common dental emergency (lost filling with pain) until you can see a dentist.

Dentemp Maximum Strength: about $9 for a single tube.

Overrated: Dental extraction tools in home medical kits. Unless you have specific training (which almost nobody does), attempting to extract a tooth at home risks breaking the root, causing uncontrolled bleeding, or creating a worse infection. Manage pain and seek professional care.

Underrated: Warm salt water rinses. They reduce bacterial load in the mouth, soothe inflamed tissue, and help drain minor infections. Free, available anywhere there's salt and warm water, and effective enough that dentists recommend them after procedures.

Where There Is No Dentist (free online): Comprehensive dental care reference for austere environments.

Doom and Bloom: Dental Preparedness Off the Grid: The Altons' online dental emergency guidance.

ADA: Dental Emergencies: American Dental Association guidance on handling dental crises.

MedlinePlus: Dental Health: Government-run consumer health resource on oral health topics.

Your Dentist's Emergency Line: Save it in your phone now, before you need it at 10 PM on a Saturday.

Extreme wind: derechos, microbursts, and straight-line winds. The severe weather events that don't spin but destroy just as thoroughly.

PS: After adding the dental kit for my own bag, I've used it once in eight months. The clove oil and Dentemp reduced the pain from unbearable to manageable within 15 minutes. A $17 kit that I'd never considered before. Now I can't imagine not having it.

Access up to $750* from your upcoming paycheck within minutes for a small fee, or wait 3 days and get it for free. No credit check. No late fees. 

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^{*Not all users will qualify. Advances range from $25–$750; average advance is $170. Express transfer fees may apply.}