urban exploration is not safe

Draining is not safe

Walkable drains are not designed to be walkable–they are designed to move large volumes of water quickly. A large drain typically receives water from tributary drains that cover a large area. This means even small amounts of precipitation will get concentrated quickly. You will not be able to maintain footing against the water flow, and eventually you will get pushed down the drain, scraping against concrete and exposed pipes and rebar. Even if you survive that, you must still fight off drowning and hypothermia.

Abandoned buildings are not safe

Abandoned buildings are often stripped down and partially deconstructed – exposing elevator shafts, holes in the floor, asbestos, exposed chemicals, unprotected electrical wires, etc. Abandoned buildings are by definition not maintained, so structures like steel stairwells may be sufficiently eroded to collapse while your group is climbing on them.

Planning

Scope out the area ahead of time in daylight.
Know your legal rights and have a plan in case you get arrested.
Don’t cause unnecessary attention with expired car tabs, illegal parking, etc.
If draining, check the weather continuously and confirm absolutely no chance of any precipitation.
Get connected to the local urban exploration community. They know more than you.
Ensure an outside party knows your whereabouts and exploration plan in case rescue is needed.

Supplies

Footware (e.g., steel-toed boots)
First-aid kit with disinfectant
Flashlights (LED or waterproof)
Gloves
Water resistent mobile phone.

Entry

Stay quiet.
Keep flashlights pointed down.
Never carry tools that may be interpreted as buglary tools, e.g., hammers.
Wear dark clothing.

Drains

Abort immediately if waterflow or airflow changes in any way (volume, garbage, speed, wind, etc.).
Pay attention to potential exit spots and shelters.
Get up to date on your spiritual requirements. If water starts flowing, you will die painfully.
Remove embarassing postings from your social media. If you die, you will be mocked relentlessly.

random

Voyager 1 (Wikipedia) Voyager 1 is a space probe launched by NASA on September 5, 1977, as part of the Voyager program to study the outer Solar System and the interstellar space beyond the Sun’s heliosphere. It was launched 16 days after its twin, Voyager 2. It communicates through the NASA Deep Space Network (DSN) to receive routine commands and to transmit data to Earth. Real-time distance and velocity data are provided by NASA and JPL. At a distance of 163.1 AU (24.4 billion km; 15.2 billion mi) from Earth as of June 2024, it is the most distant human-made object from Earth. The probe made flybys of Jupiter, Saturn, and Saturn’s largest moon, Titan. NASA had a choice of either doing a Pluto or Titan flyby; exploration of the moon took priority because it was known to have a substantial atmosphere. Voyager 1 studied the weather, magnetic fields, and rings of the two gas giants and was the first probe to provide detailed images of their moons.