HOME FALLOUT SHELTERS AND COMMUNITY SHELTER PLANS
FOR THE AMERICAN
SUBURBS
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| DURING THE FALLOUT SHELTER SURVEY A HOME WOULD RECIEVE A PACKAGE WITH BOOKLETS A MAP AND A RATING OF HOW MUCH PROTECTION AGAINST A ATOMIC ATTACK THEY COULD EXPECT OUT OF THEIR HOME IN THE FORM OF A PF-RATING (SHOWN AND EXPLAINED BELOW) ONE BOOKLET THAT MADE ITS ROUNDS AND WAS ONE OF THE LAST OF CIVIL DEFENSE BOOKLETS WAS "IN TIME OF EMERGENCY" IT IS SOMETIMES USED TO THIS DAY AROUND THE UNITED STATES AND A CIVIL DEFENSE MOVIE WAS MADE WHICH YOU CAN WATCH BELOW SUFFOLK COUNTYS COMMUNITY SHELTER PLAN WAS MAILED OUT IN THE SAME WAY AS THE EXAMPLE "TRI COUNTY CSP" ABOVE AND INCLUDED THE BOOKLET "IN TIME OF EMERGENCY" AND AFTER A DECADE OF TRYING TO COME UP WITH A WORKABLE PLAN MASS MAILED SUFFOLK COUNTYS SOMETIME IN 1971! |
"IN TIME OF EMERGENCY" 1968 DOD/OCD
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AND HERE IS ONE OF THE OTHER PARTS OF THE COMMUNITY SHELTER PLAN THE
MAPS OF PUBLIC SHELTERS TO GO TO IF YOUR HOME RECIEVED A POOR PROTECTION
FACTOR OR A FORM LETTER LIKE THE ONE AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS POST, INSIDE
WAS A MAP OF YOUR COUNTY AND THE BUILDINGS DESIGNATED AS RADIATION AND
BLAST RESISTANT AND HAD ENOUGH VENTILATION PER PERSON, A HOME SHELTER
WOULD BE A BETTER SURVIVAL CHOICE AND HOMES THAT CIVIL DEFENSE OFFICIALS
FOUND PREPARED RECIEVED A STICKER STATING THEIR COMPLIANCE WITH OCD
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR SURVIVAL
THANKS TO THE CIVIL DEFENSE MUSEUM FOR THE EXAMPLE OF A COMMUNITY SHELTER PLAN
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| JUST LIKE THE OTHER EXAMPLE CSP'S (COMMUNITY SHELTER PLANS) A NEWSPAPER FORMAT WAS USED SO COST WAS KEPT LOW THOUGH I DO NOT THINK THEY PLANNED FOR THESE SHELTER PLANS TO LAST BY PUTTING THEM ON NEWSPAPER GRADE PAPER AND MOST OF THESE SHELTER PLANS WERE DONE BECAUSE IT WAS MANDATORY THAT EACH COUNTY OR PROVINCE PLANNING BOARD DO A SHELTER SURVEY AND ASSESMENT AND A WORKABLE PLAN WITH STOCKED SHELTERS SUFFOLK COUNTY'S WAS COMPLETED IN THE EARLY 1970's AND HAD SHELTERS PLANNED IN NON STOCKED BANK VAULTS AND EVEN A DECOMMISSIONED NIKE MISSILE BATTERY MAGAZINE THAT NO LONGER EXSISTED AT PRINTING TIME AND WENT WITH OUT STOCKING SHELTERS AND PLANNING FOR MORE THAN HALF OF SUFFOLKS RESIDENTS TO BUILD AND STOCK THEIR OWN. |
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| A HOME BEING SOLD TO THE PUBLIC AS ATOMIC PROOF 1955 |
During the Cold War, many countries built fallout shelters for
high-ranking government officials and crucial military facilities. Plans
were made, however, to use existing buildings with sturdy
below-ground-level basements as makeshift fallout shelters. These
buildings were usually placarded with the yellow and black trefoil sign.
The initial blast of a nuclear attack might well have rendered these
basements either buried under many tons of rubble and thus impossible to
leave, or removed their upper framework, thus leaving the basements
unprotected. The design of the individual shelter would have determined
the ultimate result of such occurrences.[original research?]
The National Emergency Alarm Repeater (N.E.A.R.) program was developed
in 1956 during the Cold War to supplement the existing siren warning
systems and radio broadcasts in the event of a nuclear attack. The
N.E.A.R. civilian alarm device was engineered and tested but the program
was not viable and went defunct about 1966.[1] In the U.S. in September
1961, the federal government started the Community Fallout Shelter
Program.[2][3] (A letter from President Kennedy advising the use of
fallout shelters appeared in the September 1961 issue of Life
magazine.)[4]
In November 1961 in Fortune magazine, an article by Gilbert Burck
appeared that outlined the plans of Nelson Rockefeller, Edward Teller,
Herman Kahn, and Chet Holifield for an enormous network of concrete
lined underground fallout shelters throughout the United States
sufficient to shelter millions of people to serve as a refuge in case of
nuclear war.[5]
American fallout shelters in the early 1960s were sometimes funded in
conjunction with funding for other federal programs, such as urban
renewal projects of the Federal Housing Authority, examples being
Barrington Plaza, and other development projects of Los Angeles County
Civil Defense and Disaster Commissioner, Louis Lesser, and were designed
for large numbers of citizens.[6][7][8]
Switzerland built an extensive network of fallout shelters, not only
through extra hardening of government buildings such as schools, but
also through a building regulation that ensured that all residential
building built after 1968 contained a nuclear shelter able to withstand
a blast from a 50 megatonne explosion at a distance of 700 metres.
Coupled with this, there was the legal requirement for all supermarkets
to store at least one year's supply of canned goods, etc., in
blast-proof bunkers in the mountains, along with the requirement of one
year's supply of oil; cilivians were required to store at least three
weeks of food stuffs in their own shelter. This nation has the highest
ratio of shelter space to national population of any country. All these
shelters are capable of withstanding nuclear fallout and biological or
chemical (NBC) attacks. The largest buildings usually have dedicated
shelters tunneled into solid rock. Similar projects have been undertaken
in Finland, which requires all buildings with area over 600 m² to have
an NBC shelter, and Norway, which requires all buildings with an area
over 1000 m² to have a shelter.[9]
The former Soviet Union and other Eastern Bloc countries often designed
their underground mass-transit and subway tunnels to serve as bomb and
fallout shelters in the event of an attack.
Interest in fallout shelters has largely dropped, as the perceived
threat of global nuclear war reduced after the end of the Cold War. In
Switzerland, most residential shelters are no longer stocked with the
food and water required for prolonged habitation and a large number have
been converted by the owners to other uses (e.g., wine cellars, ski
rooms, gyms). However, there has been renewed interest seen since
2001[citation needed]. These shelters also provide a haven from natural
disasters such as tornadoes and hurricanes, although Switzerland is
rarely subject to such natural phenomena.
HERE ANOTHER COMMON BOOKLET THAT WAS SENT OUT WITH SHELTER MAPS AND
INFO FROM THE LOCAL CIVIL DEFENSE OFFICE, THIS PARTICULAR BOOKLET HAD
THE HOME PF- PROTECTION FACTOR AND PLANS TO ADD A SHELTER TO THE HOME
ALONG WITH "IN TIME OF EMERGENCY" SUBURBAN RESIDENTS WOULD RECIEVE THIS
WITH THE COMMUNITY SHELTER PLAN THAT EVERY US COUNTY MAILED OUT TO ITS
RESIDENTS.
THE FALLOUT PROTECTION IN YOUR HOME
This booklet is about fallout protection. It will tell you what radioactive fallout is and how you can improve your protection against it if this country were ever attacked with nuclear weapons. But first of all, because your home has a basement you already have some fallout protection. Let's see what that protection is:
On the back cover of this booklet a box like this appears:
Entered in the space labeled Basement "PF" are two numbers which tell you the fallout protection that was calculated for the "center" of your basement and the "best corner" of your basement. Information on the box labeled "Added Weight", is on page 20 of this booklet.
The "PF" above the box stands for "Protection Factor." Before going into the details of what your "Protection Factor" numbers mean, let's talk for a moment about what fallout is.
WHAT IS RADIOACTIVE FALLOUT?
When a nuclear weapon is exploded close to the ground, dirt and other debris are drawn up into the mushroom cloud and pick up the radioactivity created by the explosion. The heaviest pieces of dirt and debris drop back to earth within a few miles of the explosion. But the lighter pieces are carried by the winds for many miles before drifting back to earth.
These radioactive particles are called "fallout." Any part of the United States might be covered with deadly or dangerous amounts of radioactive fallout, depending on which way the winds were blowing and the size and number of nuclear weapons exploded. The radioactivity could cause serious health damage or fatal injury to unprotected persons. In a nuclear attack, the blast, heat, and fire from the explosions would be very destructive, but the destruction would be in areas near the explosions. Radioactive fallout, though, could spread a thin layer over millions of square miles.
Radiation would come from the fallout wherever it settled -- the ground, trees and bushes, or the roof of your home. Fallout does not behave like a gas. In areas that would be affected by dangerous amounts of fallout, the fallout particles would look like dirt or hand and you may see them after they have settled on the ground or other places. The exact amount of radiation given off by the particles can be measured only by special instruments.
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HOW CAN YOUR PROTECTION BE IMPROVED?
There are three ways of improving your protection against fallout -- time, distance, and getting some heavy material between you and the fallout (called "shielding")
The numbers are given in terms of a "Protection Factor" or PF. This is the relation between the amount of fallout radiation which would be received by a completely unprotected person compared to the amount which would be received by a person in a fallout shelter. For example, a person in a fallout shelter with a PF of 40 would receive about one-fortieth (or 2½ percent) of the radiation he would be exposed to if he were completely unprotected. The higher thePF for your home, the more protection your basement affords against radiation.
Time -- Radioactivity decreases rapidly at first. After an attach, the radiation would be most intense during the first few days. Even so, radiation protection may be needed for an extended period -- days or weeks.
2. Distance -- The amount of radiation is less the further away you are from the source of radiation.
3. Shielding--Any material that is put between a person and the source of radiation cuts down on the amount of radiation that reaches the person. The thicker and heavier the material, the better the protection.
In the event of an attach, you have little control over time and distance, but YOU CAN DO SOMETHING TO IMPROVE YOUR PROTECTION BY MEANS OF SHIELDING.
It is the principle of shielding that is employed in fallout shelters. Under the guidance of the Office of Civil Defense, a system of fallout shelters is being developed throughout the nation. It consists of public shelters, private shelters, industrial and home shelters.
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THE FALLOUT SHELTER SYSTEM
As a result of the National Fallout Shelter Survey, in which existing large buildings were examined and evaluated for fallout protection, space for millions of people has been identified. Those community shelters having a protection factor of at least 40 and space for at least 50 people are now being marked with a familiar black and yellow shelter sign. Where necessary storage space is available, they are being stocked with food, water (if needed), sanitary and medical supplies, and radiation detection instruments. The survey is a continuing effort. Through it, a current inventory is maintained of shelters added by new construction.
The fallout protection found in homes with basements represents important additional shelter space.
Personal and other special considerations may make fallout protection at home more practical and desirable than community shelters for certain individuals or families. For example, in rural and suburban communities and even in many cities, families may live a considerable distance from the nearest community shelter. For these families, a home shelter wi9ll provide more accessible fallout protection. Fallout protection at home is usually more accessible to housewives and young children during the day and may be preferred by the whole family when at home.
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HOW MUCH PROTECTION DOES YOUR BASEMENT PROVIDE AGAINST RADIOACTIVE FALLOUT?
In homes, basement areas provide the best shelter against fallout because they are mostly belowground. This gives them a natural shield. This booklets tells you the amount of protection your basement offers and what you can do to increase this protection to provide your family's safety. Keep in mind that fallout shelter provides only limited protection against blast.
Look at the back of this booklet again. Two numbers are printed there which tell you the amount of fallout protection your basement offers. These numbers were calculated for your home by electronic computer from the information you gave in the recent Home Fallout Protection Survey questionnaire. The analytical model used is based on the best scientific information available. It was designed to give the maximum accuracy possible while requiring the minimum information from you. A more complex method might produce more precise results in some cases but would sacrifice simplicity, speed, and economy.
The number in the box marked "center" (see back of your booklet) is the Basement Protection Factor (PF) calculated for the center of your basement. The other number is the PF calculation for the best corner of your basement. If your cover shows an X in place of either PF number, it means the PF is smaller than 10. Information on the box labeled "Added Weight," is on page 20 of this booklet.
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WHICH IS THE BEST CORNER OF YOUR BASEMENT?
The best corner of your basement is the one which has the highest outside ground level--that is, the least amount of basement wall sticking up aboveground. In this corner make a triangle by measuring ten feet from the corner along each wall, and drawing a line between these points (see illustration).
The best corner protection factor listed on the back of this booklet means the average protection factor within the triangle is ablve this value. This 50 sq. ft. area provides adequate fallout shelter space for 5 persons; however, if necessary, several more persons could crowd into the corner area.
A smaller area could be used if equipment such as the furnace occupies part of the corner. If additional shelter space is required or the best corner is not usable, another corner having the next highest ground level to that of the best corner could be used. If all the corners have equal outside ground levels, the most convenient corner may be used, and of course all corners may be used.
The fallout protection afforded in the corner is better closer to the wall and closer to the floor. Therefor, you should liek on the floor next to the wall or sit on the floor with your back against the wall as much as possible. You may stand to stretch, and for essential needs, you can leave the forner shelter area for a few minutes.
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WHAT ABOUT THE CENTER OF THE BASEMENT
In nearly all basements, the highest protection factor is in the corner and lowerst in the center. This means the whole basement can be thought of as a fallout shelter with a protection factor in the center equal to the first PF number on the back of your booklet and a higher protection factor in the best corner equal to the second PF number.
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STEPS YOU CAN TAKE TO INCREASE YOUR FALLOUT PROTECTION
If the protection factor in the best corner of your basement as indicated on the back cover is less than 40 and you wish to bring the PF up to the minimum recommended for a public shelter, then you need additional shielding. You can provide additional shielding for your basement by:
1. Permanent shelters -- By making part of your basement into a shelter area or by building a permanent shelter which might also serve other purposes. Listed on the back label are the plans recommended for your home.
2.Preplanned shelters -- By locating shielding materials so that you can complete a shelter quickly in time of crisis.
3. Improvised shelters -- by taking last-minute improvised actions if an emergency actually occurs.
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A WORD OF CAUTION TO THE HOME HANDY MAN
recommended that you build from the detailed plans and lists of materials which are available by mailing the post card enclosed with this booklet
Fallout Shelter Plans A through F which follow are so simple that you may be tempted to construct them from the drawings in this booklet -- and in many cases a thoroughly experienced "do-it-yourselfer" could do this. However, it requires very careful calculation of materials and fasteners to safely hold the heavy materials to be placed overhead; therefore, it is strongly
IMPROVISED SHELTERS
If a community shelter is not available and you have not provided your own fallout shelter, what would you do if you sud
denly heard the United States had been attacked with nuclear weapons?
You can still protect yourself and your family if you know what to do and you act quickly. Pick out a corner of your basement with the highest ground level outside. That is the safest place in the basement. NOW MAKE IT SAFER.
In belowground basements, it is most important to have shielding overhead. Entered in the box labeled "Added Weight" on the back cover of this booklet is a number which tells you approximately how much weight of material should be placed over each square foot of the area over an improvised shelter, as illustrated on the following pages, to obtain a PF of 20, the minimum recommended.
If the letter "Y" appears in the box labeled "Added Weight" this means that adding overhead materials alone will not provide adequate protection ahainst radiation unless heavy walls surrounding the shelter area are also added. If you already have a PF of 40 or more in the best corner of your basement, a zero, "0," will be shown in the box on the back cover labeled "Added Weight" indicating that additional weight will not be required.
Here are the weights of typical shielding materials:
2 inches of sand weighs approximately 35 pounds per sq. ft.
4 inches of wood weighs approximately 10 pounds per sq. ft.
4 inches of water weighs approximately 21 pounds per sq. ft.
4-inch cinder blocks weigh approximately 22 pounds per sq. ft.
4-inch bricks weigh approximately 32 pounds per sq. ft.
4-inch solid concrete blocks weigh approximately 48 pounds per sq. ft.
4 inches of library books weight approximately 15 pounds per sq. ft.
If you have a sturdy table or workbench, place it in the corner. Quickly fill drawers or boxes with the heaviest material which is readily available -- sand or dirt, bricks -- or if you have nothing heavier, newspapers or books. Stack these materials on the top of the workbench. If a "Y" appears in the "Added Weight" box on the back cover of this booklet, then in order to obtain a PF of 40 in the shelter you must place an equivalent of 70 pounds per square foot on top of the shelter as well' as adding heavy material on the sides of the shelter.
Be careful not to overload the table to the point where it will collapse.
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IMPROVISED SHELTERS
If a workbench is not available, you can improvise a somewhat larger shelter area by using furniture, doors, dressers, or other materials. Remove doors from their hinges and place them over supports in the corner of your basement having the best protection. The supports for the table can be chests of drawers or anything that can take a heavy load. Use two or three doors over each support for this shelter to provide sufficient strength to carry the heavy loads placed on them. Place bricks, concrete blocks, earth- or sand-filled drawers, books, a collapsible swimming pool filled with water, etc., over the doors to provide an overhead shield. Use anything with weight that can be moved. The heavier the material, the more the protection. The minimum weight of the material to be added for each square foot over the doors is shown in the "Added Weight" box on the back cover. If a "Y" appears in the "Added Weight" box, then in order to obtain a PF of 20 in the shelter, you must place 70 pounds per square foot on top of the shelter as well as adding heavy material to the sides of the shelter to serve as a vertical shield.
Be careful not to overload the doors to the point where the shelter will collapse.
If the figure entered in the box marked "Added Weight" on the back cover happens to be a number such as 30, this means that every square foot over the shelter area should be covered with materials having a sufficient height so as to weigh 30 pounds. Using the weights of typical shielding materials as given on page 20, the required shielding material can be obtained by the following:
Approximately 3½ inches of earth or sand, or
Approximately 12 inches of wood, or
Approximately 6 inches of water, or
4-inch (nominal thickness) layer of bricks, or
Approximately 8 inches of library books.
The shielding materials can be used individually such as providing a 3½-inch layer of sand completely over the improvised shelter or in conjunction with other materials as shown in the illustration on the opposite page.
If vertical shielding is required (a "Y" has appeared in the "Added Weight" box) this can be obtained by placing heavy materials along the sides of the improvised shelter. Examples are: single course of bricks or concrete blocks, washing machine filled with water, chest of drawers filled with earth, deep-freeze, two rows of books, etc.
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GENERAL
Until the extent of the radiation thread in your town is determined by trained monitors using special instruments, you should stay in your shelter as much as possible. For essential needs, you can leave your shelter for a few minutes. Before leaving the shelter for longer periods of time, listen to your radio station for information and instructions. A battery operated radio should be available for this purpose.
For quick reference, after you have finished reading this booklet, hang it up in the corner of your basement having the best protection so that it will be available in an emergency.
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DETAILED PLANS ARE AVAILABLE FREE OF CHARGE
Detailed plans of many of the shelters you have read about in this booklet are available free of charge.
These plans contain construction details, suggested construction sequences and lists of materials needed. The plans supplement the material presented in this booklet.
Before construction any of the permanent shielding devices described here, you should check to see that the construction conforms to your local building code.
The plans may be obtained by sending the attached post card to the Jeffersonville Census Operation Office, 1201 Easy 10th Street, Jeffersonville, Indians 47130
Be sure that you identify the plan or plans you want as they are designated in this booklet:
PLAN A -- CEILING MODIFICAITON TO BASEMENT -- See page 7
PLAN B -- ALTERNATE CEILING MODIFICATION TO BASEMENT -- See page 9
PLAN C -- CONCRETE BLOCK SHELTER -- See page 11
PLAN D -- SNACK BAR SHELTER --See page 13
PLAN E -- TILT-UP STORAGE UNIT -- See page 14
PLAN F -- LEAN-TO SHELTER -- See page 15
For further information on fallout protection and personal and family survival, consult your local Civil Defense Director and send for the personal and family survival
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| THIS STICKER AFFIXED TO THE BOOKLET GAVE THE INFORMATION AS TO THE PROTECTION YOUR HOME COULD GIVE IN THE EVENT OF A NUCLEAR ATTACK |
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| THE UNITED STATES SURVEYED MILLIONS OF HOMES DURING THE NATIONAL FALLOUT SHELTER PLAN AND THIS LETTER CAME WITH A RATING OR PROTECTION FACTOR ON THE ENVELOPE AS EXPLAINED ABOVE AND SHOWN THE AVERAGE AMERICAN NOT LOCATED IN URBAN AREAS COULD SURVIVE A NUCLEAR ATTACK AND WOULD FARE FAR BETTER THAN THEIR COUNTERPART IN A PUBLIC SHELTER,WHATS NOT EVER EXPLAINED WOULD BE THE INJURIES AND SHOCK CASES,RADIATION SICKNESS AND EVEN THE SHELTER BEING NOT STOCKED OR NOT HAVE ENOUGH RATIONS AS THE SANITARY SYSTEMS WOULD START OVERLOADING AND THE TIGHT NOT PRIVATE PLACE FOR SHELTER RESIDENTS (BEDDING WAS NEVER STOCKED IN SHELTERS) SO SLEEPING ON A CONCRETE FLOOR WITH NO BLANKET THE SMELL OF UNWASHED BODIES AND PROBABLY THE THIEVERY OF SURVIVAL ITEMS BY SOCIETYS SOCIOPATHS THINKING ONLY OF THEIR SURVIVAL,REMEMBER WHAT HAPPENED AT THE SUPERDOME DURING HURRICANE KATRINA AND THAT EXPLAINS WHY A HOME SHELTER WOULD BE THE ONLY WAY TO KEEP YOUR FAMILY AND SELF SAFE FROM THE THINGS THAT A SITUATION OF THIS MAGNITUDE WOULD CAUSE, JUST THE FACT THAT THERE HAS NEVER BEEN ANY TYPE OF SITUATION TO COMPARE AND PLAN MAKES A HOME SHELTER NOT ONLY A SAFER REFUGE BUT A BETTER IDEA. |
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