Get the Book
You don’t have to despair. Surviving a nuclear strike is possible for those without shelters and basements. Being vaporized in a thermonuclear fireball doesn’t have to be your fate. Even fallout doesn’t have to be a death sentence. However, to survive you cannot stick your head in the sand and hope it doesn’t come to nuclear war. By reading this book you are taking the first steps to being able to overcome any fears and survive.
This book is written for, and to, primarily those suburbanites who live in aboveground wood-frame houses who want to survive a nuclear war. An actual nuclear attack on the United States (and other similar western countries like Canada) will catch probably 90% of the country flatfooted, even those with basements. Those of us without basements who thought the days of the threat of nuclear destruction ended in 1991 do have hope to survive a nuclear war.
This book is written for, and to, primarily those suburbanites who live in aboveground wood-frame houses who want to survive a nuclear war. An actual nuclear attack on the United States (and other similar western countries like Canada) will catch probably 90% of the country flatfooted, even those with basements. Those of us without basements who thought the days of the threat of nuclear destruction ended in 1991 do have hope to survive a nuclear war.
Aboveground Radiation Protection Without Shielding
Do you live in an above-ground house on a concrete slab with no basement or storm shelter? Are you wondering how you might survive nuclear fallout? Thanks to the inverse square law, you might not actually die from radioactive fallout if you’re forced to shelter in your house. There is hope for us suburbanites and us ranch house people. Not having a fallout shelter is not a death sentence.
Why should you have radiation measuring equipment? There is no way to “gauge” radiation levels without instruments. That leaves a survivor at the mercy of local emergency services and the federal government/military to provide regional radiation levels. Many civil defense programs have been utterly gutted and focus on higher-probability, lower impact events such as tornadoes and floods. A nuclear war quite probably will leave you on your own for radiation readings.
RadTriage: The best value detector.A credit card sized dosimeter that uses a color-coded matrix to provide visual indication of radiation exposure. It's the best detector for the price, function, and levels.
|
|
Civil Defense/Government Publications
These publications are in the public domain or available for reuse. Some include historical content. All in PDF format.
A Guide to Operating Public Shelters in a Radiation Emergency
Battlefield of the Cold War The Nevada Test Site Vol 1 Atmospheric Nuclear Testing
Charlottesville: A Fictional Account of a Nuclear Attack
Defense Against Radioactive Fallout on the Farm
High Risk Areas (1970s risk maps)
Effects of Nuclear Weapons
Emergency Information For Farmers and Food Processors
Fallout Protection for Homes with Basements
Fallout Protection: What to Know and Do
FEMA Radiation Independent Study Course
Kearny Fallout Meter
Nuclear War Survival Skills, Cresson H. Kearny Nuclear Safety Education Guide
In Time of Emergency
Planning Guidance for Response to a Nuclear Detonation
Personal and Family Survival. Civil Defense Adult Education; Teacher's Manual
Protection of Food and Agriculture Against Nuclear Attack
Protection in the Nuclear Age
Radiation Safety In Shelters
Radioactive Fallout in Food and Agriculture
Strategies and Practices in the Remediation of Radioactive Contamination in Agriculture
Survival Under Atomic Attack
Summary of Building Protection Factor Studies for External Exposure to Ionizing Radiation
The Effects of Nuclear War (1979)
Ventura County Nuclear Response Plan
Victory Garden Leader's Handbook
Battlefield of the Cold War The Nevada Test Site Vol 1 Atmospheric Nuclear Testing
Charlottesville: A Fictional Account of a Nuclear Attack
Defense Against Radioactive Fallout on the Farm
High Risk Areas (1970s risk maps)
Effects of Nuclear Weapons
Emergency Information For Farmers and Food Processors
Fallout Protection for Homes with Basements
Fallout Protection: What to Know and Do
FEMA Radiation Independent Study Course
Kearny Fallout Meter
Nuclear War Survival Skills, Cresson H. Kearny Nuclear Safety Education Guide
In Time of Emergency
Planning Guidance for Response to a Nuclear Detonation
Personal and Family Survival. Civil Defense Adult Education; Teacher's Manual
Protection of Food and Agriculture Against Nuclear Attack
Protection in the Nuclear Age
Radiation Safety In Shelters
Radioactive Fallout in Food and Agriculture
Strategies and Practices in the Remediation of Radioactive Contamination in Agriculture
Survival Under Atomic Attack
Summary of Building Protection Factor Studies for External Exposure to Ionizing Radiation
The Effects of Nuclear War (1979)
Ventura County Nuclear Response Plan
Victory Garden Leader's Handbook
Dean Ing's Pulling Through.
Starting off as a vaguely futuristic hardboiled detective novel, a bounty hunter must survive WWIII with a beautiful young fugitive and his pet cheetah. This takes place in a 1980s imagined near-future where Lotus makes a car that is part hovercraft. This is simply the best nuclear war survival novel I’ve ever read. And he nukes the Bay Area too. It is realistic and full of practical advice. A third of the book is actual articles on how to survive a nuclear war. It is out of print and the copies are hard to find, but I will let you have my copy in exchange for an attractive daughter or sister (21-30, must be in the “unicorn” zone). Follow the link for a scanned copy available via Archive.org.
Shelter Designs
All plans are in PDF format. See Kearny's Nuclear War Survival Skills for more ideas on improvised shelters.
Above Ground Home Shelter
Basement Concrete Block Shelter
Blast Tests of Expedient Shelters
Expedient Fallout Shelter Plans
Family Shelter Designs
Fallout Protection for Homes with Basements
Outside Concrete Shelter (belowground)
Modified Ceiling Shelter Basement Location
The Family Fallout Shelter
Basement Concrete Block Shelter
Blast Tests of Expedient Shelters
Expedient Fallout Shelter Plans
Family Shelter Designs
Fallout Protection for Homes with Basements
Outside Concrete Shelter (belowground)
Modified Ceiling Shelter Basement Location
The Family Fallout Shelter
Potassium iodide (KI) can be helpful after a nuclear war, but isn't right for everyone. They also cannot protect against radiation but help prevent the body from absorbing radioactive iodine.
Helpful Graphics
All sources are original or from the public domain. Click or hover over image for captions.