The threat of a nuclear war has been growing and grown for many, many years, dating all the way back to the Manhattan Project that blew the first atom bomb in the New Mexico desert almost 78 years ago. J. Robert Oppenheimer, whose life is the subject of director Christopher Nolan’s film, “Oppenheimer,” is the one who helped develop and create that very first weapon. The movie has caused a significant amount of chatter since it was first released in 2023, notably about how society might rebuild following a war of almost total and utter destruction left in the wake of such a deadly force.
“It’s safe to say we’re in the midst of an incredibly dangerous moment, where the use of nuclear weapons seems more possible now than at any time since the end of the Cold War,” Stephen Miles, president of the activist organization Win Without War, commented during a panel about the movie at the time of its release.
A lot of people are clueless about the current level of threat nuclear weapons pose believing that it sort of faded away and isn’t really a worry in this day and age. The Cold War is over, right? Well, maybe not exactly.
Ever since Russia, under orders from President Vladimir Putin, invaded Ukraine he has made numerous threats of using nuclear force. Those threats then escalated as he moved tactical nukes into Belarus. Truly, we’re living in scary and very unpredictable times.
While it’s still, as of this writing, highly unlikely we’ll see a nuclear attack — too many other nations would experience devastating consequences if this were to happen — it’s critical to be prepared for every situation. Thus, it pays to know what to do if such an emergency takes place.
If your city was under attack, you’d likely receive a Wireless Emergency Alert (WEA) text on your cell phone stating that missiles were on the way and to seek shelter immediately. The Emergency Alert System (EAS) would also send out the same alert message as the WEA across all types of television and radio broadcasts, including satellite, cable, and wireless systems. On top of that, the President may choose to send out a “Presidential Alert” to cell phones nationwide. Russia’s nuclear arsenal is capable of striking just about anywhere on the planet. Were Russia to launch a nuclear-armed intercontinental ballistic missile at the US, residents would have roughly 30 minutes, or less, to find shelter, assuming they were immediately warned of the attack. Some weapons, such as submarine-launched missiles, could potentially have shorter delivery times.
“In theory you could park a submarine closer to North America, thereby lessening the warning and flight time,” Brian J. Morra, a former Air Force intelligence officer, a retired senior executive in the aerospace and defense industry, and author, went on to say. If Russia launched a nuclear weapon from international waters located off the East Coast, it would mean that large cities near that location, such as New York, Boston, and D.C., would have a total of 10 to 15 minutes to get ready for what was coming.
Irwin Redlener, a public-health expert at Columbia University who is a specialist when it comes to being prepared for disaster, said in an interview with the Insider that folks wouldn’t even have time to retrieve their children from school before the missile struck.
The minutes to hours after a nuclear blast are a critical window. The potential for radiation exposure decreases 55% an hour after an explosion and 80% after 24 hours, according to the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. Immediate actions during those first few hours, like covering your eyes or hunkering down in an indoor shelter, could mitigate your risk of death or serious injury. Here’s how to protect yourself in a worst-case scenario.
One of the first things recommended for you to do when a nuke detonates is to shield your eyes and shield your face, as the blast from a 1-megaton bomb, which is 80 times bigger than the bomb dropped on Hiroshima during World War II, could temporarily blind folks up to 13 miles away, on a clear day. On a clear night, it could cause blindness of this nature for folks up to 53 miles away.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also recommends dropping to the ground with your face down and your hands tucked under your body to protect from flying debris or sweltering heat that could burn your skin. If you have a scarf or handkerchief, cover your nose and mouth. But make sure to keep your mouth open, so your eardrums don’t burst from pressure. Research also suggests that if you’re in an above-ground building, avoid narrow hallways and doorways, which can act like a windtunnel, accelerating the detonation’s shockwaves to dangerous, bone-crushing pressures. Instead, seek shelter along walls in large, open spaces and avoid rooms with windows, if you can.
Within the first 45 minutes you need to find shelter inside away from windows. Just one nuke could end up killing tens if not hundreds of thousands of individuals in a major city, depending on where it drops, the size of the bomb, and where it goes off, plus how many people are upwind of the blast.Those who survive an attack have a total of 15 minutes before radioactive particles the size of grains of sand, which we call nuclear fallout, reaches the ground. If you’re exposed to fallout, you will get radiation poisoning, which can then damage the cells in your body and often proves to be fatal.
If you’re looking for shelter, look in the opposite direction of any fallen structures. Go in the opposite direction of the wind and find shelter as quickly as possible before the fallout cloud reaches ground level. The best kind of buildings to take shelter in are schools, offices, anything that has few windows. If the building has multiple floors, get to the middle floor and avoid both bottom and top floors.
During the first 24 hours you will need to rinse your body off in the shower as soon as possible, especially if you were outside when the explosion went off. It’s a critical time period for reducing the chances of experiencing exposure to radiation.
Doctors can often treat radiation damage with substances such as potassium iodide, though “there are certain dose levels that you can’t do anything about,” Kathryn Higley, a professor of nuclear science at Oregon State University, told Insider. But in a disaster scenario, there may not be enough physicians or hospital beds to care for everyone. “There are not enough empty burn beds in all of the United States to deal with even a single nuclear attack on one city in the US,” Tara Drozdenko, the director of the Union of Concerned Scientists’ Global Security Program, told Insider.
Use warm water to shower as soon as possible and apply soap to your skin gently. If you scrub too hard it could damage your skin, which is a natural barrier against radiation. Avoid the use of conditioner, body lotion, or face cream in the wake of exposure to a nuclear blast since these can actually bind with nuclear particles and trap them in skin and hair.
Blow your nose and wipe your ears and eyelids, since debris could get stuck in these places. The CDC also recommends sealing outer layers of clothing in a plastic bag, along with any tissues or cloths used to wipe your body or face. It’s safe to consume food from sealed containers such as packages, bottles, or cans, according to the CDC. You can also eat items from your pantry or refrigerator, as long as you wipe off containers, cookware, counters, and utensils. But anything left uncovered, such as fruits or veggies from a garden, would be unsafe to eat.
Going outside during the first 7 days is extremely dangerous so make sure that you cover your mouth and all open wounds to reduce the chances of being exposed to radioactive fallout that will still be coming down from the sky.
The World Health Organization recommends listening to the local radio for information and advice on next steps. Your cell phone, television, and internet probably won’t work, but battery-powered and hand-crank radios should. Over the radio, authorities may advise you to stay put or issue an evacuation to a safer area. This is where you’ll also likely learn about available medical aid, if you or someone with you, is sick.
In reality, if you can stay inside for the first week, this is the recommended course of action. This will provide enough time for all of the fallout to settle to the ground.
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