Civil Defense: You Duck and I'll Cover

Shelters, according to the orthodox doctrine of deterrence, are destabilizing insofar as they imply a serious intention to make a country invulnerable to attack. ... It is difficult to imagine any circumstances in which it would make sense for the United States to embark upon a program of nationwide shelter-building....

Freeman Dyson, in Weapons and Hope, 1984.

After Russia's launch of Sputnik I in 1957 and the Cuban Missile Crisis in October, 1962, it was clear that the U.S. was vulnerable to a possible nuclear attack. The Defense Civil Preparedness Agency and later the Federal Emergency Management Agency performed studies, published pamphlets, and stocked fallout shelters. Yet, the U.S. never seemed serious about civil defense against nuclear attack, preferring the doctrine of deterence through "Mutually Assured Destruction."

It is easy in retrospect to find the ridiculous in the civil defense posture of the 1960's, as was done so well in the "Atomic Cafe" when it compared Bert the Turtle's advice of "Duck and Cover" against the actual effects of nuclear weapons on civilian houses. There was much serious study and development of civil defense measures that never reached a wide public audience. The examples of documents published for most Americans are shown under the section labelled The Official Story. Less well-known is the detailed information developed by Cresson Kearny and others at Oak Ridge National Laboratories, which is presented as The Do-It-Yourself Story.

The Official Story

Home Shelter

This 1980 pamphlet shows the design of an underground shelter offering protection against radioactive fallout, nuclear blast, and tornados. [Adobe Acrobat Acrobat PDF, 646k]

Aboveground Home Shelter

This 1980 pamphlet shows the design of an aboveground shelter offering protection against radioactive fallout, nuclear blast, and tornados. [Adobe Acrobat PDF, 819k]

Basement Home Fallout Shelter -- modified ceiling

This 1980 pamphlet shows the design of a basement shelter offering protection against radioactive fallout. [Adobe Acrobat PDF, 537k]

Basement Home Fallout Shelter -- concrete block

This 1980 pamphlet shows the design of a basement shelter offering protection against radioactive fallout. [Adobe Acrobat PDF, 226k]

Basement Home Fallout Shelter -- tilt-up storage unit

This 1980 pamphlet shows the design of a basement shelter offering protection against radioactive fallout. [Adobe Acrobat PDF, 326k]

Basement Home Fallout Shelter -- modified ceiling

This 1980 pamphlet shows the design of a basement shelter offering protection against radioactive fallout. [Adobe Acrobat PDF, 288k]

The Do-It-Yourself Story

A Homemade Fallout Meter: The KFM (Kearny Fallout Meter)

This booklet shows make and use a Kearny Fallout Meter from simple materials around the home. It is automatically calibrated by the geometry of its components. [Adobe Acrobat PDF, 1.19MB]

Videos

Duck and Cover with "Bert the Turtle"

The movie Duck and Cover was produced in 1950, during the first big Civil Defense push of the Cold War.