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gothrendezvous · 1 day ago

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Happy Friday the 13th. Things are getting hot in the Big Boys With Nukes Club and their allies, and the US axed the relevant public education program about this decades ago, so this is a general guide on How To Not Panic About WW3/Nuclear Apocalypse. This is not a panic post and I will be muting it after I post bc I'm not dealing with any Notes.

Because all jokes aside, "if the bombs drop I'm just gonna walk outside and embrace fate" would only really just guarantee a very slow and agonizing death unless you're one of the lucky few in the death radius, so. Might as well make an effort or help loved ones, yeah?

all advice is recreational, situational, and general; your mileage may vary. adjust or ignore as desired

Easy general prep, same as for all severe weather/storms/et al:

- Every few days/as often as you can, buy some extra BASIC NECESSITIES: water, canned goods/shelf stable meals (soups, stews, cheap pasta, don't forget vegs+FRUITS), toilet paper, soap, pet food, snacks (meat jerky, trail mix, crackers, whatever), flashlights, BATTERIES and/or candles/matches, CELL CHARGERS/EXTERNAL BATTERIES, whatever your circumstances require and allow, and stash it in a closet or something and forget about it. The goal is 2-3 weeks' supply per person/pet, 1+ gallon water per person/pet per day, but even buying just a couple extra cheap cans/water bottles per week can add up quickly. Flats of water bottles are usually 3-5gal for around $5-8ish. Keep batteries charged and occasionally rotate stockpiles, FIFO.

- Buy or create a decent first aid kit: at minimum: bandaids, rubbing alcohol, q tips, gauze roll, antibiotic cream. Optional but excellent upgrades: a cheap dollar store sewing kit, disposable gloves, burn cream/plain aloe vera gel, Tylenol/Ibuprofen/TUMS/etc, thermometer, other OTC meds, backup menstrual products, ACE wraps. Deluxe upgrades: 2-4 weeks' backup supply of Rx meds (rotate first in first out "FIFO"), 02 finger reader, blood pressure cuff, stethoscope, CPR mask, splints/slings/braces, whatever. Throw it all in a dollar-store bag or small plastic lidded tote, label clearly, and shove it like, under the bathroom sink or something. Again, you can get it in pieces instead of all at once, adjust for budget.

- Build (and ignore) cash on hand. Clean and dry out an old pasta sauce/PB jar or something, shove it under your bed, and every time you go anywhere get like, $5 cash back/withdraw $$ or something and come home and shove it in the jar and forget it. Throw any coins you find in here too. Our digital payment systems are subject to local/regional blackouts and power outages, but if businesses are open (gas stations, mostly) they can take cash.

More easy optional preps and nuke guide under the cut -

- Optional but encouraged: Get an old backpack/large purse/tote/whatever and make a "go bag" for each household person/pet. It can be all in one to start, the point is to be able to pick it up and GO in an evacuation. [If you have a private secondary site like a relative's house, and your own transportation, keeping your water+food in boxes/totes can make it easier to bring that along.] Things to include: ANY RADIO; toiletries; baby wipes; a season-appropriate change of clothes and 2-3 changes of underwear/socks; a pair of old but wearable shoes; a rain poncho/jacket; sunglasses; sunblock; N95 masks; goggles/face mask; shelf-stable snacks like trail mix or granola bars; pocketknife/multitool/etc; collapsible water bottle/tote; copies of door/car keys; copies of IDs and important documents (marriage/birth certs, passport, etc); work gloves; anything else you might want to grab during an emergency but don't want to have to hunt down, like sentimentals or pet leashes/travel bowls. Extra optional: make mini/duplicate kits and stash in the trunk of your car, your locker/desk at work, wherever. The goal for these is to have enough supplies to stay 1-2 nights elsewhere and then whatever you need to make it home.

- Optional but encouraged: Write down or print out all important names, phone numbers, and addresses for anyone you know or places you go; print off or purchase local/regional paper maps, mark those people/locations on the map (and maybe highlight your usual routes, maybe also likely detours). Put all this in a zippered/waterproof plastic bag (maybe throw in extra paper and a couple pencils) and throw in your go bag or vehicle glovebox and forget about it. Bonus: make multiple copies for housemates/family members.

- Optional but HIGHLY encouraged: get or make a camping toilet + big bag of kitty litter + roll of trash bags. To make it, any 5gal utility bucket will work (some stores/food service will give away or sell theirs, or can be bought at a home development store + they might even have clip-on toilet lids for this purpose), and a cheap pool noodle sliced to fit makes a decent rim cushion. Any situation which requires multi-day lockdowns when water might be shut off makes hygiene a priority; place the bag in the bucket, secure with the noodle/lid, place a little litter inside, and cover leavings with litter when done. Change the bag often.

- Optional: if you have a lot of windows, or a car, try and get a few clear vinyl shower curtain liners and some duct tape, in case of cracks or breakage.

- Optional further prep ideas: if you have a vehicle, do you have a gas can or breakdown kit with jumper cables and flashers, a tire puncture kit or fix-a-flat, a carjack and spare tire? Even if you don't know how to use them, a passenger or stopping passerby might. If you or loved ones have medical needs, are there transportable options you can look into like a rollator, collapsible wheelchair, or portable 02 concentrator? If you have pets, do you have collapsible/wearable carriers or leashes or totes, and travel food/water bowls/litter pans, their vax/health records? If you have dependents or loved ones young or old and have never planned a road trip/vacation with them before, what would be the bare minimum required to safely take them away from home (or keep them home) for a few days? A couple weeks? It's okay to not have these things, but they will make a difference in whether you can evacuate yourself or have to wait for official evacuation aid which may take a while; if the latter, increase your at-home prep goals.

- Any further prep ideas/suggestions can be found by exploring prepper-related sites; just ignore the politics and the 'buy this solar generator!!' plugs and look for info on go-bags, 'every day carry'/EDC bags, and simple survivalist stuff like fire starting and water filtration.

Okay.

How to survive a nuke:

Keep in mind that if at any point you die, the rest of the guide obviously becomes irrelevant, but the longer you survive the more of it you'll need.

STEP ONE: DO NOT LOOK AT THE FLASH.

If you've survived the initial vaporization blast, your next goal is to avoid a very painful death and, hopefully, survive to build a better world. Unfortunately the next-highest deaths outside the bomb itself comes from flying glass and debris from the explosion force, and extensive burns from heat.

Do not go look out the windows yet. Do not ogle. If your surroundings ever suddenly light up brighter than the highest midday sun, immediately stop what you're doing and HIT THE DECK. If possible, get under a table/in a room without windows/car floorboards/whatever, but first STOP AND DROP. Stay there at least until the shockwave has passed.

STEP TWO: EVALUATE.

Are you alive? Injured? Are people around you injured or trapped, and can you help? Address immediate needs first. Where are you? Can you get home? Can you reach loved ones? What supplies do you have on hand? What you do and how you proceed will be highly variable.

STEP THREE: FIND SHELTER ASAP.

This also depends on all the variables in step two, AS WELL AS the actual circumstances of the bomb(s) such as surface vs airstrike, compositional elements of the bomb(s), number of bombs, distance from you, weather, etc. The highest priority is getting home to your stockpiles, but if that isn't possible, then it's just surviving the initial fallout (which may be minimal to non-existent; again, variables). You may have anywhere from UP TO 15 MINUTES TO 45+ MINUTES BEFORE FALLOUT ARRIVES, IF AT ALL, BUT YOU NEED TO BE IN SHELTER BEFORE IT HAPPENS. RUN

Finding Good Shelter:

The further "inside/away from outside" the better. The deeper, the better. The thicker the walls, the better. The higher the roof, the better. You want as much distance and as much Matter between yourself and outside as possible. Basements are great; the very center of a 1st floor building or an interior room without windows works fine.

Making Good Shelter:

There may be things you can do to improve your shelter:

- Secure tarps/shower curtains/blankets over any cracked/broken windows, and/or to section off interior doorways

- Cover vents/window AC units/etc with rags to filter passing air BUT DO NOT ATTEMPT TO MAKE YOUR SHELTER AIR-TIGHT or risk suffocation

- Pad cracks around doors/windows with rags or seal them with tape

STEP FOUR: ARRIVING AT SHELTER

- pile furniture/junk against exterior walls for added mass as further shielding

- fill the sinks/tubs/any containers you can find with fresh water

- shut off natural gas/water valves if you can (don't turn water back on until you can be sure local water stations are functional; a hot water heater can be an extra contained water source in extreme emergencies)

If you've been outside at all, discard your clothes before entering and head straight to a shower/sink. DO NOT USE SOAP/SHAMPOO/CONDITIONER/LOTION/PRODUCTS, AND LIMIT RUBBING, simply rinse your whole body as well as you can, preferably over a drain/standing on something disposable.

STEP FIVE: SHELTER IN PLACE

Remain in place until you get an "all clear" message or emergency services arrive, which can take days to weeks (again, variables). If you absolutely must venture outside for any reason before this, like to scrounge supplies or food, wait as long as possible (and then a little longer) then cover ALL exposed skin/body/hair to the best of your abilities and don't go far. I would caution that if you see/hear ZERO WILDLIFE, consider waiting longer.

STEP SIX: SURVIVE

Congratulations on surviving nuclear war. Keep going, however you can. Protect yourself and your community however you can.

A NOTE ABOUT NUCLEAR FALLOUT: this isn't a video game

Fallout refers to radioactive bomb molecules getting mixed with blast-site vaporized particles. It is visible particulate matter, like black snow or ash.

If it is an air-burst strike, there will likely be little to no fallout, just the direct damage/force/heat from the explosion. If it is a surface-burst strike, where the bomb(s) made contact with the surface of the earth before exploding, there will be extensive fallout which, as particulate matter, will be subject to weather patterns; if you're upwind from the blast site you'll get little fallout, downwind will get the most, rain can lessen it or wash some away, etc.

If there is extensive or visible fallout, consider the area irradiated and avoid it however possible (if required to travel through, gear up first).

There will be no way to know how much fallout (if any) to expect in your given area and circumstances; follow the steps and expect fallout anyway, just in case.

Thanks for reading.

For further info, see FEMA's guide on this.

Good luck! I hope none of us need it!

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