attacks us with nuclear weapons danger will come not just from blasts or heat or nearby radiation effect but also from fallout fallout which may occur miles and miles away from the blast you need to know about fallout one it is how to detect it and what to do to protect yourself against it everybody needs to know yes this does mean you watch and listen one day these facts may save your life what is this fallout any just bits of radioactive fallout of the mushroom cloud of the nuclear explosion and settle on the ground these that the matter can be dangerous you are exposed to some radiation every day from cosmic rays or other natural sources of radiation these exposure and are too small to hurt you when a wartime nuclear explosion occurs a serious fall out follows thousands of tons of atomized earth building materials rocks and gases may be thrown into the air and the mushroom cloud containing them sometimes moves as high as one hundred thousand feet nearly twenty miles up some of the radioactive particles still out near the explosions site others may be carried for ten fifty a hundred miles or more but how will you know if there is fallout you can't hear smell taste or see the radiation but you yourself can detect the fallout particles that produce it the easiest time to do this without special instruments is when the fall out is settling through the air  starts any time from about one half hour to several hours after the explosion depending on how far away you are and it continues to fall for an hour or longer usually you can see the fallout so if there's been an explosion of a nuclear weapon within a few hundred miles of you you should suspect every unusual concentration of dust in the air being foll after an explosion in daylight watch any unusual accumulation of dust at night for flight or light colored plates outside examined every fifteen minutes or so if dust has accumulated on the plates created as follows the particles in that fallout behaves like a miniature x ray machines sending out radiation in all directions if there are many particles and if you are exposed to them long enough you will be hurt others will be watching for that fallout of course experts will estimate the probable path and speed of approaching fall out and try to keep you posted but it may come before you hear any details by radio or otherwise you must take precautions whether you hear their reports or not if radio stations are operating you will hear reports especially on the conrad frequencies six forty or twelve forty on your am dial as soon as it is safe for especially protected crews to get out into the open these highly trained civil defense radiation detection teams will make the federal check of radiation levels and characteristics those facts will be relayed to you by radio as fast as they come in to civil defense headquarters in your area information from the radiation monitoring teams will be combined and analyzed by experts manning a central radiation control point these experts who know just how fast harmful radiation reduces inforce can predict when it will be safe for people to come out of shelters and resume normal tasks we have warned that you may have to act before you get any detailed reports just what can you do if fallout comes your way find the best shelter you can the more solid substance you can put between yourself and the fallout the better but an ordinary frame house with windows closed will give considerable protection in a house it's best to get on the floor away from doors and windows or if you can find a location with additional walls in the center of the building a basement is even better if the house has one large buildings such as apartment or office buildings give good protection the thick heavy masonry of their walls and floors makes it hard for radiation to get through basements inside rooms or corridors on the lower floors are safest the basement of any house or building will become a good the improvised shelter if you block the windows with sandbags and place other sandbags on the floor above the shelter area if you don't have sandbags thick solid layers of books magazines or newspapers or even a series of file cabinets standing close to each other can cut the radiation danger in some parts of the country there are a storm cellars or outside vegetable storage cellars they may be used as shelters  if you plan to use such a cellar or your basement or any other shelter stock it with food and supplies to equip and supply your shelter area you need some of the same things you might take on a vacation camping trip first sleeping equipment to your shelter area folding cots or sleeping bags and blankets then food and water there should be at least a two week supply you'll want plenty of fruit juices and lots of your family's favorite canned foods the drinking water supply should be rotated often to be sure it's fresh and don't forget such basic needs as sugar salt pepper and other seasoning that your family ordinarily uses now some equipment or radio is very important it should be a battery portable with spare batteries transistorized radio is best as the batteries last longer next you need light in the form of flashlights and a battery operated l then a good first aid kit now plates cups silverware a can opener and a bottle opener are important add to these things enough clo containers to take care of garbage and human waste especially if there will be children in the shelter include some books and magazines paper and pencils maybe one or two small simple games the best protection of all is the special shelter built according to specifications of your local civil defense organization this as an air filter to allow ventilation but keep dust out and it has at least three feet of earth over it it would be a good idea to go right now to your local civil defense office to secure a plans for the type of shelter you want and then to get busy on construction plans are simple using standard materials so maybe you can do the job yourself but all the special shelter talk won't help very much if you are caught way out on the open road when that happens keep driving until you see a building which may be a house or barn church or a school drive as close to the building as you can then get yourself and your family out of the car and take cover in the building if you live on a farm and have sufficient warning get your animals under cover and give them enough food and water to last several days and if you can cover any piles of hay or harvested crops that may be outside if the explosion has been some miles away you will have time to build tubs and other containers with water before fallout arrives all locations where outside dust does not then it will be safe storage points for water whatever kind of shelter you find settle down and make the best of it if there are others with you help them by being as calm as you can and don't be discouraged you can go out for a very brief periods if you are well covered and keep the dust off your skin where heavy boots are shoes and pants tucked in or tied around the bottom to keep dust out if any dust gets on you brush it off promptly and when you have a chance wash it off that dust can burn your skin but what happens if you do get exposed to a great deal of fallout food or water has been contaminated by the dust internal damage may occur when dust has been left on the skin there will be skin burns when you have been there dust too long there may be radiation sickness exposure and can even cause death if you have had considerable exposure you will vomit and grow weak but after a few hours this sensation will pass and by the next day you may have had the last of it even if you have been exposed to excessive fall out you may eat and drink just as you normally would but don't force yourself whether you have had these symptoms are not civil defense radio announcements have said that radiation has been high in your section keep an eye on your condition for the next few days watch especially for these developments in the two weeks following exposure return of not sore throat spots developing without any known reason loss of hair these conditions or a nose bleed or diarrhea should be reported to a doctor or to the nearest first aid stations set up under civil defense plans unless civil defense teams and warn that your area is still dangerously radioactive you can get out and work to help yourself and help others although fall outs can be deadly your chances of avoiding damage from it are much better if you follow the directions we have given you  an alert keep your portable radio tuned to the conrad radio frequencies six forty and twelve forty on the am dial for the latest reports and advice right now the day before there is an alert take time to learn the civil defense by steps to learn warning signals and what they mean learn your community plan for emergency action learn protection from radioactive fallout learn first aid and home emergency preparedness step and learn how to use handle right six forty or twelve forty on the am dial