Evening star., 1951-02-24
Deep-She|ter
Plan Strapped, ,
Caldwell Says
Existing Structures
Will Be Strengthened
As A-Bomb Refugees
By Crosby S. Moves

Civil Defense Director Millard F.
Caldwell, jr., announced yester-
day.
Mr.. Caldwell. holding his first
press conference since his ap-
pointment as director, stated
bluntly that plans for a wide
spread use of Federal money to
help finance a program of deep
shelter construction has been
scrapped.
The money originally intended
for it-estimated by officials at
$2,250, 600, 900 for the next three
years in combined local and Fed
eral funds-will be used instead
to pay for a much less ambitious
program of strengthening exist
ing structures to provide relative
shelter" he said.
Other Points Stressed.
The director also made the
following points:
/. Civil defense must be looked
upon as equal in urgency to mill
tary preparedness. Within a year,
we must have a civil defense
organization in being from the
highest level down to the low
est"
2. BY April 1, it is expected
that a "guide-rule" for safety
specifications of buildings will be
placed in the hands of State and
municipal governments, based on
tests conducted by the Army
Corps of Engineers. These will
set up standards for classifying
certain areas of different types
of buildings as shelter areas.
8. While the Federal agency is
not planning to encourage an
elaborate construction program of
backyard" family-type shelters,
specifications for such shelters
will be released at the same time
They will tell the home owner
what measures he can take to in
crease his chances Of surviving
an atomic attack, without offer
ing anything approaching absolute
protection.
Confirms Previous Report.
Director Caldwell's statement
on the shelter program is the first
official confirmation of reports
that early planning for a shelter
construction program has proved
impracticable.
He pointed out that a shelter.
to withstand a direct atomic
blast, would require feet of re-
inforced concrete, additional earth
coverage and special doors. Even
this would not be proof against
all kinds of atomic blasts. he
added.
Providing such shelter for
every one in critical target areas
would take $500 billion and all
the manpower and materials we
have for the next several years, I"
he said.
Instead, local and State govern
ments will be asked to undertake
careful surveys of their existing
buildings, Mr.. Caldwell said. using
the Federal specifications as a
guide. Federal money will then
be provided to make such altera-
tions as are required to provide a
reasonable degree of shelter. The.
details of how this will actually
work, or whether money will be
provided to owners of private
buildings on a $3.50 basis, are still
to be worked out, he said.
Urges Speed in Organization.
On the subject of civil defense
organization and training, Mr..
Caldwell declared, "We must get
ready to take it as quickly as we
possibly can.
1.-The power exists today in
Russia to bomb any one of a
number of critical targets in this
country or to bomb them all at the
same time" he added. 1.-THE only
deterrent on Russia's part is the
single question of when such an
attack would be to their greatest
possible advantage.
There is nothing we can do to
stop that attack. The most opti-
mistlc experts say that 80 per cent
of the attacking planes could be
shot down or diverted.
Mr.. Caldwell added that other
possibilities of attack also must be
reckoned with, such as the use of
chemical or meteorological war
fare or sabotage.
"An atomic attack can come
from air or sea or can be injected
locally as the result of sabotage" "
he declared.
Finds British Ahead of Us.
Recently returned from trip
to England, where he inspected
British civil defense preparations
Mr.. Caldwell said he had found
the English way ahead of us in
training" since they have built
extensively on the organization
created in World War II. In the
field of planning, the United
States has been able to borrow ex-
tensively from the British and are
not so far outstripped, he said.
James j. Wadsworth, jr., deputy
civil defense director, reported to
the conference on a meeting witr
Canadian officials which took
place earlier this week. Closely
co-ordinated plans which will, in
effect, wipe out the borders" for
civil defense purposes and provide
for free exchange of ideas and
personnel are being worked out
by the State Department and the
Canadian Department of External
Affairs, he said.