What To Do in a Nuclear Attack:

Not that it’s going to happen, but because it could.

How the Attack Spreads ?

1. The initial shock wave lessens after the first ring, but will still demolish most residential buildings and cause widespread casualties.

2. The fireball created by a nuclear bomb can reach tens of millions of degrees.

3. The blast sends a shock wave that would destroy nearly everyone and everything within this first ring.

4. If the bomb is detonated in the air, as opposed to on the ground, 50% to 90% of people in this area will die from radiation exposure without medical treatment.

5. With a 10- kiloton bomb, everyone within the outermost ring in the image above would receive third-degree burns from thermal radiation.

What Would Happen ?

Fireball: Whether the nuke is detonated in the air or on the ground, the initial threat is the fireball, which can reach tens of millions of degrees. “If you’re within that, you’re dead,” Schlegelmilch says. According to an online simulation created by Alex Wellerstein at the Stevens Institute of Technology (it’s interactive, scary, and fun), a 10-kiloton bomb would produce a fireball with a radius of 500 to 650 feet.

Shock wave: After the fireball comes the shock wave, or air blast. If detonated in the air, that same 10-kiloton bomb would destroy most buildings and kill nearly everyone within 0.38 miles of ground zero. The effect is reduced by 23 percent if the detonation occurs on the ground. The shock wave weakens from there, but can still take out residential buildings and cause mass casualties two to two and a half times the initial spread of the shock wave, according to Wellerstein’s projections.

Radiation:

If you survive the fireball and shock wave, now you have to avoid the radiation. Exposure within three quarters of a mile of that 10-kiloton bomb, Wellerstein shows, will kill up to 90 percent of people without medical treatment. For a quarter-mile past that, your chances of survival increase, but you’ll get third-degree burns, which you probably won’t feel, because the radiation also kills your pain receptors.

Fallout: If the attack comes from the ground, dirt and debris are irradiated and shot into the air by the explosion, forming the classic mushroom cloud. Winds can carry the radiation, called nuclear fallout, from that cloud tens or hundreds of miles away, depending on the size of the bomb and the strength of the wind. As it falls back to earth, it sickens more people.

How Radiation Causes Cancer

Roughly 15 percent of the energy released in the initial blast and fallout of an atomic bomb is high-frequency ionizing radiation. Unlike other forms of radiation, such as visible light and microwaves, ionizing radiation is fast and energetic enough to strip electrons from molecules, including the ones that make up the cells in your body. That radiation randomly damages the DNA in your cells—as if you’ve been shot with millions of tiny pins. (UV rays are borderline ionizing, which is why you can get skin cancer from tanning.) If ionizing radiation strips enough electrons from your DNA, or if you’re unlucky and it hits the wrong places in your genome, the genes that control cell growth can start to function abnormally. Certain cells divide out of control, causing tumors, leukemias, or other cancers. The risk is particularly high for children, whose cells have divided less often and are more likely to run amok if damaged.

What You Should Do

“The good news is, if you make it through the blast and shock wave, you are now in a survivable situation,” Schlegelmilch says. If you’re close to the blast you need to get to a shelter. “At best, you have 15 to 20 minutes before the fallout starts to come back down,” he says. “If you’re farther out, you could have more time, but the reality is, you aren’t going to have time to evaluate the situation. If you see a nuclear flash, the first thing to do is get behind a barrier in case the shock wave comes. Then get to the inner part of a building. Ideally you’d be protected by thick concrete, underground if possible. Glass and most metals won’t provide you much protection.” If the explosion was ground based, you can also protect yourself by getting above the blast—usually higher than the ninth floor of a building. Be sure to stay near the center of the building in a room with substantial walls.

Preparing in Advance.

Stock up on non-perishable food.

Non-perishables can last several years, whether it's in storage or in sustaining you after an attack. Choose items that contain a lot of carbohydrates, so you get more caloric bang for your buck, and store them in a cool, dry place.

White rice
Wheat
Beans
Sugar
Honey
Oats
Pasta
Powdered milk
Dried fruits and vegetables
Build your supply slowly. Every time you go to the grocery store, pick up one or two more items for your food storage. Eventually, you should be able to build up a multi-month supply.
Make sure you have a can opener for canned items.
Store water.
Consider keeping a water supply in food-grade plastic containers. Clean the containers with a bleach solution, then fill them with filtered and distilled water.

Aim to have one gallon per person per day.
For purifying water in the event of an attack, keep basic household bleach and potassium iodide (Lugol's solution) on-hand.

Get communication supplies

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Being able to stay informed, as well as alerting others to your position, can be vitally valuable. Here's what you might need:
- A radio: Try to find one that's crank- or solar-powered. If you have to go with a battery-operated model, be sure to keep spare batteries on-hand. Consider getting an NOAA weather radio as well — this will broadcast emergency information 24 hours a day.
- A whistle: You can use this to signal for help.
- Your cell phone: Cell service may or may not be maintained, but you'll want to be ready if it is. If you can, find a solar charger for your model.
Stock up on medical supplies.
Having a few medical items available could be the difference between life and death if you're injured in the attack. You'll need:
- A basic first aid kit: You can purchase these pre-packaged, or make one yourself. You'll need sterile gauze and bandages, antibiotic ointment, latex gloves, scissors, tweezers, a thermometer and a blanket.
- A first aid instruction booklet: Purchase one from an organization like the Red Cross, or assemble your own with materials you print off from the internet. You should know how to bandage wounds, administer CPR, treat shock, and treat burns.
- Prescription medications or supplies: If you take a specific medication every day, try to make sure you have a small emergency supply built-up.
Get other miscellaneous items. Round out your emergency preparedness kit with the following:
- A flashlight and batteries
- Dust masks
- Plastic sheeting and duct tape
- Garbage bags, plastic ties and wet wipes for personal sanitation
- A wrench and pliers, to shut off utilities such as gas and water.
Wear all clothing (hats, gloves, goggles, closed sleeve shirt, etc.)
, especially when outside to help prevent Beta burns. Decontaminate by shaking your clothes constantly and washing, with water, any exposed skin; settled residue will eventually cause burns.
- - If the skin does not blister, char or break; don't cover it, even if it covers a large portion of the body (almost like sunburn). Instead, wash the area and cover it with Vaseline or a solution of baking powder and water if available. But, moist (uncontaminated) earth will do.
- Severe burn: Known as a thermal burn, as it comes mostly from the high intensity blast heat, rather than ionizing particles, though it can be from the latter. This can be life threatening; everything becomes a factor: water loss, shock, lung damage, infection, etc. Follow these steps to treat a severe burn.
  - Protect burns from further contamination.
  - If clothing covers the burn area, gently cut and remove the cloth from the burn. DO NOT try to remove cloth which has stuck or fused onto the burn. DO NOT try to pull clothes over the burn. DO NOT put any ointment on the burn.
  - Gently wash the burned area with water ONLY. Do NOT apply creams or ointments.
  - Do NOT use a normal sterile medical dressing not specifically intended for burns. As non-adhesive burn dressings (and all other medical supplies) are likely to be in short supply, an expedient alternative is to use plastic wrap (also known as saran wrap, food wrap, and cling film), which is sterile, does not stick to burns, and is readily available.
  - nuclear weapon detonated at a very high altitude will generate an electromagnetic pulse so powerful that it can destroy electronic and electrical devices. At the very least,
  - unplug all devices from electrical sockets and antennas.Placing radios, flashlights in a SEALED metal container (a "Faraday cage") may protect from EMP, providing the items being protected are not in contact with the enclosure. The metal shield must surround the protected item completely - and it helps if it is grounded.
    
    The items to be protected should be insulated from the conductive shell, since the EMP field washing over the shield can still induce voltages in solid state circuit boards. A metalized "space blanket" (costing about $2.00 USD) wrapped securely around a device wrapped in newspaper or cotton may act as a Faraday shield, helpful if one is far from the blast.
    
    Another method is to wrap a cardboard box in copper or aluminum foil. Place the item in there and plug the device into the ground.
    
    Be prepared for subsequent attacks.
  - Most likely, a nuclear attack will not be a singular event. Be prepared for another strike or strikes by enemy nations, or an invasion by the attacking party.
    
    Keep your shelter intact, unless the materials used are absolutely necessary for survival. Collect any excess clean water and food that is available.
    
    However, if the attacking nation does attack again, it will likely be in another part of the country. If all else fails, live in a cave.