Page:Survival Under Atomic Attack.djvu/21

From Wikisource
Jump to navigation Jump to search
This page has been proofread, but needs to be validated.

they can be removed easily from some surfaces, they stick very tightly to others. It is practically impossible to get absolutely all of them out of household corners and cracks. Most of the time, it is far easier to prevent pollution than it is to remove it.

 WHAT ABOUT RADIOACTIVE CLOUDS?

IN AIR BURSTS RADIOACTIVE DUSTS ARE SPREAD SO WIDELY THAT THEY ARE UNLIKELY TO HARM PEOPLE. In spite of the huge quantities of lingering radioactivity loosed by atomic explosions, people fortunately are not very likely to be exposed to dangerous amounts of it in most atomic raids.

Since high-level bursts do the greatest damage, that is the kind we can expect most often. When atomic weapons are exploded in mid-air, the violent, upward surge of super-hot gases and air quickly sweeps practically all the radioactive ashes and unexploded bits of bomb fuel high into the sky. AIR BURSTS WILL NOT CREATE "ARES OF DOOM". Most of them are carried harmlessly off in the drifting bomb clouds. High-level explosions definitely will not create "areas of doom", where no man dares enter and no plant can grow. In fact, they will leave very little radioactivity on the ground, even near the point of explosion. Firefighters and rescue teams can move promptly toward the center of destruction with little danger DON'T WORRY ABOUT HIGH-LEVEL RADIOACTIVE CLOUDS. of facing harmful radiation.

And regardless of all you may have heard or read concerning the dangers of radioactive clouds,
21