Everywhere, it seems like officials are actively preparing for
the possibility of nuclear war.
Tensions are high in practically every corner of the world but
somehow, despite the proliferation of imminent threats, many people are still
blithely unaware of the hell that could be unleashed.
Due to tensions between the US and North Korea, the world is
frantically preparing for the possibility of a nuclear attack. The US, China,
Russia, North Korea, and South Korea have all shown force with bombers and
destroyers, and it seems that it will only be a matter of time before one
incident sparks a cascading explosion.
The governments of these 8 places are making preparations, but
they’ll be to little avail if people don’t participate and just expect to be
rescued.
1)
South Korea
In South Korea, their government has urged citizens to get
prepared for war, and prepping is becoming mainstream for North Korea’s nearest
neighbor and sworn enemy.
The government of South Korea is making every effort to turn its
citizens into a country of survivalists. With the ever-increasing threats from
the North, South Korean preppers are becoming mainstream, instead of a quirky
fringe element…
The South Korean President isn’t taking this lying down. “In
case North Korea undertakes provocations against us or our ally, we
have the power to destroy (the North) beyond recovery.” This threat most
likely will not please the Dear Leader of North Korea, so it’s probably safe to
predict even greater hostilities on the horizon.
The South Korean Ministry of Public Administration and Security
has issued guidelines for a variety of attacks to their citizens due to the
ever-increasing risk of an attack by North Korea…
…An article published in the South
Korean Times states, “The number of doomsday pessimists is
rapidly growing here, as is shown from the number of relevant YouTube videos
and their views.”
The article goes on to describe a video by a popular female
comedian that teaches watchers how to create a bug-out bag. But that’s not all.
South Korean preppers are becoming mainstream. (source)
2)
China
A Chinese newspaper from an area that shares a border with North
Korea published a series of articles advising
people how to prepare for a strike.
Bloomberg summarized the advice:
The Jilin Daily — the government newspaper of Jilin province on
North Korea’s northeastern border — published articles on page 5 explaining how
nuclear weapons work and the damage they cause. The paper used cartoons to
offer advice on what residents can do about radiation exposure and provided
instructions on how to respond during an attack.
One article listed essential items for emergency kits, including
fire extinguishers and breathing masks. Another warned that air raids could
mean nuclear, chemical and biological attacks, and used the 1945 atomic bombing
of Hiroshima as an example.
The
cartoon images illustrated how residents should clean their bodies, boots, and
coats after being exposed to radiation. They suggested taking iodine tablets if
there is radiation nearby. (source)
3)
Japan
Millions of people in Japan have taken part in (or soon will)
nuclear attack evacuation drills, and the Prime Minister is urging local
authorities to designate the best sturdy, underground sites to be used as
potential shelters.
…Tokyo isn’t the first city to conduct these types of large-scale
drills: Towns facing the Korean Peninsula have conducted similar drills in
recent months.
The national and city governments are to carry out a series of
exercises between January and March to prepare for a potential attack on Tokyo,
the Sankei Shimbun newspaper reported, the first time that a major Japanese
city will have carried out responses to a simulated attack.
Towns facing the Korean Peninsula have in recent months conducted
similar drills, with residents instructed to seek shelter in response to sirens
warning of an imminent missile strike.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has called on local governments
throughout the country to identify underground facilities or buildings that are
sufficiently sturdy to withstand a missile attack and to designate those
facilities as shelters. source()
But it isn’t just Asia that is preparing for the possibility of
a nuclear strike.
4)
Australia
Australia recently received a warning from North Korea, calling
the country a “vassal” of the United States.
A
spokesman for the North Korean Foreign Ministry told the country’s state-run
Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) [said] that Australia’s
support for the United States in opposing North Korea was a “suicidal act.”
“Australia
will be unable to avoid a disaster if it keeps toeing the US line of military,
economic and diplomatic pressure upon the DPRK despite its repeated warnings,”
the Foreign Ministry spokesman was quoted as saying.
“It
should be prudent in speech and conduct with its own principle, instead of
blindly following the US’ policy of aggression, and realize that working to
develop friendly relations with other countries is the best way to its
security.” (source)
The
minister for defense personnel, Dan Tehan, said that they
“will not be cowed” by North Korea’s threats.
5)
Hawaii
Hawaii recently tested their
nuclear sirens that have not been used since the 1980s. The island is the
closest American state to Hawaii, which makes it geographically vulnerable.
But here’s the bummer about the siren test. They were going for
20 whole minutes and hardly anyone even noticed them.
It’s hoped that the 385 sirens dotted around Hawaii will give
residents and tourists a 20-minute warning if North Korean nuclear missiles are
inbound.
But the sirens, which have been silent since the Cold War, were
barely heard in the busy tourist areas of Waikiki, where most people
obliviously went about their day.
…Disturbed by the underwhelming results of the tests, officials
are now investigating whether the sirens were operating as they are supposed
to. (source)
One of my dearest friends lives in Hawaii and has attended the
nuclear preparedness meetings that have been held on Maui. According to her,
hardly anyone shows up. No one is interested.
With that in mind, one must wonder if the issue with the lack of
response to the nuke siren is one of decibels or one of cognitive dissonance.
6) Guam
As a US territory and the closest to North Korea, Guam could
find itself in the crosshairs. Officials have issued guidelines to
all its residents to prepare them for the possibility of a nuclear strike.
(Here’s a link to the fact sheet.)
There’s
some excellent advice, such as:
·
“Make a list of potential concrete shelters
near your home, workplace or school.”
·
“Do not look at the flash or fireball — It can
blind you.”
·
“Lie flat on the ground and cover your head.
If the explosion is some distance away, it could take 30 seconds or more for
the blast wave to hit.”
·
“When possible, take a shower with lots of
soap and water…do not scrub or scratch the skin.”
·
“Do not use conditioner in your hair because
it will bind radioactive material to your hair.”
7) The
US Mainland
Here on the mainland, California is making preparations, but one
notable factor is that residents should not expect help from the government any
time soon should such a catastrophe occur. (This, of course, is something that
preppers have known for a long time and is clearly evidenced in the slow response to Puerto Rico.)
It also warns of the difficulties government authorities would
likely encounter in dealing with the aftermath of a blast. The public will need
to evacuate, the report says, but with “limited understanding of radiation
risks, they will experience high anxiety and may be non-compliant…”
“…The consequences of a nuclear attack in Southern California
would be catastrophic,” the report says. “Nonetheless, government entities and
first responders are expected to remain operational to preserve human life,
maintain order, and aid in the recovery process.”
The report, which is largely directed at local, state, and federal
agencies and first responders located in the Los Angeles region, notes that the
federal government will likely be of limited help immediately after a nuclear
blast.
“[T]here will be no significant federal assistance
at the scene for 24-72 hours following the attack,” the bulletin says. (source)
The Pentagon is planning missile defense bases along
the coast.
Congressman Mike Rogers, who sits on the House Armed Services
Committee and chairs the Strategic Forces Subcommittee which oversees missile
defence, said the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) was aiming to install extra
defences at West Coast sites.
“It’s just a matter of the location, and the MDA making a
recommendation as to which site meets their criteria,” the Alabama Congressman
and Republican said.
When asked about the plan, MDA Deputy Director Rear Admiral Jon
Hill said in a statement: “The Missile Defense Agency has received no tasking
to site the Terminal High Altitude Air Defense System on the West Coast.”
The MDA is a unit of the US Defense Department. Congressman Rogers
did not reveal the exact locations the agency is considering but said several
sites are “competing” for the missile defense installations. source()
The goal, of course, is to shoot down the missiles before they
can land in the United States and cause untold damage and death tolls. It may
not be that easy though. Alarmingly, several experts have raised
concerns about our ability to shoot down nukes before they hit.
8)
Russia
Russia has been preparing for nuclear possibilities for quite a
while now. Last year, it was reported that Russia was building fallout
shelters all over the country and that 40 million citizens participated in
a defense drill shortly before the US election, when tensions were running high
over Syria.
But it didn’t end with the election because now Russia is up to
its eyeballs trying to defuse the US/North Korea situation. Russian president
Vladimir Putin recently received a letter from
Kim Jong Un that stated they could launch an attack on the US “at any day” and
could reach the mainland.
As well, Russia has voiced concerns about the animosity with
NATO and recently drilled for the possibilities of nuclear or biological
attacks. Russia has alleged that the US and Europe are
developing nuclear weapons use procedures at their borders.
Preparing for a scenario in which Russia was attacked by “weapons
of mass destruction by a hypothetical enemy,” soldiers were deployed in hazmat
suits and gas masks.
Units specializing in chemical weapons were deployed in the
Krasnodar and Stavropol regions, while at least 100 personnel in
the neighboring Rostov region launched a parallel decontamination
drill on Monday. It followed similar exercises held by Russian
overseas troops in nearby Armenia over the weekend.
Also deployed were mobile laboratories and radioactive- and
chemical-tracing reconnaissance vehicles capable of quarantining, assessing and
potentially eliminating a chemical or nuclear threat.
In recent weeks, Russia’s nuclear-capable forces practiced
missile launches and flyovers in apparent offensive measures for
a conflict scenario. (source)
Here is
what would happen if a 10 kiloton nuclear strike occurred.
As I have written numerous times, if you aren’t at Ground Zero,
a nuclear strike is very survivable. It isn’t one of those situations like The
Road, where the whole world is a nuclear wasteland and people start eating each
other to survive.
(This is an excerpt from my article, How to Prepare for a Nuclear
Attack.)
Contrary to popular belief, a nuke won’t kill everyone within
hundreds of miles. If you aren’t in the immediate blast radius, a nuclear
strike is absolutely survivable.
The one-mile radius around the blast will be virtually
unsurvivable. Within two miles, people will suffer 3rd-degree burns from the
intense wave of heat.
If you are within two miles of the blast, the winds will be coming
at about 600 miles per hour. This will take down buildings and cause a
tremendous amount of pressure. Some experts recommend that you keep your mouth
open to try and reduce the pressure on your eardrums. Looking at the blast
could cause permanent blindness.
According to the DHS (source), 10 kilotons is
the approximate size of nuclear weapon we could expect.
·
Nearly everyone within a half-mile radius of the point of impact
would die and most of the buildings would be demolished. This would be
considered Ground Zero.
·
The area within the next half mile would suffer extensive damage,
fires, and serious injuries.
·
Areas within three miles could see minor injuries to people and
slight damage to their homes.
·
The fallout would kill even more people. According to the DHS:
·
Within 10 to 20 miles of the explosion, radioactive exposure would
cause nausea and vomiting within hours and death without medical treatment.
·
But for those near enough to the blast, experiencing more than
800R of radiation, not seeking shelter immediately would cause deaths with or
without medical treatment, the study found.
·
People would not be able to evacuate this area as fallout would
arrive within just 10 minutes.
People upwind of the strike and outside the 20-mile radius would
be unlikely to suffer any effects. People downwind would need to take shelter.
Deaths from cancer that is related to the fallout could occur for many years
after.
With all of these governments spending oodles of money trying to
prepare their citizens for the unthinkable, it would be extremely wise to get
ready, just in case.
You’ll need to plan to hunker down for 14-21 days. That means
you’ll need food, a way to cook it, water, sanitation supplies, and
other essentials to last for that amount of time. You should invest in a potassium
iodide supplement to stave off the possibility of thyroid
cancer. (Learn how to use them in this article with
a printable version.)
In times like this, it’s more essential than ever to keep
well-informed. (Sign up here for my
daily emails and follow my website, Preppers
Daily News.)
Most importantly, go to this
article to learn in-depth what you should do to prepare for
the possibility of a nuclear attack. If the missiles are in the air, it’s far
too late.
