Story Archive

Fallout

Michael Dillon, an atmospheric scientist at California’s Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, has done new research to determine how best to survive in a nuclear war. (The Laboratory’s primary mission is ensuring the safety, security, and reliability of America’s nuclear weapons.) He did the research, he says, because relatives had asked him what to do if a nuclear weapon detonates near them, and “I realized that I really didn’t have a great answer,” Dillon said. According to his research, published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society, if you see a mushroom cloud, you should run for your life to a high-quality fallout shelter — definitely not just a basement. “In California there just are not that many basements” to shelter in, Dillon says. “If your current shelter is poor and higher quality shelter is less than 5 minutes away, the model suggests that you should run there as soon as you can.” If an even better one is less than 30 minutes away, run there, he says. “I disagree with the conclusions,” says Lawrence Wein of Stanford University. “He fails to account for several important issues that are vitally important for policy recommendations.” (RC/KMAX Sacramento) ...So the official recommendation stands: if you see a mushroom cloud, bend over and kiss your butt goodbye.