Category Archives: Civil Defense History

Keep indoors. Lie down. Turn off the lights. Turn on the radio.

1941decradioretailing

The December 1941 issue of Radio Retailing hit the presses after Pearl Harbor, and much of the issue stressed that for the war effort, radio was a necessity. The cover reminded that there was no more essential consumer item than the radio. It noted that millions of Americans had learned anew that the radio in the home, office, or automobile was of prime importance, and that the nation’s radio retailers and servicemen would need to meet the imperative of keeping sets in operation above everything else.

Fiorello LaGuardia.jpg

LaGuardia. Wikipedia photo.

The issue provided a quote from Defense Administrator Fiorello LaGuardia for advice during blackouts: “Keep indoors. Lie down. Turn off the lights. Turn on the radio.”



WGU-20, “The Last Radio Station”

WGU-20 logo. Wikipedia image.

Forty years ago, the Spring-Summer 1976 issue of Communications World carried an interesting profile of station WGU-20, sometimes dubbed “the last radio station.”

The station was built at a cost of two million dollars in 1973, and operated with a power of 55 kW on 179 kHz with a 700 foot toploaded vertical antenna located at Chase Maryland. It was operated by the Defense Civil Preparedness Agency.

The station was designed to be the first in a network of longwave stations constituting the Decision Information Distribution System (DIDS) to warn the public of an enemy attack. An additional stations, operating on 167, 171, and 191 kHz were to blanket the continental United States with coverage, controlled by 61.15 kHz control stations at Ault, Colorado, and Cambridge, Kansas. In the event of an attack warning, civil defense authorities would send the alert to these control stations by landline or microwave, and the DIDS network would commence playing taped messages warning the public.

The station did QSL, and the magazine provided the mailing address for reception reports.

The network was never built, and the WGU-20 antenna was ultimately demolished in 2011. While it was operational, the station broadcast the time of day:

Good evening. This is WGU-20, a defense civil-preparedness agency station, serving the east central states with emergency information. Eastern Standard Time seventeen hours, twenty minutes, twenty seconds. Good evening. This is WGU-20, a defense civil-preparedness agency station, serving the east central states with emergency information. Eastern Standard Time seventeen hours, twenty minutes, thirty seconds. Good evening. …

The video below contains a recording of WGU-20, and was recorded at a later date after weather broadcasts were included in the broadcast:





July 20, 1956 CONELRAD Test

Milwaukee Civil Defense Director Don E. Carleton and Col. Anthony F. Levno assess damage after simulated attack on Milwaukee. Milwaukee Journal, Jul. 20, 1956.

Milwaukee Civil Defense Director Don E. Carleton and Col. Anthony F. Levno assess damage after simulated attack on Milwaukee. Milwaukee Journal, Jul. 20, 1956.

Today marks the 60th anniversary of what was, as far as I’ve been able to determine, the only nationwide test of CONELRAD, the system designed to give Americans emergency information about a nuclear attack.

As I wrote in a previous post, all radio and TV broadcast stations in the U.S. left the air at 3:10 PM Eastern Time.  Designated stations came on the air on 640 or 1240 kHz, alternating between transmitters to confuse enemy bombers.  In some cities, such as Milwaukee, local exercises were conducted in conjunction with the CONELRAD test.  In the photo shown here, civil defense planners are examining the hypothetical ruins of Milwaukee.

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1941 Prefab “Semi-Bombproof” House

1941JunePMprefabSeventy-five years ago, preparedness for war was on everyone’s mind, as shown by this prefabricated three-room house, which was erected in just 23 minutes. The sections were made of concrete which was cast in forms lying on the ground. After drying, cranes lifted them into place, and welders completed the job by welding the sections together. The house was said to be “semi-bombproof,” meaning that it would “stop all but the heaviest flying fragments.” It was designed as quick construction of housing for defense workers.

The company making these, Thermo-Crete Homes, 10846 Ventura Blvd., Los Angeles, California, also made a small A-frame bomb shelter for use in backyards.

The house appeared in the June, 1941, issue of Popular Mechanics.

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1955 CONELRAD Monitor at WRFD

1955WRFDConelradFrom 1951-1963, U.S. broadcast stations were required to participate in CONELRAD, a system designed to alert the public to enemy attack, but also deprive enemy bombers of radio signals which could be used for navigation purposes.  Under a CONELRAD alert, all stations would cease broadcasting on their normal frequencies. Designated stations would switch to broadcasting on either 640 or 1240 kHz.  The result would be that listeners would be able to hear alerts, but enemy bombers would hear only a confusing jumble of signals on those frequencies.

For the system to work, each station needed an alarm.  For smaller stations, this would consist of an alarm tuned to another station in the area.  If the primary station went off the air, then the smaller station would be alerted.  If it turned out to be an actual alert, they would need to leave the air or switch to their designated frequency.  Alarms were available commercially for broadcast stations, and simpler models were also available for hams, who were later required to participate in CONELRAD.  Many hams built their own, and there were many plans published over the years.  Sixty years ago this month, the October 1955 issue of Radio Electronics magazine carried the plans for the unit shown here, which was in use at WRFD, a Worthington, Ohio, 5000 watt daytime only station affiliated with Fram Bureau Insurance, with a format aimed at the agricultural market.

The author of the construction article was Harold Schaaf, the station’s chief engineer, who noted a critical defect in many of the existing CONELRAD alarms.  Most of them depended on a normally open relay which would close in case of an alert.  If the alarm circuit failed for some reason, there would be no relay action.

Schaaf noted that “such a system cannot be considered reliable, since it can go out of order without the operator knowing it.” Schaaf’s circuit instead included a relay that remained energized during normal operation. In the case of a circuit fault such as a failure of one of the tubes, the relay would de-energize, which would cause the alarm to sound, requiring the station operator to investigate. The result was what the title of the article described as a “failure-proof CONELRAD alarm.”

Like most other CONELRAD alarms, this one was hooked to the AVC circuit of a superheterodyne receiver tuned to the station being monitored. As long as there was an AVC voltage present, the alarm would remain silent. If the monitored station went off the air, the AVC voltage would disappear, which would trigger the alarm, which could consist of an external bell.

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September 15 1945 Florida Hurricane

Miami Daily News, Sept. 16, 1945.

Miami Daily News, Sept. 16, 1945.

Seventy years ago today, September 15, 1945, a hurricane made landfall in Key Largo and then swept across Miami and Homestead, Florida. It was a Category 4 storm, and winds of 145 mph were clocked at Homestead Army Air Corps Base. Most of the city of Homestead was destroyed, and at Richmond Naval Air Station, a fire ignited during the storm burned down three hangars. 1632 homes were destroyed in Florida, and there were four deaths.

Amateur radio had not yet returned to the air after V-J Day, but hams were still available to help, since they formed the core of the War Emergency Radio Service, which had been formed during the War to allow hams to provide emergency communications for both civil defense and during natural disasters.

The November 1945 issue of QST reported “September Hurricane Finds Miami WERS Ready.” The Dade County civil defense operated under the call sign of WKNW, which used hams to link ten district headquarters stations to the main control station on the roof of the fifteen-story Technical Vocational Building. A Red Cross mobile disaster unit was also equipped with radio, as were a number of privately owned mobile units. Operations began as soon as the wind subsided enough for operators to get to their designated stations.

At the peak of the storm, all lines to the civil defense headquarters were down, and the WERS station, manned by hams and powered by an emergency generator, was the only link. When the phone line to Jackson Memorial Hospital went out, one of the mobiles was dispatched to that location, and contact was re-established in fifteen minutes.

When it was clear that Homestead had suffered damage, a convoy of vehicles set out from civil defense headquartrs. The antenna at headquarters had been repeatedly destroyed, and a temporary antenna was set up inside, with only limited range. Since it couldn’t reach Homestead, one of the mobile hams in the convoy backtracked until reliable communications was established. However, with the 2-1/2 meter equipment in use, it was not possible for that station to reach all the way to Homestead. It wasn’t until the third day that a reliable link was established between Miami and Homestead, after which a considerable amount of traffic flowed.

Singled out for praise were W4NB, W4AFF, W1KVB, W4CFC, w1JMT, and W4ANP, along with two other hams who were licensed after Pearl Harbor and hence had no amateur call sign.  Of those calls, the only one where I could find any later reference was Francis W. Jenard, W1JMT, who died in 1999, according to a QST Silent Key listing.  He was a member of the ARRL A-1 Operators Club, and you can see his 1963 QSL card at this link.

 

 

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Hurricane Betsy, 1965

Hurricane Betsy satellite image, 4 Sept 1965. Wikipedia photo.

Hurricane Betsy satellite image, 4 Sept 1965. Wikipedia photo.

Fifty years ago today, Hurricane Betsy started bearing down on the United States. On August 27, 1965, the storm formed as a tropical depression off the coast of French Guiana and started moving northwesterly. It caused only minimal damage to the Leeward Islands before heading over open waters for several days. It achieved hurricane intensity on August 30. On September 5, 1965, the hurricane stalled over the Bahamas, where it inflicted the worst damage since 1929, before resuming a westward track. It made its initial landfall in Key Largo, Florida, before reemerging in the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico, where it continued to gain strength.

Flooding in New Orleans. Wikipedia photo.

Flooding in New Orleans. Wikipedia photo.

On early September 10, it made landfall again near Houma and Grand Isle, Louisiana, with winds of 155 mph. The eyewall was in the New Orleans area for over eight hours, with winds in the range of 120 mph. It caused a strom surge into Lake Pontchartrain and considerable flooding and levee breaches in New Orleans, lasting ten days. Near Baton Rouge, the storm caused the sinking of a barge loaded with enough chlorine to kill 40,000 people, necessitating mass evacuations in the harbor area.  In New Orleans, most antennas were down, and 90% of the city was without power.

The November, 1965, issue of QST reported on how Radio Amateurs responded to the storm. K5AOE set up on the 8th floor of City Hall, where considerable traffic was handled on 75 meters. This included health and welfare traffic, and also a dedicated medical net. Fifteen mobile stations, each assigned to a doctor, were set up at shelters, and there was constant traffic as conditions were reported and medical supplies requested. The FCC declared a communications emergency for the duration.

The Hurricane Watch Net was formed informally during Hurricane Betsy as stations came on the air to provide communications to and from affected areas. Since then, the net has continued to operate with a more formal structure any time a hurricane is within 300 miles of projecte landfall or otherwise threatening any populated area.

 

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Boy Scout Civilian Defense Volunteers in WW2

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Photo courtesy of W8KBF, Yahoo War Emergency Radio Service group.

During World War II, Boy Scouts in both America and Britain were called upon to serve as volunteers in civil defense. In the July 1942 issue of Boys’ Life, BSA Chief Scout Executive James E. West wrote an editorial encouraging Scouts to volunteer in the Messenger Service of the Citizens Defense Corps. The Office of Civilian Defense recommended that six messengers and two adult leaders be recruited for each 1000 persons in a community. Even though others were eligible to join, both the BSA and the Office of Civilian Defense believed that Scouts, due to their training and qualifications, would be ideal. The editorial stressed that during an emergency, other means of communications could be disrupted, and that written messages might be the only means of communication. West concludes:

This is one of the most important national service projects that has been requested of the Boy Scouts of America. It requires the utmost effort on the part of our organization to fulfill the responsibility which has been assumed. Let us face resolutely whatever the enemy has in store for us, and BE PREPARED to do what we are asked to do to the best of our ability.

Franklin County, Ohio, identification card for Boy Scout CD messenger. worthingtonmemory.org photo.

Franklin County, Ohio, identification card for Boy Scout CD messenger. worthingtonmemory.org photo.

British Scouts Tour America

Visiting British scouts with James E. West and BSA foreign relations chairman Thomas J. Watson.

Visiting British scouts with James E. West and BSA foreign relations chairman Thomas J. Watson.

A few months later, a group of British Scouts who had served in civilian defense roles during the Battle of Britain made a tour of Canada and the United States, including a meeting with West, and their heroic tales were written up in the magazine’s September 1942 issue.   These Scouts represented four towns that had been heavily hit by bombing. Scout Stanley Newton of London explained:

Our Troop went through six months of heavy bombing in London. I cannot say that we came off unharmed. Our two Troop headquarters were wiped out, one was burned down and the other was blown to pieces. Several of the boys lost their parents and their homes and two of the younger boys were killed in those raids. But we were glad that we could go through them and do something to use our training as Scouts in helping some way or another.

Another of the Scouts, John Bethell of Birkenhead, describes the work the messengers did during the Blitz:

When a bomb drops one of the first people on the spot is either the head warden or one of the senior wardens. He always has a messenger with him; one of us Scouts. What he does as soon as he gets there is to make out a report on what has happened, give it to that messenger and the messenger rides down to the post, which we call the pill box.

Inside the pill box there is a telephone. That is the only telephone we are allowed to use during an air raid. But sometimes the telephone lines get broken when a bomb hits the road. Then instead of just having to ride to the post and telephoning, we messengers have got to ride down to the control center. Sometimes it is a long way and sometimes it isn’t. In my case it is three miles; that’s three miles there and three miles back, maybe ten times in one night. Not only do we send one messenger but three minutes after the first messenger is gone we always send another one so if the first one gets bumped off the second one may get through.

Derrick Belfall (1926-1940):  I Have Delivered My Message

Derric Belfall. Photo courtesy of Mrs. Rita McInnes.

Derrick Belfall. Photo courtesy of Mrs. Rita McInnes.

Indeed, one of those Scouts, Derrick Belfall, was “bumped off” in the course of his duties as a civilian defense messenger.  Fourteen year old Belfall lived at 109 Bishop Rd, Bishopston, Bristol.   He was the only son of Cecil Ernest and Mary (née Miller) Belfall, who died in 1983 and 1964, respectively.

The official minimum age for messenger service was sixteen, but due to his insistence, Derrick was allowed to join the service.  On the night of December 2, 1940, he was dispatched with a message.  He delivered it successfully, and upon returning to his post, he found a house beginning to burn and he stopped to put out the fire.  He then heard cries from another house where he rushed in to save an injured baby. Shortly after effecting these rescues, the air raid still underway, Derrick was injured by an exploding bomb and taken to the hospital with injuries that proved fatal. As one of the visiting Scouts confirmed, his last words at the hospital were: “Messenger Belfall reporting.  I have delivered my message.”

Defused German parachute mine. Wikipedia photo.

Defused German parachute mine. Wikipedia photo.

A Narrow Escape

Bethell, one of the British Scouts touring America, also recounted his own tale of being thirty yards away from an exploding parachute mine which killed two other civil defense workers:

A warden and I were riding along the streets on our bikes and saw a couple of parachutes coming down. Well, first we thought they were German airmen bailing out and we were just going to run towards them and give them something like what we would like to give Mr. Hitler–a kick in the pants or something like that–and then we realized that they were what are known as parachute mines…. We started to ride towards them to see if we could help in the rescue work we knew would follow….

We saw a couple of chaps running up in front of us also going on the same job. Just then we heard something flapping. It was only very faint but we realized that it was another parachute with a mine coming down. We knew if we were able to hear that flapping we must be pretty close to it. We got down on the ground and shouted to the other two chaps. But unfortunately they didn’t hear us. The roar of anti-aircraft fire drowned out our shouts. They went on. The mine went off just thirty yards ahead of us. We were just blown across the street but otherwise all right. But those other two chaps standing up under the full blast–it got them right in the chest and blew their lungs out and killed them.

American Scouts In Action

ScoutCD1943

The American Scouts shown here in the February 1943 issue of Boys’ Life are participating in a civil defense exercise.  The display shown at the top of the page is the uniform of a Scout as he would have appeared in 1943 as a civil defense messenger in Mercer County, Pennsylvania.  It was put together by W8KBF of the Yahoo War Emergency Radio Service group.

While American Scouts and other civilians escaped the harrowing experiences of their British counterparts, it is clear that they lived up to the Scout Motto to Be Prepared.   And as the British Scouts proved, a scout is brave.

As Scout Executive West wrote, these Scouts “were not specialists but were equipped only with such knowledge as is normally given to Scouts through our Advancement Program. Yet how nobly these Scouts lived up to our Scout Motto ‘Be Prepared.’ We, too, have a job to do!”

Acknowlegments

DerrickI would like to thank Mrs. Rita McInnes, a neighbor of the Belfall family, for providing the photograph of Derrick Belfall.  This photograph hung for many years in the Belfall home as part of the illuminated photo shown here containing Derrick’s last words. (Click on the small image to view the full image.)

I would also like to thank Sam Hevener, W8KBF of the Yahoo War Emergency Radio Service group for allowing me to use the photo of the American Scout messenger’s uniform at the top of the page.

Additional References

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Trinity A-Bomb Test, 1945

Today marks the 70th anniversary of the Trinity nuclear test, the world’s first nuclear explosion, shown here 16 milliseconds after detonation.  The possibility of a fizzle led the team to construct a containment vessel dubbed “Jumbo,” a steel vessel measuring 25 by 10 feet, with steel walls 14 inches thick, capable of handling pressures of 50,000 PSI.  Brought from Ohio, it was the largest object ever transported by rail.

The blast was seen and felt in an area extending from El Paso, Silver City, Gallup, Socorro, and Albeuquerque.  One news article  quoted a blind woman 150 miles  away who asked, “what’s that brilliant light?”

 

The army issued a press release that a “remotely located ammunition magazine containing a considerable amount of high explosives and pyrotechnics exploded. There was no loss of life or injury to anyone, and the property damage outside of the explosives magazine was negligible. Weather conditions affecting the content of gas shells exploded by the blast may make it desirable for the Army to evacuate temporarily a few civilians from their homes.”

Other versions of the press release had been prepared noting fatalities.  The author of the press release realized that he might have been writing his obituary.

 

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1965 Emergency Broadcast System Simulated Script

Terrorism Section Content Nuclear Blast 1.3.0.0
A January 1965 report prepared for the Office of Civil Defense reported on several simulated fallout shelter exercises conducted in the Pittsburg area to investigate various shelter management factors. For example, in one study, the designated shelter manager arrived late. In another study, the effects of total darkness upon shelter operation were studied.




In three of the experiments, the stress level was increased by periodically playing simulated emergency broadcast system messages. The script of those broadcasts is particularly interesting, since it gives an insight into what civil defense planners thought might be a plausible scenario for a nuclear attack on the United States, and how news would be communicated to the public.

Here is the text of the nineteen radio broadcasts that might have been heard during a nuclear war:

EMERGENCY BROADCAST SYSTEM SCRIPT
EBS #1, Friday, 7:00 PM

ATTENTION. ATTENTION. This is the Emergency Broadcast System. Take shelter immediately. Take shelter immediately. This is not a drill.
Repeat: This is not a drill. An enemy attack is being launched against
the United States. Take shelter immediately and stay tuned to this
frequency for further instructions.

THE ABOVE MESSAGE IS TO BE REPEATED THREE TIMES, WITH 15-SECOND INTERVALS.

EBS #2, Friday, 7:10 PM

ATTENTION. ATTENTION. This is the Emergency Broadcast System. We have just been informed that the city is now on the emergency power system. Please inform the control center if your shelter is without light-., Repeat: The city is now on the emergency power system. Please inform the control center if your shelter is without lights. We also have ….. we also have word here that there has been no confirmed report of a missile strike in this area.  There has been no confirmed report of a missile strike in this area.

EBS #3, Friday, 7:15

(Phone is heard ringing in background.)

ATTENTION. ATTENTION. This Is the Emergency Broadcast System. A missile attack has been launched against the United States. Reports about the attack are fragmentary and unconfirmed. The strategic missile bases west of the Mississippi appear to have borne the brunt of the attack. As of this moment there has been no official report of a nuclear detonation in our immediate vicinity. Fallout has begun to descend on the western portions of our city and is expected in other areas imminently. Do not communicate with the emergency operations center unless absolutely necessary.

.
EBS #4, Friday, 8:00 PM

ATTENTION. ATTENTION. This is the Emergency Broadcast System. Stay tuned for an important message. (DISTANT VOICE: Okay, stand by now. We’ve got a remote from Washington.) Static ——- Noise. Another voice: This is a report from the emergency national command post in Washington. The President and his key civilian and military aides have been safely evacuated to the emergency seat of government. This evening at 6:35 PM the enemy launched an attack against the strategic retaliatory forces of the United States and its NATO allies. An intelligence warning allowed us to launch a portion of our land-based missile force against the enemy’s remaining strategic forces.
Polaris missiles have also been launched. In addition, our airborne alert and a portion of our ground alert aircraft forces have been sent against the enemy’s non-missile strategic forces. Our damage assessment reports indicate that many of our SAC bases have been destroyed or severely damaged. A number of communities near SAC bases have also suffered great damage. The fallout monitoring network reports that radiation is heavy in the western portion of our country and is increasing in the midwest and eastern portions of our nation. Although there have been several nuclear detonations in the east, it appears as if these have been the result of errant missiles, rather than a planned attack against population centers.  The President, whom, I repeat is alive and well, will address the nation as soon as his command duties permit. This is the end of the Priority One report. Local EBS stations may resume Priority Two broadcasting.

EBS #5, Friday, 8:30 PM

ATTENTION. ATTENTION. This is the Emergency Broadcast System. Short wave monitoring has disclosed that our air strike forces are currently launching attacks on the enemy homeland. These forces are utilizing a new….. what?  What do you mean it’s not for release? (Another voice: Priority One. Now.. for heaven’s sake! Announcer: Well what the hell …… 1)

THIS MATERIAL CUT OUT.

EBS #6, Friday, 8: 50 PM

Has this one been cleared?
ATTENTION. ATTENTION. This is the Emergency Broadcast System. We have Just received word that the President has been evacuated to sea in the floating Whitehouse. The location of this ship is unknown. The floating Whitehouse is a battle cruiser, fully equipped for command and control functions. Our government has survived the attack. I repeat, our government has survived the attack.

EBS #7, Friday, 9:30 PM

ATTENION. ATTENTION. This is the Emergency Broadcast System, We have just been informed that a message is to be delivered from the governor’s office in Harrisburg. Please stand by,

This is a report from the governor’s office in Harrisburg. The state of
conditions in Pennsylvania is serious, but not critical. Erie has been
severely damaged by what is believed to have been a stray missile. No other cities have reported being hit, but the fallout level is rapidly increasing, particularly in western Pennsylvania. Apparently neighboring states have borne the brunt of the attack, particularly those in the western portions of the country. All citizens should seek shelter immediately. Do not attempt to evacuate your area until you are instructed to do so. Local law enforcement personnel should remain in their respective areas. State police have been assigned to more critical areas, and additional state aid will become available and be assigned when fallout levels permit.

EBS #8, Friday, 10:15 PM

ATTENTION. ATTENTION. This is the Emergency Broadcast System. Fallout began to descend on the Pittsburgh area several hours ago and radiological monitoring reports indicate that radiation levels are dangerously high in many parts of our city. No one should attempt to leave shelters. Repeat: No one should attempt to leave shelters. Youngstown, Ohio and Erie, Pennsylvania have suffered severe damage as a result of nuclear detonations.
As of the moment there have been no nuclear blasts in our immediate area.  The municipal power has been temporarily disrupted in some parts of the city. Power should be restored shortly. No further official reports on our retaliatory attacks on the enemy homeland are available. Unofficially, the absence of any significant second wave of enemy attack, plus the size of our surviving strategic force, allows cautious optimism that we will suffer no further major damage from any attack. Until further word is transmitted by this station, everyone must remain in shelters.

EBS #9, Friday, 10:30 PM

ATTENTION. ATIENTION. This is the Emergency Broadcast System. In order to evaluate the damage to Pittsburgh, the emergency operations center requests every shelter to gather the following information and to report it to the local emergency operations center. Is this a fallout or a blast shelter? How many persons are in the shelter? How many of these persons are injured? How many persons are suffering from radiation sickness? What is the condition, of your equipment? Is your shelter structure damaged? Do you have adequate electricity?
Do you have adequate ventilation? What is the state of your food supplies? What is the state of your water supply? Do you have any illness other than radiation sickness? As soon as we have received reports from district control centers we will relay such information on to you. When emergency missions are possible, disaster teams will be sent to those shelters which need medical supplies, food and water. Attempts will also be made to report specific areas of damage in our city. Please stay tuned for additional announcements.

EBS #10, 11:30 PM

ATTENTION. ATTENTION. This is the Emergency Broadcast System. Wee have hundreds of people in the area who do not have shelter with an adequate protection factor. They must be moved to other shelters in order to survive.
Please advise the emergency operations center as to the number of additional people you can take into your shelter. This is imperative. Please inform the emergency operations center as to the number of additional people you can take into your shelter.

EBS #11, Saturday. 1:30 AM

ATTENTION. ATTENTION. This is the Emergency 3roadcast System. Radiological monitoring teams report that the radiation levels in the Pittsburgh area are still high. However, there is no additional accumulation of radioactive dust. The fallout on the ground is beginning to decay. It is simply a matter of waiting out this decay time before we can undertake further civil defense measures.  Everyone is to remain inside until further notice. Please do not leave your shelters.

EBS #12, Saturday, 2:15 AM

ACCIDENTALLY OVERHEAR A SHORT WAVE BROADCAST. “Hello Tower…. to checkpoint two…. ” Static and short wave noise.

EBS #13, Saturday, 3:00 AM

LOUD STATIC AND SHORT WAVE NOISE.

ATTENTION. ATTENTION. This is the Emergency Broadcast System.

EBS #14, Saturday, 3:45 AM

ATTENTION. ATTENTION. This is the Emergency Broadcast System. Reports have been received that there are bands of looters wandering about the city.  Attempts have been made to loot shelters in this area. Be alert to this situation and act accordingly. Security police will begin patrolling the area as soon as the radiation level permits.

EBS #15, Saturday, 4:15 AM

ACCIDENTALLY OVERHEAR SAC PLANE MESSAGE. Sounds like:
“Angels 46 — Same heading — Roger, Angels 52 — Fuel 30 … ”
Much static.

EBS #16, Saturday, 6:00 AM

ATTENTION. ATTENTION. This is the Emergency Broadcast Svytem. Stay tuned for an important message. Okay, stand by to switch.
MUCH STATIC ———– “Please stand by.”
This is a Priority One report from the emergency national command post in Washington. It appears that the enemy attack is over. There have been no further reports of missile strikes since early last evening. Radio monitoring indicates no further enemy air activity. Damage assessment reports indicate that the brunt of this attack was borne by western states. Many of our SAC bases have been destroyed or severely damaged. Communities near SAC bases have also been severely damaged. The central and eastern portions of the country have escaped extensive damage although stray missiles have struck some of the smaller population centers. Fallout is moving across the country in an easterly direction, carried on westerly winds. All citizens should remain in shelters until instructed otherwise by local civil defense commands. The President and key members of his cabinet are still aboard the U. S. S. Northampton. The President will address the American people as soon as his command duties permit.

This is the end of the priority ….. this is the end of the Priority One report. Local EBS stations may resume priority two broadcasting.

EBS #17, Saturday, 7:30 AM

ATTENTION. ATTENTION. This is the Emergency Broadcast System. Emergency teams have been established and have begun to operate in various sections of Pittsburgh. There is a shortage of able-bodied men to serve on work details in Shadyside, East Liberty, Bloomnfield, and Morningside. Will all shelters submit to the emergency operations center the names of able-bodied volunteers who may be asked to leave shelters before radiation levels are completely safe for permanent exit. Phone the names into the emergency operations center. Further information will be provided as to when and where the rescue volunteers will report.

EBS #18, Saturday. 10:00 AM

ATTENTION. ATTENTION. This is the Emergency Broadcast System. Weather monitoring teams report that there is a severe storm approaching the Pittsburgh area. What’s that? It appears that this storm is bearing with it a radioactive dust cloud and we expect the levels of radiation to increase severely. Some shelters do not have adequate protection facilities against this cloud. There is a possibility that some shelters will have to mobilize and be moved. (PAUSE) We will contact these shelters by phone within the next few minutes. Please do not call the emergency operations center. If your shelter is one of these that has to be mobilized and be moved, we will contact you. Please stand by.

EBS #19, Saturday 3:00 PM

ATTENTION. ATTENTION. This is the Emergency Broadcast System. Radiological calculations of fallout levels in Pittsburgh indicate that permanent exit from some shelters will be possible in the near future. At the present time recovery teams are surveying the city to locate and to prepare facilities for post-shelter operations. It is imperative that you do not attempt to leave your shelter without prior notice from the emergency operations center. There are still many dangerous radiological “hot spots” in the city. Therefore, regardless of the radiological readings in your immediate vicinity, wait for official notification. from your government in the emergency operations center.

THE END

For more insight into 1960’s civil defense, my website contains a scan of the 1962 St. Paul, MN, civil defense operational plan, which includes the manual that shelter managers would use in the operation of a fallout shelter.

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