ok, i was down in the basement yesterday doing some much needed cleaning. when i was done and cathicng my breath i started thinking, hmmmm, What If.....what if some bad things started happening with bombs going off, could we shelter in the basement?
we are not in a blast zone radius so wed just have to be concerned about fallout from west and maybe north of us and depending on jet stream.
anyone thinking about their basement for a shelter? i went to shanes site and looked up a bunch of info (thanks shane for a great site!) and it was a great help, i printed out a bunch of stuff.
the house is on a slope and the basement has 3 walls fully in ground, with one wall that has half of it above ground. that wall with its door and 2 windows would need some mass like sandbags or earth berm about 3 ft thick to have protection inside. the ceiling is another problem, the house has 3 levels but thats not much protection, from what ive gathered its the first 48 hrs that some kind of shelter covering inside the basement would be necessary, then depending on survey readings and decay rate of radiation the rest of the basement could be lived in afterwards until it is safe to go outside temporarily.
i think i got a good understanding of sheltering requirements and its needs, but what im not too clear on is when afterwards is it safe to go out or use the rest of the house?
i read where the radiation is accumulative and that in most cases an exposure of 100-150 rads or less is survivable if no further exposure and it takes the body about 2 weeks to recover itself.
but what is considered the 'safe' level for leaving a shelter? ive been searching but cant seem to find a solid answer so far, unless im missing it. except for one site that said wait for the levels to get to .01 and then it sill be safe to be outside, but i cant find that repeated anywhere else. others said to keep a radio nearby and wait for the authorities to tell you its safe to come out.
ive got a rad meter from shanes place and some of those nifty stickers, but im feeling like im missing a piece of the puzzle.
have any of you guys delved into this? id sure love to hear your findings. i did a search to see what might have been posted before but didnt see this, if i missed it and its alreday done i apologize.