EARLIER THIS YEAR, Redditor Stephen O’Sullivan found this nuclear survival handbook in his grandparents’ house.
Images used by permission of Stephen O’Sullivan
It was issued by the Government around 1965, when the threat of nuclear war was at its height across Europe.
Here’s what householders of the time were advised to do if a nuclear explosion struck Ireland.
Keep your radio set switched on and tuned in to Radio Éireann all the time – day and night
Listen out for a “National Alert indicating that war has broken out”
Select a ‘refuge room’ in your house or block of flats
“A room with a small window is better than one with a big window”
Build fortifications around your house
For example, by pushing wardrobes up to the windows and filling them with earth.
Stock up on food
If you need to milk cows, build a shelter for someone to stay with them in the barn
“What you could do in advance is to build up a heavily protected “box” in the byre so that somebody can stay with the cows during the danger period.” See diagram.
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