My Mom looked horrible, like she hadn't slept in days.

and without warning.

It sucked.

On duty on the flight line till it was over. My mom packed the footlocker. That there meant serious stuff. We didn't duck and cover , we had a deep shelter basement under the school we went to during drills. Had the nuclear signs on the door.

My Dad stared at the TV but never said a word - which was absolutely terrifying.

I remember hiding under the covers after every sonic boom (Maine had a SAC base and major AFB back then) and wondering if the jets overhead were ours or theirs...

It was a small acting class that met in the Professors office. We were hit with a major earthquake and when I heard the low noise that often precedes a serious quake, I immediately thought it was a missile attack. Then the well familiar seismic movement began and we knew it was just a quake.

But we all sure lived on an emotional roller-coaster during that tense time.

We crouched next to a wall

in our backyard during WW11.

I was in 8th grade in 1954. Where were you that year?

Under the desk.

Ticonderoga, New York. And I think it was in 3rd grade when they sent us home in the middle of the day as a practice drill, anticipating they'd have to evacuate the school. From a little kid's perspective, something was likely to happen and I remember being scared.

We were too close to MacDill AFB to take it lightly. About the same time I read Pat Frank's "Alas Babylon" which was set not very far to the northeast of my hometown and which did not give a very rosy picture of what the aftermath would be like.

That was when I decided that being really close to a nuclear explosion would be a lot better than being some distance away - the end would be quicker with less pain.

and switched to tornado drills. Worst flashback was in 1987 on base during a perfect sunshine & breeze summer afternoon and the sirens went off. "Oh my God they've done it!" was my first thought. And then all of us moms screaming out the back doors at the kids in our park to get home now! Frantic channel flipping while dialing the Military Police and finally getting through, to find out it was only a siren malfunction.

The closest I ever got was on 9/11, watching the TV coverage. I've never lived anywhere with sirens, tornado or otherwise but I've heard them often enough in movies.

My husband grew up in Panama City, lived there until he moved to Tallahassee in 1972.

Because, on Friday afternoon after school, our local CBS affiliate showed EVERY sci-fi horror movie ever made.

And we were certain - if we survived - we would be consumed by radioactive mutant monsters.

true

Spiders still scare me.

they called it "civil defense drill."

We also had backpacks filled with water, hard candy, canned spaghetti, sugar cubes, etc. We had drills where we would put on our backpacks and walk the 3 blocks to the railroad track. We were told if there was an emergency, a train would come whisk us away to safety. I have no idea where this train would come from, or why anybody thought a train would come, but we sure did eat all of the hard candy and the sugar cubes during the drills.

I however was shown a clip in high school history of Bert the Turtle to show how silly it all was.

Yup, I also am too young for the silly drills.

I think we went into the hallway away from windows and hunched over into little balls next to the wall.

We were actually in much greater danger of the school collapsing in a strong breeze or going up like a gasoline torch if fire ever started.
Man that school was spooky, old and decrepit.

All through grade school.

We went out in to the hallway and curl up in a ball.

It was on the first Tuesday of every month, when they tested the Civil Defense sirens. But, only in the Catholic school. In grades7-8, I went across the street to the public school for half the day. This was during the late 60s to mid-70s in suburban Chicago. To be fair, we WERE fairly vulnerable to tornadoes, and the CD sirens also went off with tornado warnings and actual tornadoes.

We were told in California it was in preparation for earthquakes . It's still in place , of course , for said reason.
It wasn't presented to us as protection from nukes ,though that concern was and is still there.

and, prior to the Test Ban Treaty - we were told not to eat the snow during recess.

Which we did anyway....

Earthquake is so much easier for a kid to digest.

By the time middle school rolled around for me 1974), we only were using that space for dances and activity nights.

My kids (born in 94 and 01) have grown up with active shooter and fire drills.

Lived in New Orleans and the Texas Gulf coast. I guess they figured it was hopeless, so why scare the kids. Leave 'em in blissful ignorance. Of course we knew of the danger.

In our Metairie grade school we drilled for about one month during the height of the crisis in 1962.

Mrs. Cupplemint, kindergarten; Miss Morgan, first grade:

Sirens would go off, and we would "duck and cover" under our little tables after pushing our tiny chairs aside. "Cover the back of your neck with your hands, and keep your head down." That's what the instructions were.

It was really crowded under the tables, and I remember not being able to get my right leg tucked underneath. Miss Morgan joked that it looked like I would probably "get my leg burned off." Pretty blonde young teacher with a rather warped sense of humor.

This was about 1952 and 1953. I think the drills were discontinued in 54 or 55. If you were born in 1950, you likely did not encounter this.

Never want to see those days again!

under the desks (wooden!). In Junior High and High School (1960s) we went out into the hallways and sat hunched over on the floor next to the lockers. Both equally absurd! But growing up in the acute Cold War environment was eerie. Certain things remain in my memory: Khrushchev banging his shoe on the desk at the U.N. General Assembly, and the entire Cuban Missile Crisis.

Baltimore County.

I don't think we did them after that.

Levittown, PA. I remember practicing several drills, one in the room, the rest in the hallways. We were close to the Philly Navel yard, D.C., NYC, McGuire AFB and Fort Dix. It scared all of us. I remembered always trying to make sure my skin was covered...duh.

in a Washington DC suburb where they took that horse shit really seriously.

I think it lasted until we got to be nine, then it was abandoned.

Family had water and food stored in the basement too. Scary times for a kid. Scary times now.

Supplies, extra gas cans, full tank etc. Dad even started looking for bomb shelter plans. But being in Houston and where we lived at if you dig a few feet you hit water.

50s and 60s

Around 5th grade -- 1956 maybe

Both under the desks and then later in the hall with us all tucked into a ball.

There were bomb shelters all over the place back then too and the schools were main ones. I don't know if the amount of shelters was normal or because we lived near military and GE research places that an enemy would target.

I hate that my daughter's and grandchildren all have school drills now to cover what to do in case of a terrorist/mentally ill attack.

He thought it contained radiation from the nuclear testing that was going on. He could have been right but I ate snow ice cream and I'm still here. No radiation poisoning yet. Under Trump we may find out what radiation poison is really like.

told we were a prime target because of the coal mine.

New Jersey. I think we just lined up facing the wall. No earthly idea why.

Plus, we always had a family plan in case NATO called for action. We all knew where the family documents were kept (in a fire-proof ammo box.) We all knew our Dad's name, rank, and serial number. We were always prepared!

We were in Germany when the Berlin wall went up. We understood the seriousness of the situation even though we were in grammar school.

I was in kindergarten during the Cuban Missile Crisis. The nuns at St.Hedwigs got us into the big stone church under the pews a few times. The bid thick stone walls would have slowed the bladt & inferno maybe .00005 seconds, maybe.
Does anyone remember getting a pamplet telling you the best place in your house to wait out an attack?

During the Cuban Missil Crisis and did the "Duck and Cover drill in Minnesota

Just thinking it COULD happen was so awful, but to have it be potentially imminent must have been scary as hell.

It was more real than TV drama to me.

We stationed each students' large science book by the door to grab on the way out and cover our heads. We drilled frequently and kneeled in the hallways with books over our heads for protection against nuclear bombs.

But I remember doing it.

What scared me the most were the instructions for some students to walk home if it was a real event and others were told to line up to be taken home on buses.
We all had to get under our desks though if the bomb had already hit.

In elementary school in the 50's in Pennsylvania, under the desk.

Both the "duck and cover in place" drills and the "orderly evacuation to the 'fallout shelter' basement" drills.

And the film strips showing how to use tinned emergency supplies, water test kits, etc.

My Dad, a Marine reservist, told me not to worry about any of it, though. "If it happens, we'll all just wake up together in Heaven or whatever."

reminiscently,
Bright

Elementary school in the 60s in California

Catholic school, Louisville KY about 1966-67.

The classrooms had huge windows that began to bulge inwards when eye came ashore.

We were not allowed to go into the halls (where there were no windows) - go figure.

So I got everyone built a "fort" out of overturned desks and we literally "ducked and covered" behind it.

Obviously lived to tell the tale.

but we all knew that an atom bomb meant instant death. I was born in 1946, went to school in a Seattle suburb.

I think we all were. Thus, duck and cover, and bomb shelters in some of the schools.

Later, probably in the late '60s, I think it became evident to all of society that nuclear war would decimate, and later kill, whole regions of the country. Or maybe it was just me, growing up. The book, On the Beach, was stunning to me.

Reagan never read it.

or saw the movie

We had to leave the school and run home. Of course, none of us had bomb shelters at home. Maybe the thinking was that it was better to die at home or en route home than have the school be responsible.
This was a Catholic elementary school on Queens,NY early to mid 60s.

A few other times in other schools in CA in the early 60s.

...under the desk grades K-1, huddled in the hallway grades 2-4... mid 1950's

born in 57.

Yep, ducking under the desks. I remember the Cuban Missile crisis..I was in sixth grade and I was terrified.

I went to elementary school in DC; we had those almost every day. I was six and bewildered and terrified.

... during grade school in the '50s.

That's when I learned that a formica-topped desk would protect you from radioactive fallout.

desk or huddled in the hallway. But our junior high had a bomb shelter in the basement and we actually evacuated to it, set up the cots and had to eat the stupid wafers. None of us could imagine actually living on those things for very long. Glad they finally figured out that would not save us and they stopped it.

Springfield, VA October 62. We were certain we were done for. Father worked at the Pentagon and didn't hide his fear well. Even a 7 year old could pick up on it. All of the adults were terrified. And so was I.

I also remember seeing a drill on TV when I was 6 years old, when I was at a neighbor's apt; I thought it was for real, and I ran upstairs to our apt, terrified.

They lock the door, close the blinds including one over the window in the door, turn off the lights and all hide quietly.

I was in Catholic School from 1962-1970, and boys went under their desks, and we girls were told to lay our heads on our desks & then cover it with our arms.

If girls went under their desk, perhaps the boys would get a peek at our underwear and God forbid that should happen.

Actually, I don't think we got the word.
I was in public school 1946 - 1958.
We never did 'DAC'.

Early 50's. Don't remember any after 5th or 6th grade.

I do remember talk of everybody getting dogtags. At the time I didn't realize what they would be for.

in my early elementary days. I remember doing it vividly. We moved back to the Midwest in '62.

I'm the right age and in the right place (surrounded by auto factories that converted to manufacturing tanks during WW II), but I don't have any memories of ducking under the desks.

I remember tornado drills and even sitting in a crowded basement for several hours when there was a tornado in the area (it was hot as hell down there and the stuffiest place I've ever tried to breathe in). Maybe I'm getting them mixed up.

I also went to the lunchroom and took Russian lessons (video) from Andrew K. Anastasia.

Norcross Elementary School, Norcross, GA.

I was really worried in third grade because our classroom's windows faced downtown.

Later I realized the aerospace industry would be the most likely target, not downtown, which probably meant our school would be vaporized by a big hydrogen bomb, near ground zero, no worries. Seattle kids attending schools near the center of the aerospace industry there were in the same situation.

But that wasn't the purpose of these drills of course. Fascists know that fearful people are more compliant.

If I ever find myself in the target zone of a nuclear attack I'm gonna be punching a Trump voter in the face with one hand, and raising a middle finger to the incoming missiles with the other.

I will not be ruled by fear.

I'm having flashbacks now.

We were told to stand facing a wall in the basement cafeteria with hands behind head. I spoke to classmate and was struck with a ruler and loudly reminded how serious air raids could be. We lived outside of Wilmington, Del. and were taught to believe we were a main target if the nukes are dropped. I turned around and told the teacher that if I really thought we were under attack I would be running home to be with my mother. I was dragged to the office by my ear and waited for my mother to come and take me home, my first suspension. When I got in the car my mom looked at me, told me she loved me, and asked if I would like to go get a treat.

We had multiple earthquake drills...
And we wonder what's wrong with society

First, Second, Third, Fourth and Fifth grades - definitely. Around 1970 it seems we stopped the drills.

Frightening at first, after a while I remember it all seemed a bit ridiculous.

What a country!

some live with all their lives.

I think having and maintaining a democracy is going to depend on putting children first.

It did affect us.

Most of were young kids but we remember.

My parents took us to my grandparents farm.

I took my kite with me.

The hay meadow was prefert for flying kites.

I remember thinking this might be the last time to fly a kite.

Can't remember doing any of it when I started school in 64/65.

trip to the buses lined up to take us to the hills when the nukes hit.

I remember when I transferred to a new school, same town, my fourth grade
teacher pulling the short sleeve of my dress up to make sure I had my polio
vaccination scar on my upper arm.

Tikki

There was no opposition to Dr. Salk's vaccine back then.

We all lined up for our Dixie Cup...

yup

I believe the teacher just wanted to make sure the new student had already had a polio shot.

Tikki

No memory of any of these types of drills....

So after you dove under your desk during the big explosion, you lined up in size order and marched downstairs to the cafeteria!

I had recurring nightmares for years with loud sirens,dark skies and running through the streets to get home .

Anything else happen in November 1980?

First it was for the big bombs..then turned into earthquake drills.