
However, geopolitical situations require increased intelligence gathering efforts and heightened security measures. No deviation from normal daily activitiesĭEFCON 4 No imminent nuclear threats exist against the United States.No nuclear threats exist against the United States. All of this took several hours of research and work, spread out over a few months until I had a finished product.ĭEFCON 5 Normal peacetime level. So, here are our current DEFCON Level EAPs. Those were corrected in short order after the power came back on. However, the experience still revealed several minor weaknesses in our plan that would have become major inconveniences in the event of a long-term SIP scenario. We implemented several parts of our Shelter In Place EAP and we were extremely comfortable for the duration of the power outage. About five years ago a massive blizzard hit Indianapolis, resulting in loss of power at our house for 72 hours with -20 wind chills outside. My wife and I use brief power outages and camping trips to this end, notating problems we have that would be serious in an extended disaster, and fixing those problems before the next dry run. Practice runs should be conducted from time to time. They should be clearly labeled and easily accessible to every member of the family. For instance, in Indiana, EAPs for tornadoes are the most common in homes and businesses. There should be an EAP for every natural or man-made threat that exists in your area. EAPs should be both brief and descriptive, allowing the reader to absorb the most information in as short a time as possible. A properly designed EAP will quickly walk the reader through the steps they need to protect themselves while still leaving room for deviation from the plan and improvisation if the situation calls for it. The whole purpose of an EAP is to allow people to follow pre-established steps without having to try to think through panic. When developing an EAP, keep in mind that the goal is to think things through now, while you're calm and have access to unlimited information to assist you. I am always re-evaluating these plans, so comments and suggestions on improving them are welcome. Nothing I'm posting should compromise our security. I am posting the EAPs my wife and I currently have agreed upon based on the different DEFCON levels so that others interested in doing something similar can use them as a point of reference if they wish. I can't confirm whether Power's communication contained the verbatim phrase DEFCON 2, but perhaps it did, because at this point (one hopes) nobody wanted to issue ambiguous commands.The topic of establishing Emergency Action Plans (EAPs) for personal and family use came up in another thread.
Defcon current level archive#
The Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962: A National Security Archive Documents ReaderĪn "announcement" would also seem to make sense under the logic of nuclear deterrence. Took it upon himself to "announce" the move in uncoded message to hisĪ footnote identifies the following source for the last sentence: Make sure Moscow noticed, the SAC commander, General Thomas Power, History all American long-range missiles and bombers were now on alert,Īnd scores of planes loaded with atomic bombs were aloft around theĬlock, refueled by areal tankers, waiting over Greenland and northernĬanada for the signal to proceed toward the assigned Soviet target. strategic Command moved from Defense Condition 3 toĭEFCON 2, one level below that of general war. This is from William Taubman's Khrushchev: The Man and His Era, about the Cuban missile crisis in 1962:Īt 10:00 A.M., Washington time, when the quarantine went into fullĮffect, the U.S. Sometimes it deliberately wasn't kept secret from the enemy.
