Since the inception of the war in Ukraine, concerns about a potential nuclear attack have reached levels not seen since the days of the Cold War. The threat of a nuclear exchange has even been touched upon in the remarks of the highest echelons of officials from both the Russian and NATO-aligned sides. Fortunately, those respective delegations have ruled out the use of such force. While that topic of conversation has fallen by the wayside in the months that have passed since the initial invasion, it apparently is still on the mind of officials from the New York City Emergency Management Department.
On Monday, the NYC EMD released a minute-and-a-half long public service announcement bracing the city’s residents about what to do in the event that “the big one has hit.” Although the three-step PSA offers very little helpful information on what to do in the event of nuclear fallout, even recommending that citizens keep their potentially radioactively contaminated clothing in a bag in their homes as opposed to throwing them outside, NYC EMD has assured that the risk of such an attack is low despite the release of the instructional video. “While the likelihood of a nuclear weapon incident occurring in/near New York City is very low, it is important New Yorkers know the steps to stay safe,” said city officials in an official press release.
The three-step process that NYC EMD advises is as follows: get inside, stay inside, and stay tuned. The PSA expounds upon these pieces of guidance by informing residents of the city that they should get inside of a building as opposed to a car. The second step to “stay inside” offers little else other than prompting residents to remove contaminated clothing and shower to mitigate the risk of exposure to radioactive particles as well as advising them to congregate in the middle of the building they’ve found refuge in. Lastly, the NYC EMD states that residents should place their hands on their saviors in the mainstream media to provide them with crucial information on what to do next and to be sure to sign up for Notify NYC updates. The message concludes with a painfully trite reassurance that you needn’t worry about your impending nuclear demise because “You’ve got this.”
The hollow, tone-deaf message does very little to encourage New Yorkers that their renowned resilience will see them through the end times and truly just provokes more concern than it alleviates…so why release it now?
