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Show U. S. Needs Civil Defense Till BASIC SERVICES FORM CORE OF HOME mmi PROTECTION! (This is the ninth of a series of articles on civil defense, based on the booklet "This Is Civil Defense" prepared by the Federal Civil Defense Administration. It may be obtained from the Superintendent of Documents, Government Printing Office, Washington, D. C, for ten cents.) By MILLARD CALDWELL Federal Civil Defense Administrator tfi&K The Federal Civil Defense Administration, for. the fifWth sake of r-atinal uniformity, has set up these ten VVjUj basic services : Warden, Fire, Police, Health, Wel-fare, Wel-fare, Engineering, Rescue, Communications, Transportation, Trans-portation, and Staff. You can imagine what a gigantic task it will be to man these various services. Some 15,000,000 volunteers are Jieeded for this purpose. The backbone of civil defense isi the warden service. It is the source of neighborhood defense leadership before, during, and after an enemy attack. The warden's job is to help save lives and property. Before an emergency, his main duty is to help people prepare; during an emergency, "he conducts people to safety; after the emergency, emer-gency, he helps restorS order. Wardens must be volunteers, well known and respected in the community, whose leadership will be accepted by their neighbors and fellow workers. As a general gen-eral rule, each warden post will be responsible for a residential block or factory area where about 500 people live or work. Several wardens may be assigned to such a post. They will teach people how to protect themselves, instruct them in civil defense regulations, distribute dis-tribute civil defense information, keep lists of the people in their charge, and gather information about buildings and equipment in their neighborhoods. Their records will include the home address, age, and physical condition of all persons in their charge. They also should know which people need special care and how to get in touch with their relatives and friends. Other Important Duties Wardens have other important duties too. If a warning sounded, they would conduct workers or the r ' occupants of buildings to shelter areas. They would have the responsibility respon-sibility of helping to prevent panic among the population, rendering first aid, and performing light rescue duties. If needed, they would help other services to fight fires and clear debris. They also would help restore the orderly life of the community immediately im-mediately after an enemy attack. They would take a roll call of all people in their areas. If anyone were missing, or needed nursing or medical care, they would report the facts at once to the control center. The warden service works directly with individuals, families, fami-lies, neighborhoods, and employee groups. It is the link between the specialized civil defense service ser-vice and the people. Women Have Important Role Women must play an important part in the warden service. This is especially true of housewives, for most women are at their home posts day and night. Usually they know their own neighborhoods better than men can ever know them. Women should interest themselves them-selves in the warden service as a first step in the organization of civil defense for their neighborhoods. neighbor-hoods. Outstanding men and women who can assume responsibility are urged to volunteer for the warden service. (The next article will discuss other civil defense services.) |