When the Chernobyl nuclear power station melted down, the people of Europe remained unaware of the danger for far too long. As a result many people have died due to thyroid and other cancers simply because no one bothered to instruct them in basic radiological safety procedures.
Now that the Fukushima Daiichi plant has started to burn, we are rapidly progressing towards a Chernobyl style disaster. Here is how the public needs to respond to protect themselves.
Treat this as a radioactive fallout type of situation.
Anyone down wind of this plant needs to begin taking potassium iodide pills immediately to protect their thyroid. KI floods the thyroid with iodine to prevent the absorption of the radioactive iodine (I131). Continue taking KI for two weeks after the fires at the plant go out.
Persons within 20-30 miles of the plant should evacuate. The closer you are to this plant, the higher your exposure to radioactivity and contamination.
Persons outside of this radius should remain indoors as much as possible. If you must venture outside, wear a dust mask and cover as much exposed skin as possible with clothing. When returning home, remove your contaminated outer clothes at the door. Then scrub your body, hair and fingernails thoroughly with a mild detergent. Put on clean clothing after washing.
Please re-post this information so everyone who needs it can see it.