I recently saw a comment chain about nuclear bombs, and that led me to thinking about this. Say there is a nuclear explosion in the downtown of my US city. I survive relatively fine, but obviously the main part of the city has been destroyed, while major zones extending from the center were also badly damaged. What would be a good response to (a) survive and (b) help out the recovery effort?
How long would I have to stay indoors? A week? A month?
As long as possible to an indeterminate time and/or when authorities indicate to leave.
Generally, the worst intensity stuff is actually over in the first 48-72 hours depending upon various factors. That’s not to say outside is completely safe after that (it wouldn’t be), but the level of danger is very different.