Disasters like Oklahoma City and 9/11 were time-limited. The children who were affected psychologically could go to a place of normalcy.

There are several very good websites which describe the details of preparedness planning for citizens.

There has been a transition from a nuclear-annihilation scenario to an isolated-terrorist-nuclear-bomb scenario. But we're still locked into a mind-set that nuclear war would be so overwhelming that any kind of preparedness would be futile.

Fallout shelters are like bell-bottoms. They've gone in and out of favor.

Poverty leads to hardship and failure.

Police officers and firemen are so visible in their daily work, there's no mistaking they're there - and that presence makes people feel secure.

The best way to get a sense of what kinds of emergencies might present themselves in your community is by contacting local chapters of the American Red Cross or offices of emergency management in the region or state. Most large cities will have their own offices of emergency management.