---
title: "The US used this cartoon turtle to prepare kids for nuclear war"
date: "2018-04-02"
modified: "2020-10-21"
authors:
  - name: "Logan Nye"
    job_title: "Senior Contributor, Army Veteran"
    link: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/authors/logan-nye.md"
url: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/articles/us-used-cartoon-turtle-prepare-kids-nuclear-war/"
categories:
  - "Cold War"
  - "History"
  - "War History"
---

# The US used this cartoon turtle to prepare kids for nuclear war

![](<https://www.wearethemighty.com/wp-content/uploads/legacy/assets.rbl.ms/17294141/origin.jpg>)

Bert the Turtle was created in 1951 by the U.S. Federal Civil Defense Administration to teach young children how to prepare for a nuclear blast.

---

The cute little turtle was designed to make the frightening prospect of nuclear war more bearable.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKqXu-5jw60

Bert the Turtle gets a lot of flak today for supporting tactics that seem flimsy, like telling people to hide under a picnic blanket when the flash from a nuclear detonation reached them:

![](<https://www.wearethemighty.com/wp-content/uploads/legacy/assets.rbl.ms/17277471/origin.gif>)
*GIF: youtube/nuclear vault*

But surprisingly small things have been shown to reduce damage in a nuclear blast. The military found that [white paint reduced damage to structures](<https://www.wearethemighty.com/articles/the-military-thought-this-paint-job-could-protect-from-nuclear-blasts.md>) and began repainting nuclear bombers. A [survivor of the Hiroshima bomb reported](<https://www.cracked.com/personal-experiences-1468-7-things-you-learn-surviving-atomic-blast.html>) that wearing two pairs of pants saved her legs from radiation while her torso was severely burned.

So maybe the turtle was on to something, even if this is a very optimistic depiction of what it would look like when civil defense workers came to rescue you after a blast:

![](<https://www.wearethemighty.com/wp-content/uploads/legacy/assets.rbl.ms/17277472/origin.gif>)
*GIF: youtube/nuclear vault*

No fire, no panic, and the bike is still in working order, eh, Bert?

## Author
Logan was an Army journalist and paratrooper in the 82nd. Now, he's a freelance writer covering military history, culture, and technology. He has two upcoming podcasts and a Twitch channel focused on basic military literacy.

### Author social links  
[Twitter](<https://twitter.com/JustLoganNye>)  
[Facebook](<https://www.facebook.com/ProfHarlequin-111921498198749>)

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