The threat of nuclear war is something that many people nowadays think about because of the rising conflicts between various countries. When thinking about this topic, you will likely wonder where you should live so you can be safe during this type of war.
Luckily, I have listed the ten safest places to live in the United States if there is a nuclear war. Read on to learn where you should live if a nuclear war occurs.
1. Maine
The consensus from most of the experts I have consulted is that Maine is the safest place to live if you want to avoid the effects of a nuclear war. Yet, if we all were to move to Maine, it would no longer be the safest place.
The main reason why Maine is considered the safest place to live in to avoid a nuclear explosion is the fact that Maine has a very low population compared to other states. There are also no military targets that a foreign government would want to target immediately.
2. Oregon
Oregon is another great place to live if you want to avoid the harsh effects of a nuclear war. Oregon also has a low populace, but most importantly, they do not have any nuclear warheads, either missile silos or aircraft capable of carrying nuclear weapons.
When planning where to attack a country, you will want to pick a place that prevents the country from attacking you back. This is why it is hypothesized that if there were to be a nuclear war, Russia would choose to target one of the many nuclear warhead launch sites in the United States to avoid being nuked.
Oregon has no nuclear warheads, and it is outside of the explosion range of any state that does have nuclear warheads. Oregon has eight nuclear warheads circled it. Still, they are just out of casualty range, making Oregon an even smaller target because it is near a good target area but is just far enough away that it could not be considered a good target itself. Plus, Oregon is a beautiful place to live, so you will likely be able to enjoy yourself even as a nuclear war occurs around you.
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3. Northern California
Northern California is also a great place to live if you wish to avoid a nuclear explosion. Northern California has some large cities, such as Sacramento, but the city is not even on the top ten biggest cities list. More than their large cities is needed to draw the attention of those looking to do as much damage to people as possible.
Also, when looking for a place to bomb, you want an area with many powerful people. You will want to blow up large governmental organizations and huge trading centers. Northern California does not have that.
If you are in Northern California, you probably will be safe from a nuclear bomb because its cities do not have any critical infrastructure that would be a target of a foreign country. The area is sparsely populated compared to the rest of California, making it an even less attractive target.
4. Western Texas
Western Texas is another great place to live to avoid the fallout of a nuclear war. The biggest city in Western Texas is El Paso. El Paso has 678,815 people living in it. Remember that the top targets of nuclear weapons will be large cities or areas with critical infrastructure that could cause indirect damage to the surrounding area.
Because of the relatively low population, El Paso likely wouldn’t be the target of a nuclear bomb, especially considering how many cities in Texas have much larger populations.
El Paso also has a lot of open space in and around the city, which means you will have plenty of places to go and hide should a nuclear bomb be dropped in a nearby city.
5. Utah
The state of Utah does not have much influence on the US as a whole. A decent number of people live in Utah, but even its most prominent cities are smaller than the cities on the eastern side of the United States. Its influence is small as well, which makes it a very safe place to live during a nuclear war.
Were there to be an attack on Utah, people would likely target government buildings or the headquarters of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (LDS), as religious conflict is often cause for war. However, it is unlikely that a nuclear bomb will be dropped anywhere in this state.
Plus, most people that live in Utah have non-perishable food stored in their homes, as members of the LDS church are told to be prepared for any disaster. Your neighbors might be willing and able to share their stored food with you once it is safe to go outside again.
Utah also has a lot of mountains in many areas that will protect you from radioactive fallout coming from a nearby state.
Related The 16 Safest US Cities From Nuclear Attack
6. Northern Idaho
While I admit that not all of Idaho would be a great place to stay during a nuclear attack, there are a lot of places in Idaho that would be good to live in to avoid a nuclear attack. The panhandle of Idaho would be the best place to live in. The panhandle is mainly made up of mountains and forests. There are no big cities or army bases. Unfortunately, not all of Idaho is as safe as the panhandle.
In the lower sections of Idaho, there are a few nuclear warhead storage centers. These places would likely be a target if we got into a nuclear war. Still, the radiation range for these sections would not reach the Idaho panhandle, which is why it would still be safe up there.
However, the radiation that would come from blowing up the nuclear warhead storage centers in Idaho would not be good. You would have to deal with the radiation from the initial bomb and the bombs they blew up. These bombs could cause a lot of damage over a very long radius. Therefore, you don’t even want to live in the county over from the counties with nuclear warheads in them, so keep that in mind.
7. Eastern Montana
If we were to enter a nuclear war, the shock from the nukes going off could usually stimulate earthquakes. You do not even have to be close to where the bomb would have exploded to feel these results. Therefore, if you live on a fault line, you are more likely to have to deal with earthquakes during a nuclear attack.
Eastern Montana would be a safe place to live during a nuclear attack because it does not have any fault lines running through it. Eastern Montana has very steady ground that will likely not be able to shake due to the impacts of a nuclear bomb going off. There aren’t any significant locations in Eastern Montana, so this area likely won’t be a target during a nuclear war.
Eastern Montana also has many beautiful lands you can cultivate to survive on. In a world with nuclear war, food production and delivery could become impossible to maintain, making it hard for you to get groceries regularly. Therefore, living where you can grow and harvest your food is essential. Luckily, Montana is the perfect place to start all over again.
Related Top 10 US Cities Most Likely To Be Targeted In A Nuclear War
8. North Dakota
North Dakota does not have any highly likely targets for nuclear war. Yet, if we can learn one thing from the blitz, it is that bombs don’t always hit their targets. There have been countless stories of bombs being detonated in the wrong area and killing people who thought their small town would never be blown up.
Therefore, using those stories, we need to think about what areas of North Dakota would amplify the nuclear fallout instead of wondering if there is anything worth blowing up there. North Dakota has some huge power plants. These power plants are so powerful they could amplify the effects of a nuclear bomb.
These plants could blow up the city of Minot, Bismarck, and Grand Forks. Overall, the odds of North Dakota blowing up is very small, but if it were to be blown up, the impact would be huge. These power plants would ensure that roughly half of North Dakota would be blown up. Therefore, while it is an excellent place to live during a nuclear war, you should be cautious in ensuring you don’t live in the fallout zone of the nuclear power plants in North Dakota.
Luckily, North Dakota is a relatively large state, so you can easily avoid being near the fallout zone of a nuclear power plant.
9. South Dakota
South Dakota would be a great place to live in to avoid nuclear fallout during a nuclear war. In South Dakota, there are fields and fields of land. There is nothing there. The air in South Dakota is some of the cleanest air in the United States because there are hardly any chemical factories there. There also are very few power plants or other sorts of factories that would release radiation should they be damaged during a nuclear war.
If the United States were to enter into a nuclear war, it would not be hard for the enemy to hinder all forms of electronic devices. This could leave people stranded and unable to get the things they need to sustain life. Luckily in South Dakota, there are a lot of fields and rivers that would be able to sustain life.
Another great thing about South Dakota is that there is a lot of empty land that you can hide in. Therefore, you will not need to worry about the anarchy that might follow a nuclear war in the more crowded cities on American coastlines.
Overall, South Dakota has the makings of being a great place to rebuild your life after a nuclear war. It also will protect you from being harmed because it will likely not be targeted. It is mainly made up of small rural communities, and while blowing up food production could be detrimental to the country, it would be hard to stop the production of food altogether. There are also no major political or economic locations in this state that would make it a serious target.
10. Minnesota
Minnesota would also be an excellent place to live during a nuclear war. They are prepared for all the dangers of a nuclear war. They have an active section of the Minnesota Department of Public Safety Homeland Security. They also have the Emergency Management division. These programs are there to prepare for the very worst of situations, and if a nuclear war were to break out, they would be able to help the citizens find shelter and food.
Another great organization to help with the fallout is the Minnesota Emergency Operations Plan. They are there to provide people with the supplies needed to fix the damage from a nuclear bomb. It also has the tools necessary to help the citizens of Minnesota survive being cut off from the rest of society if that were to happen due to a nuclear attack.
Overall, several places are great to live during a nuclear war. It would be best if you scouted the area to ensure that nothing significant might draw the eyes of foreign militaries there. If you want to be able to provide for your family, make sure you go to a place where you can grow your food.
For more, check out US Nuclear Target Map: Most Safe and Unsafe Areas
Jim James is a published author and expert on the outdoors and survivalism. Through avid research and hands-on experience, he has gained expertise on a wide variety of topics. His time spent at college taught him to become really good at figuring out answers to common problems. Often through extensive trial and error, Jim has continued to learn and increase his knowledge of a vast array of topics related to firearms, hunting, fishing, medical topics, cooking, games/gaming, and other subjects too numerous to name.
Jim has been teaching people a wide variety of survivalism topics for over five years and has a lifetime of experience fishing, camping, general survivalism, and anything in nature. In fact, while growing up, he often spent more time on the water than on land! He has degrees in History, Anthropology, and Music from the University of Southern Mississippi. He extensively studied Southern History, nutrition, geopolitics, the Cold War, and nuclear policy strategies and safety as well as numerous other topics related to the content on survivalfreedom.com.