Pedestrians Scatter As President Eisenhower Runs An Air Raid Test In New York – 1957

My mother and father tell of practicing “duck and cover” in school.

The drill was to supposedly protect oneself from a nuclear bomb. As if crouching under a desk would have done anything to shield you from an atomic blast.

Our photo is looking south towards Broad Street from Nassau and Wall Street during the cold war when world annihilation seemed to be a real possibility.

The news slug says:

New Yorkers Heed “Operation Alert”
New York – Looking down Broad Street from Nassau and Wall you’ll see pedestrians hurrying along to air raid shelters before “Operation Alert -1957” sounded at 1:45 P.M. EDT. In Washington, President Eisenhower became the first U.S. chief executive ever to use a helicopter when he was whisked away from the White House to a secret relocation point as part of the nationwide civil defense drill. photo: Sam Goldstein International News Photos 7/12/1957