Most Frequently Asked Questions:
Our terrorism expert, Dr. Harvey Kushner, will read through your questions and try to answer as many as possible. Be sure to check back at the site to see if an answer to your questions has been posted.

What is the difference between a Gas Mask and an Escape Hood
Escape Hoods have been designed to enable individuals to escape quickly from a location where access to clean air have been compromised by an incident. There 2 main kinds of Escape Hoods: Smoke Escape Hoods protecting against gases and vapors created by fire and NBC Escape Hoods protecting against Chemical agents, Biological agents, and Nuclear particles. For the best models of Escape Hoods(the ones ranging between $150 and $200 in the list below), filters last longer than gas masks' ones by about 50% on average. However, unlike gas masks, they are only usable once. Escape hoods don't need fit-testing as one size fits all. They can be donned very easily and very fast, generally less than 10 seconds. Because of the enclosure feeling one might feel inside an escape hood, people suffering from Chlostrophobia should prefer a gas mask over an escape hood.

Initially, Gas Masks were designed to protect soldiers in the battlefield against Biological and Chemical Warfare agents. However, mostly because of Terrorism threats, gas masks are more and more used for civilian protection. Israeli government has been providing all its population with gas masks for more than 10 years. Unlike escape hoods, gas masks can be used many times by changing the filter cartridge. However they generally need practice to be used efficiently and safely. Before buying a gas mask, make sure you will be able to be trained in its proper use by stopping by a Safer America store or by an individual with the proper expertise. Although they might be sold separately, each gas mask for sale at Safer America comes with filter.

What is the use of Potassium Iodide?
Potassium Iodide is known to help prevent long-term thyroid cancer in the event of a radiation emergency. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the U.S. military recommend that Potassium Iodide (KI) pills be administered as soon as possible during an actual radiation emergency (and as directed by public health officials or a physician) to people who are likely to be exposed to dangerous nuclear radioactive iodine that results from disasters like: a nuclear power plant emergency, a nuclear materials accident, a nuclear terrorism incident, or in the event of a nuclear war. Radiation Blocking pills proved to be very effective in preventing people (especially children) from contracting thyroid cancer and other radiation related problems during the Chernobyl nuclear power plant disaster.