civil defense
noun
: the system of protective measures and emergency relief activities conducted by civilians in case of hostile attack, sabotage, or natural disaster
Examples of civil defense in a Sentence
She's in training to be part of the local civil defense.
the head of civil defense
Recent Examples on the Web
More than 100 people have been killed in the Palestinian enclave since the deal was announced, the civil defense there has said.
—
NBC News, 18 Jan. 2025
The report added that a number of victims are still under the rubble and on roads, and ambulance and civil defense crews cannot reach them.
—Abeer Salman, CNN, 13 Jan. 2025
Abed Rahim Khatib / Anadolu via Getty Images An NBC News crew captured the moment a member of the civil defense emerged carrying the body of a small child, covered in dust, mud and blood, through the building.
—Freddie Clayton, NBC News, 16 Dec. 2024
And unlike some other European countries, Finland has kept around 50,000 Cold-War era civil defense shelters, which could accommodate roughly 85% of the population of about 5.5 million.
—James Brooks, Los Angeles Times, 23 Dec. 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Civil defense.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/civil%20defense. Accessed 20 Feb. 2025.
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