WordNet
n. activities organized by civilians for their own protection in time of war or disaster
Wikipedia
Civil defense, civil defence (see spelling differences) or civil protection is an effort to protect the citizens of a state (generally non-combatants) from military attacks and natural disasters. It uses the principles of emergency operations: prevention, mitigation, preparation, response, or emergency evacuation and recovery. Programs of this sort were initially discussed at least as early as the 1920s and were implemented in some countries during the 1930s as the threat of war and aerial bombardment grew. It became widespread after the threat of nuclear weapons was realized.
Since the end of the Cold War, the focus of civil defense has largely shifted from military attack to emergencies and disasters in general. The new concept is described by a number of terms, each of which has its own specific shade of meaning, such as crisis management, emergency management, emergency preparedness, contingency planning, emergency services, and civil protection.
In some countries, civil defense is seen as a key part of "total defense". For example, in Sweden, the Swedish word totalförsvar refers to the commitment of a wide range of resources of the nation to its defense - including to civil protection. Respectively, some countries (notably the Soviet Union) may have or have had military-organized civil defense units (Civil Defense Troops) as part of their armed forces or as a paramilitary service.
__NOTOC__ "Civil Defense" is the 53rd episode of the television series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, the seventh episode of the third season.
Usage examples of "civil defense".
He had yet to visit Bubba Offenhaus and collect Civil Defense pamphlets.
So far, all anyone had been able to do was beef up civil defense and keep their heads down.
And on the planet, sirens screamed and civil defense teams sprang into orderly action.
The Officer Civil Defense unit sells for the same price and overcomes the disadvantages of the World War II Army model.
Tama Hideoshi had taken over all that remained of Fighter Command, but Vassily was chained to Antarctica, Frederick Amesbury was working himself into his own grave in Plotting, trying desperately to keep tabs on the outer system through his Achuultani-crippled arrays, and Chiang Chien-su couldn't possibly be spared from his heartbreaking responsibility for Civil Defense.
Chiang Chien-su had a screen all to himself as he waited tensely in his civil defense HQ, and Hatcher could see the control room of PDC Huan Ti behind Tsien.
Rick ordered the civil defense units to collect the bodies, separate the living from the dead, and lock the former away for interrogation.