1980 Damascus, Arkansas incident

The 1980 Damascus, Arkansas incident refers to an incident where a missile equipped with a nuclear warhead exploded in Damascus, Arkansas, on September 18–19, 1980. The silo was part of the 374th Strategic Missile Squadron at the time of the explosion.

Incident

On the evening of the 18th, at about 6:30 p.m., an airman conducting maintenance on a USAF Titan-II missile at Little Rock Air Force Base's Launch Complex 374-7 in Southside (Van Buren County) just north of town, dropped a socket from a socket wrench, which fell about 80 feet (24 m) before hitting and piercing the skin on the rocket's first-stage fuel tank, causing it to leak. The area was evacuated.

At about 3:00 a.m. on September 19, 1980, the hypergolic fuel exploded. The W53 warhead landed about 100 feet (30 m) from the launch complex's entry gate; its safety features operated correctly and prevented any loss of radioactive material. One Air Force airman was killed, others seriously injured and the launch complex was destroyed.[1] The former launch complex was decommissioned, disassembled, and now stands on private land.[2]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Titan Missile Explosion". The Encyclopedia of Arkansas.
  2. ↑ Schlosser, Eric (2013). Command and Control: Nuclear Weapons, the Damascus Accident, and the Illusion of Safety. Penguin Press. p. 484. ISBN 978-1-59420-227-8.

Coordinates: 35°24′51″N 92°23′50″W / 35.4141°N 92.3972°W