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i #vv^kmrnono 442-624490 Pagos—35Military Tran sm iasion s In f I irateVW7 _Was*iDAMASCUS, Ark lt;AP - Air Force rescue workers had to search through debris-strewn pastures lefore finding a nude ar warhead after a Titan II missile silo exploded in Arkansas. according to a local sheriff and others who monitored military radio trans missions Conway County Sheriff Carl Stobaugh said Saturday he learned from military radioWtransmissions that the warhead atop the intercontinental ballistic missile was hurled several hundred feet in the predawn blast Friday that killed one Air Force sergeant and injured 21 other maintenance workers He said he learned the warhead had not been moved by Saturday night and the Air Force was working on it at the site Neither the Pentagon nor the Strategic Air Command in Ilinaha Neb , would comment on location of the warhead or even that the missile was armed with a nuclear weapon.Transcripts of radio irans missions monitored by the Ar kansas Gazette while rescue workers were seaiching for the injured indicate the warhead was clearly lost lor i lime At one point came this exchange: Air Force to Command One Anybody 'hat goes along that area now have them look around to sm it they can pm point the warheadI uru!lt; land Is there any danger as far as ap proaching it and radiation “At this particular point, it sunknown 1 it no onethinK* so at thiN (mnt According to Stobaugh the transmissions said the waibeadwas catapulted .{00 to 4lt;K) feet in the blast which left a debris-strewn crater 230 feet wide, but was recovered intact i lt;.**n Lloyd Leavitt, SACvice commander, told reporters at a n°ws conference Saturday at Little Hock Air Force Base that the missile was reduced to bits and pieces lie flew to Arkansas Saturday morning and looked in the hole *herf formerly the missile a asWe have about the worst case we could have in terms of a Titan accident, he said, but said it was important that there were no civilian injuries.Leavitt referred to the in cident as a catastrophic failure of the Titan II He .ilso refuse*! to discus* whether a warhead was on the missile, repeatedly turning the question aside He praised the airmen and officers involved in the incident saying. ‘ The Air Force will take ppn ;r v. tction to rewat these people They did c. ery thing they could We couldn't have asked for greater devotion todutLeavitt said the A*r Force does not know which of several possibilities caused the ex plosion, but said an investiga tion board has l**en empaneled and has begun its probe When questioned about the shattering of the 740-ton con crete and steel door over the silo. Leavitt said it was easier to destroy from the inside The door had been publicized as being adequate to withstand all but a direct nuclear hit.Leavitt said Sgt David Livingston. 22. ot Heath Ohio, and Sgt Jcfi Kennedv were orderedout of the silo early Friday when the i portati»- vapor detectors pegged or registered the highest level possible on the equipmentThe highest iossib)e reading wa* still below explosion level, Leavitt said The two were ordered out when the equipment pegged because conditionswere not safe even with specialsuitsLeavitt said the men did nothing to cause the explosion,to the best of his knowledge(Continued on Page 2)State Shut OutDAMASCUS Ark »AP - The Air Force said “no” Saturday to a state request to inspect the site here an explosion rocked a Titan 11 missile silo earlv Fndav ' We had a meeting a liMle while ago (Saturday afternoon* and asked them t * I*' us n* and look at the site ourselves, said Sam Tatom. director of the state Department of Public SafetvThey told us no in no uncertain terms, he saidas kilt and 21 others wrre injured when the explosion incurred at the site near Damascus in central Arkansas Six remained hospitalized Saturday Tatom said he was in the dark about the Air Force's plan for the continued cleanup of the explosion site and for the nuclear warhead lie thinks is there ' Mv own personal opinion is that it's still there Tatom said It is inia ' and ot damaged That it just my opinion, but that s what I told thlt; governor Tatom lias told Air Force officials that he wants advance notice of am action that mav be taken, especially if it takesplace off the silo siteWhen the* come off that federal property 1 want to knoweverything they're doing,” few said Tatom was visibly upset with the apparent lack of commu meat ion between the Air Force and state and local officials What irritates me is that in this state the buck stops here — with me he said *i am wondering when* it stops with them.'Although the Air Force has said no further evacuations will be necessary Tatom said it would take much planning if suchaction was neededI told them that 'f thev need something like that done, they d better let us know now. Tatom said He said an properly executed evacution would take at least 10 hours of planning
Newspaper Details
Fayetteville Northwest Arkansas Times
Fayetteville, Arkansas, US
Sun, Sep 21, 1980
Page 1
Full Page
Clipped by
Arkansas S.
AR, USA 14 Feb 2020
Other Publications Near Fayetteville, Arkansas
Fayetteville Democrat
Fayetteville Daily
Fayetteville Northwest Arkansas Times
Northwest Arkansas Times
Fayetteville Daily Democrat
