Damascus, Arkansas. 3:00 a.m. The Titan II’s lower fuel tank collapses, fuel and oxidizer come into contact, and the missile explodes. The 9,000,000-ton W-53 warhead is projected upward and is found several hours later, 100 meters away. The intrinsic safety device does its job, and the warhead fails to explode. Airman David Livingstone, who was near the missile trying to resolve the problem, is killed by the explosion.
