How We Lost Detroit: The Fermi Nuclear Disaster

[dartingfog]

It stands out on a highway
Like a creature from another time.
It inspires the babies' questions,
"What's that?"
For their mothers as they ride.
But no one stopped to think about the babies
Or how they would survive,
And we almost lost Detroit this time.

-"We Almost Lost Detroit" by Gil Scott Heron


Imagine: Detroit as a vast, abandoned wasteland…

Okay, so it already is, but even more so than OTL!

The partial meltdown of the Fermi 1 plant near Detroit, Michigan occurred in OTL on October 5, 1966. Without getting too technical, Fermi 1 was an experimental breeder reactor. In addition to producing power, breeder reactors make nuclear fuel. Fermi 1 used liquid sodium as a coolant (unlike most atomic plants, which are water-cooled reactors). The partial meltdown of OTL occurred when a small piece of metal broke off inside the reactor, which blocked the sodium coolant, and caused several fuel rods to melt. Fortunately, the plant operators were able to shut down the reactor and no radiation was released to the environment (though the reactor was never reactivated). [1]

But what if the reactor had gone into full meltdown?

The meltdown of Fermi-1 near Detroit was considered on this very site 2 years ago (Half of the posters have since been banned. Sad!):

https://www.alternatehistory.com/forum/threads/dbwi-we-didnt-lose-detroit.389257/

The premise of this scenario is covered in We Almost Lost Detroit by John G. Fuller. Cool book, but it has its issues, as explained by @asnys:

https://www.alternatehistory.com/forum/threads/what-have-you-been-reading-lately-and-what-are-you-currently-perusing.144429/page-206#post-14976353

Finished We Almost Lost Detroit, by John G. Fuller. Published in the 70s, this is the story of Enrico Fermi Unit 1, the world's first commercial fast breeder reactor, and the partial meltdown it suffered in 1966. Fuller uses this as a lens to look at the history of fission energy in the US in general, with heavy emphasis on accidents. This is a very anti-nuclear book, as you might expect from the title, but I read it because a) I was hoping it might still be a useful history of Enrico Fermi Unit 1, and b) I do try to occasionally expose myself to other viewpoints. Also, frankly, I'm decidedly opposed to fast breeder technology myself - at least of the sodium-cooled type used at Enrico Fermi - so I'm open to the idea that this plant was a horrible mistake.

On a technical level, unfortunately, the book doesn't really measure up. First, there are a lot of technical mistakes. Fuller seems to think that if you so much as drop a fuel assembly, everything within a thirty mile radius dies. He also seriously misunderstands a lot of stuff - for example, he cites one report as saying that the 95% confidence interval on the rate of accidents is more than one per 500 reactor-years. That does not mean the one per 500 reactor-years is a credible estimate - but Fuller treats it as one anyway. There's a lot of stuff like this, but he gets enough of the basics right that a reader who's not familiar with the technology won't realize the mistakes he's making.

So, I think there's a lot of stuff wrong. No surprise. But how is it as a book?

Well, it never really explains how this technology works. Which is just as well, given the above. But if the reader doesn't understand how a fast breeder works, they can't really understand any of this, except that Fuller keeps waving improbable damage figures in front of them. Similarly, he never really engages with the actual arguments of pro-nuclear figures that appear in the book. He basically says, "they think their reactors are safe, but there have been all these accidents. They're clearly wrong." He never actually engages with their counter-argument. Frankly, this whole issue is far more complicated than he presents it as, and, I suspect, than he even understands. There are good reasons to be opposed to fission power - I am ultimately a supporter of the technology, but reasonable, well-informed people can and do disagree. But Fuller fails to articulate those reasons because he doesn't seem to really understand how it works.

Other than that, well, it's well-written. I burned through it in two days. So it has that going for it.

So, yeah, I didn't like it.

So based on that, I’m taking Fuller’s predictions about what could have happened with a big grain of salt (and a potassium iodide pill). Despite the book’s flaws, it’s important to note that Fuller wrote his book more than 10 years before Chernobyl, so I think it’s fair to say that he was not entirely wrong about the potential dangers of nuclear power. Even UAW leader Walter Reuther believed the threat was serious enough to challenge the construction of the plant before it was built.

I did not rely on Fuller’s book alone. One source was a series of articles about the incident written by reporter Chester Bulgier of the Detroit News in November 1968, 2 years after the accident. Another major source was a technical report about the effects of a meltdown at the Fermi plant from the University of Michigan in 1957 [2]. There was also a rebuttal to Fuller's book entitled We Did Not Almost Lose Detroit, which was written a Detroit Edison employee named Earl M. Page (of course, working for an electric company that operates a nuclear power plant might just make one a wee bit biased in the other direction).

As a disclaimer, I’m neither a nuclear physicist nor an anti-nuclear activist. If operated safely, nuclear plants are generally better for the environment and human health than coal-fired plants and produce more energy than wind or solar power. Today’s nuclear power plants are far safer than the early plants (partly because of what has been learned from mistakes made in the 50s and 60s). Unlike Fuller, I’m more interested in exploring the social and political effects of a nuclear meltdown. But I’ve tried to take a “hard science” approach to the accident and to document the realistic effects of a full meltdown.

---------------------------------------------------

NOTES:

[1] A good recent summary of the 1966 Fermi accident was published by the Detroit Free Press: https://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/2016/10/09/detroit-fermi-accident-nuclear-plant/91434816/

[2] https://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/handle/2027.42/5163

 

[dartingfog]

Detroit in 1966

"Frequently called the most cosmopolitan city of the Midwest, Detroit today stands at the threshold of a bright new future…" [1]

-Mayor Jerome Kavanaugh, Detroit: City on the Move, 1965

In 1966, Detroit was a thriving and prosperous American city. It was the center of automobile manufacturing in the United States, home to four large companies: General Motors, Ford Motor Company, Chrysler, and American Motors. Detroit was also the fifth largest city in the United States and one of the wealthiest cities per capita. This was accomplished largely because of the efforts of the powerful United Auto Workers union, a champion of labor (well, at least White labor).

Not only was Detroit the Motor City, it was the Music City. Detroit was the center of the Motown sound, founded by Berry Gordy. Popular artists included the Four Tops, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, the Marvelettes, the Miracles, the Supremes, the Temptations, just to name a few. Many Motown hits topped the charts in the 1960s.

Politically, 1966 was shaping up be an eventful year in Detroit, as well as the entire state of Michigan. Two high-profile elections were of particular interest to the voters. Incumbent Governor George Romney, a Republican, would face challenger Zolton Ferency. In the Senate, Republican Senator Robert P. Griffin would be challenged by former Governor G. Mennen “Soapy” Williams (who won a heated primary against Detroit mayor Jerome Kavanaugh early in the year).

But not all was rosy for the city. Detroit had lost several hundred thousand people since 1950, mostly to the suburbs. White flight, as it was called, was the exodus of middle-class White people into the newly-built suburban sprawl around the city.

There were also increasing racial tensions within the city. Despite advancements made possible by the Civil Rights Act, Detroit's Black residents remained socially and economically marginalized. Neighborhoods remained segregated, and police brutality was rampant. In response, Black Detroiters were becoming increasingly militant and the Black Power movement gained popularity. In August, violence erupted between police and Black residents on Kercheval Street, on the city’s east side.

And, like the rest of the country, the Vietnam War was taking a heavy toll. Every week, several local young men killed in battle appeared in the obituaries of the local newspapers. Demonstrations against the war took place at Wayne State University and University of Michigan, in nearby Ann Arbor.

Detroit was a metaphorical powderkeg about to explode. But no one could have anticipated the catastrophe that was about to strike. I’m referring to, of course, the Fermi Nuclear Disaster.

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NOTES:

[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T-C8DwL2ovQ

 

[dartingfog]

“Now, in the next phase of civilian nuclear power development, we can look forward to advance converter and breeder reactors which will result in more efficient and economical use of our nuclear fuel resources…I believe we can take heart from the fact that, twenty years after its inception, the nuclear age has not eliminated man -- in fact, it has imposed a greater discipline in his conduct. We can also be gratified that the atom has been used for peaceful and constructive purpose. In the years ahead we will continue to make the atom a source of man’s cooperation and progress. May the atom, as all science, be in time to become a tool for understanding ... for well-being …for betterment of the human condition.” – Vice President Hubert Humphrey, Nov. 15, 1965 [1]

Report of the President’s Commission on the Fermi Nuclear Disaster
Joint Committee on Atomic Energy [2]​

October 30, 1969

Preface

This report reviews the causes and consequences of the meltdown of the Enrico Fermi Nuclear Generating Station on October 5, 1966 near Monroe, Michigan, and 30 miles from downtown Detroit. Evidence of what occurred is fragmentary and based on the recollection of witnesses at the plant.

The precise cause of the accident remains unclear. The most common theory is that a small metal object broke loose inside Fermi's reactor vessel, blocking the flow of sodium coolant. A coolant blockage would explain the increase in temperature that was observed in the core prior to the accident.

Whatever the cause, the incident began at approximately 3:05 PM, when the operator, Mike Wilber, noticed that there were erratic changes in the activity of the reactor. He also noticed that the control rods (were used to control the nuclear chain reaction in the core) were further out than they should be. Just four minutes later, high radiation alarms sounded. Technicians found that the temperature of several fuel rod subassemblies had increased to 700 °F (370 °C). Automatic control devices detected that an elevated level of radioactivity was leaking out into the containment building [3][4]. About this time, the Monroe County Sheriff's Office and the Michigan State Police received calls from someone who claimed to work at the Fermi plant. The unidentified caller reported that there had been an accident at Fermi 1, but said that the situation should not be publicized. [5]

At 3:20 PM, eleven minutes after the radioactivity alarm had gone off, the engineers decided to manually “scram” the reactor. Normally, performing a “scram” shuts down the reactor by inserting neutron-absorbing boron rods. This first attempt to “scram” the reactor put one of the control rods into place. However, the plant personnel were unable to reset another one of the control rods in the subassembly, which remained jammed 6 inches from the full “down” position [6]. Despite additional attempts to scram the reactor, the stubborn rod could not be closed down fully.

By 4:15 PM, the temperature in the core had increased to 1,600°F (870°C), and the sodium inside the reactor began to boil [7]. About this time, Vice President and Assistant General Manager of the Power Reactor Development Company, Walter J. McCarthy, arrived at the plant from Detroit. Knowing that a full meltdown could destroy the reactor and release deadly radiation into the atmosphere, he immediately called a meeting to discuss options with other plant personnel, including Mike Wilber, Bill Olson, and Ken Johnson [8]. By this time, the melting had spread from the single plugged-up subassembly to several others, and molten, waxy uranium began to fall down through the core [9].

At approximately 4:35 PM, just 90 minutes after problem was discovered, the temperature inside the reactor had increased to 2,000 °F, greater than the boiling point of sodium. The interior of the reactor had now degenerated into a molten mass of sodium and uranium [10]. Mr. McCarthy, Mr. Wilber, Mr. Olson, Mr. Johnson and several others made one last attempt to prevent the reactor from reaching criticality.

Tragically, they were unsuccessful in this final attempt. An explosion destroyed the reactor shortly before 4:50 PM Eastern Time on October 5, 1966 [11]. These individuals are believed to have perished at that time. This devastating explosion ruptured the containment building and blew the 1,000-ton cap off of the reactor, releasing radioactive isotopes of cesium, strontium, and iodine into the atmosphere. After the destruction of the reactor, the remaining plant employees evacuated the facility.

The explosion is believed to have occurred when molten core material had dropped on top of fuel that had melted and re-congealed [12]. The fuel reassembled itself at the bottom of the reactor, assuming a critical configuration. The fuel in the core then blew itself apart in a nuclear explosion, albeit one with less explosive power than a nuclear bomb [13]. When the congealed sodium inside the reactor made contact with the air, it instantaneously caught fire [14].

Local authorities began to arrive at the plant at this time. The Monroe Fire Department tried in vain to put out the fire at the plant, but pouring water on the reactor only fanned the flames. After several firefighters began to show signs of radiation sickness, the fire was allowed to burn. Winds, blowing out the northwest, carried the contamination to the southeast, away from Detroit and over Lake Erie. [15]

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Spoiler: NOTES

NOTES:

[1] Taken verbatim from a speech Humphrey gave in Washington, D.C. at the Nuclear Society-Atomic Industrial Forum on November 15, 1965. http://www2.mnhs.org/library/findaids/00442.xml

[2] Based loosely on this report from OTL about Three Mile Island: http://large.stanford.edu/courses/2012/ph241/tran1/docs/188.pdf

[3] We Almost Lost Detroit (WALD), p. 196-7: “Just a few minutes [later], at 3:05 PM to be exact, Mike Wilber noticed another problem. For the amount of heat and power that was coming out of the reactor, the control rods should have been raised only six inches out of the core. Instead they were a full nine inches out …Suddenly, as Wilber was standing in front of the temperature instruments behind the control panel, radiation alarms went off. It was exactly 3:09 PM.”

[4] Detroit News (DN), Nov. 13, 1968, 1-F: “The operator noticed that the control rods, used to control the nuclear chain reaction in the core, were further out than they should be. At 3:09 pm, high radiation alarms sounded from the domed reactor building and the fusion product detection building. The operator began reducing the power and at 3:20 pm, he ‘scrammed’ the reactor manually, shutting it down by inserting the boron rods all the way.”

[5] WALD, p. 2: “About the same time, some 100 miles away, Captain Buchanan of the Michigan State Police in Lansing was alerted by a similar phone call.”

[6] Everything up to this point is as OTL. The POD rests on the behavior of a single stubborn control rod. WALD, p. 201: “And so, at 3:20 PM, eleven minutes after the radioactive alarm had gone off, the decision was made to manually scram the reactor…All the rods went down into the core normally, except one. It stopped six inches from the full ‘down’ position. This was no time to take a chance. A second manual scram signal was activated. The reluctant rod finally closed down fully.”

[7] For a detailed technical description of what happens in a fast breeder reactor accident, read Breeder Reactor Safety: Modeling the Impossible by Charles R. Bell (1969), available here: https://fas.org/sgp/othergov/doe/lanl/pubs/00416676.pdf

[8] WALD, p. 201-2: “Walter McCarthy was in a conference in Downtown Detroit when it happened. He got a call from Bill Olson, the plant supervisor, who told him that there definitely was evidence of fuel damage, and that the containment building had been isolated with high radiation levels…Almost immediately after he arrived at the plant, McCarthy called a meeting. Every available key man of the Fermi team was there – Olson, Wilber, Jens, Amarosi, Johnson, and others…Alexanderson was to arrive later.”

[9] WALD, p. 187: “If the coolant flow was ever blocked, McCarthy’s computations figured that the meltdown would not spread from the single plugged-up assembly…If it spread to others, there would be hell to pay. Some scientists were sure that if the melting spread to other subassemblies, the results could lead to disaster as molten, waxy uranium fell down through the core.”

[10] As happened at the SL-1 reactor in OTL, a much smaller experimental reactor. WALD, p.34: “Nearly half of the core of the small reactor had melted, foaming and frothing as it did so. The temperatures had reached over 2,000o F - much more than the melting point of the fuel and the stainless steel cladding. The liquid sodium coolant had boiled over, pushing the uranium outward from the center of the core and blocking coolant channels. Partially melted rods had dropped into a molten mass below the core, forming ...a eutectic mixture.”

[11] Bell, p. 107: “If a large fraction of the original fuel has managed to remain within the active core region, a super-prompt-critical excursion can occur that heats the fuel in milliseconds to high temperatures and pressures. The fuel in the core, in essence, blows apart. While the dispersal of the fuel terminates the neutronic excursion, the pressure surge poses a direct mechanical threat and the possibility of breached containment.”

[12] DN, Nov. 11, 1968, p. 13-A: “'The worst accident we can conceive of’, says Walter J. McCarthy Jr. … ‘would be for half the core material to melt and recongeal in the space below, and then for the other half to melt suddenly and drop about six feet on top of it.’”

[13] From a paper written in 2010 called It’s Time to Give Up on Breeder Reactors by Cochran et al.:

https://www.princeton.edu/sgs/publications/articles/Time-to-give-up-BAS-May_June-2010.pdf Cochran et al, p. 53: “Furthermore, if the core heats up to the point of collapse and suffers a meltdown, the fuel can assume a more critical configuration and blow itself apart in a small nuclear explosion. Whether such an explosion could release enough energy to rupture reactor containment and cause a Chernobyl-scale release of radioactivity into the environment is the subject of major concern and debate.”

[14] Cochran et al., p. 52: “Although sodium has some safety advantages, it also has some serious drawbacks. It reacts violently with water and burns if it exposed to air.”

[15] The most detailed hour-by-hour weather data can be found for the Canadian station at Windsor, Ontario (about 25 miles northeast of the plant).

http://climate.weather.gc.ca/climate_data/hourly_data_e.html?timeframe=1&Year=1966&Month=10&Day=5&hlyRange=1953-01-01%7C2014-10-02&dlyRange=1940-08-01%7C2014-10-01&mlyRange=1940-01-01%7C2014-10-01&StationID=4716&Prov=ON&urlExtension=_e.html&searchType=stnName&optLimit=specDate&StartYear=1966&EndYear=1967&selRowPerPage=25&Line=0&searchMethod=contains&txtStationName=windsor

At 5:00 PM, the temperature was 52o F (11.1o C), winds were 23 km/h out of the northwest, and the skies were mostly cloudy.

 

[dartingfog]

Wednesday, October 5, 1966, 11:00 PM

Channel 7 Nightly News

Good night, Detroit. This is Bill Bonds [1] reporting. An explosion has been reported at the Fermi Nuclear Generating Station near Monroe. Eyewitnesses report that there was an explosion at the plant, causing a large fire. Local firefighters have been sent to battle the blaze. Several reporters have been sent to gather more information on this event.

The authorities have assured us that all precautions are being taken and that no threat to the public exists at this time. Those living near the Fermi plant are urged to stay indoors and keep their windows closed. Michigan State Police are assisting in the temporary evacuation of residents living within one mile of the plant.

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NOTES:

[1] Local newsman and possible Ron Burgundy prototype. Note that this is six hours after the explosion at the plant, but news traveled more slowly back then.

 

[dartingfog]

October 6, 1966

Emergency proclaimed for Monroe County

Yesterday’s explosion at the Enrico Fermi Nuclear Generating Station has prompted a state of emergency in Monroe County. Authorities have urged residents living near the plant to evacuate from their homes. Governor Romney has ordered a temporary evacuation of residents in Stony Point, Michigan, effective immediately. The Department of Public Health and the Michigan State Police will coordinate efforts to evacuate residents in an orderly and peaceable manner. [1]

Vice President Hubert Humphrey’s visit to Monroe to dedicate the city’s new library has been cancelled [2]. His planned stop in Detroit this evening for a fundraising dinner has also been cancelled. Humphrey, who was scheduled to appear with former governor G. Mennen Williams and Zolton Ferency at the library this morning [3], was escorted from his hotel early this morning by Secret Service agents. He was hastily evacuated to University Hospital in Ann Arbor, where he was placed under observation. [4]

Authorities stress that the evacuation is a precautionary measure and that the plant explosion poses no serious threat to public health. They assure us that the situation is under control [5]. Walker Cisler, President of the Power Reactor Development Corporation (PRDC) that operates the plant, says that there is little danger to Detroit and its suburbs because the “winds will blow the radiation to Canada.” [6]

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Spoiler: NOTES

[1] WALD, p. 204: “There were a couple of public laws in Michigan, dating as far back as 1953…The Department of Public Health was named the official radiation control agency…The Department of State Police was designated as the coordinator of civil defense activities as if and when the governor proclaimed an emergency…The state of Michigan plan reads with simple eloquence: ‘In the event that an incident occurs which releases radioactive materials in concentrations that may be a public health hazard, this plan will be implemented. Implementation will commence by proclamation of an emergency by the Governor by the Director of the Department of Public Health.’”

[2] WALD, p. 3: “About the only occurrence of public note that October 5 was that Hubert Humphrey... had arrived fifty-one minutes late at the Custer Municipal Airport.”

[3] Detroit News, Oct.7, 1966, p. 18-A: “With Williams and Ferency at his side, Humphrey made a two hour stop in Monroe early yesterday to dedicate the Navarre Memorial Library and put in a plug for the re-election of Vivian, the area’s Democratic congressman. About 5,000 schoolchildren and townspeople turned out in the crisp October air.”

[4] WALD, p.126: “Any victim receiving more than 25 rads, or with a contaminated burn, would be taken by ambulance to the University Hospital in Ann Arbor, about 20 miles away.”

[5] This is consistent with the initial response to Three Mile Island from OTL 13 years later: “On Wednesday, March 28, hours after the core had collapsed into rubble, Lt. Gov. William W. Scranton appeared at a news briefing to say that Metropolitan Edison, the plant's owner, had assured the state that ‘everything is under control.’” https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/longterm/tmi/stories/decade032889.htm

[6] King Energy: The Rise and Fall of an Industrial Empire Gone Awry, p. 236

 

[dartingfog]

October 7, 1966

Fermi evacuation radius expands; hundreds sickened by radiation.

As the Fermi plant continues to burn slowly, many people living near the plant have been hospitalized with symptoms consistent with radiation exposure. Monroe Mayor Morton Cohn [1] has ordered an evacuation of the city of Monroe, just five miles west of the Fermi plant. Residents of Berlin and Frenchtown Townships have also been given evacuation orders. Children and pregnant women are at particular risk. In Ontario, evacuations have been ordered for rural areas of southern Essex County, between Amherstberg and Kingsville [2].

The wind is expected to shift from southwesterly to south-southwesterly around 5 P.M. this afternoon and will remain south-southwesterly for the remainder of this evening and all of tomorrow [3]. This has prompted voluntary evacuations for the entire Downriver area. Residents of the City of Detroit are asked to stay indoors for the entirety of the day tomorrow.

On a better note, Vice President Humphrey was released from the hospital early this morning. Doctors state that he exhibits no signs of radiation sickness. He will fly back to Washington, D.C. for further testing. Assuming Humphrey receives a clean bill of health, he then will resume his nationwide pre-election tour, supporting Democratic candidates in Pennsylvania.

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Spoiler: NOTES

[1] http://politicalgraveyard.com/geo/MI/ofc/monroe.html

[2] At the time, no recommended evacuation zones existed around nuclear power plants in either the U.S. or Canada. It was not until 1970 that “emergency planning zones” around nuclear power plants were established in the U.S. (I couldn’t find anything for Canada): https://www.nrc.gov/about-nrc/emerg-preparedness/history.html

[3] Hourly wind direction data for Detroit Metro Airport (the nearest weather station) for 1966 is not publically available. However, wind data are available for Windsor, Ontario on a Canadian government website:

http://climate.weather.gc.ca/climate_data/hourly_data_e.html?timeframe=1&hlyRange=1953-01-01%7C2014-10-02&dlyRange=1940-08-01%7C2014-10-01&mlyRange=1940-01-01%7C2014-10-01&StationID=4716&Prov=ON&urlExtension=_e.html&searchType=stnName&optLimit=specDate&StartYear=1966&EndYear=1967&selRowPerPage=25&Line=0&searchMethod=contains&txtStationName=windsor&Year=1966&Month=10&Day=7

 

[dartingfog]

October 8, 1966

Governor Romney declares statewide emergency; evacuation orders in effect for downriver suburbs

Southwesterly winds and inversion conditions have necessitated the expansion of the evacuation zone to include the Downriver suburbs of Detroit [1]. Public health officials have stated that the number of individuals reported to have been stricken with radiation poisoning is now over 1,000.

Accompanying the evacuation orders was a declaration of a statewide emergency by the governor. Governor Romney took to television and radio last night to make a public announcement regarding the emergency. Romney has ordered the Michigan Army National Guard and state police to aid in the evacuation of affected areas. Every school bus, truck, and non-emergency vehicle in southeastern Michigan and northwestern Ohio has been commandeered into service to ensure evacuees can be quickly and safely sent out of harm’s way. Also as part of the declaration, Governor Romney has banned the sale of milk produced in Monroe and Wayne counties [2].

Federal officials are monitoring the spread of radiation from the plant. President Johnson has been briefed on the situation and said that he has “assured Governor Romney that all possible help will be made available.” [3] In Canada, the evacuation efforts have been marred by disorder, and the normally polite and law-abiding citizens have become common thieves. The mayor of Windsor, Ontario, John Wheelton [4], has called for calm after looting broke out in that city’s downtown last night. Windsor police say that the rampant theft will not be tolerated.

---------------------------------------------

Spoiler: NOTES

[1] “And by the next day, the wind had shifted to 220 [degrees], a course that we take any radioactive fallout smack into the lap of Windsor and much of Detroit…During these days, the weather grows less and less cooperative, with the wind shifting so that any escape of radiation would cover the maximum population of Detroit and its spreading suburbs. The day of the accident marked the beginning of a warm spell, so any escaping radiation would … lazily under the nocturnal inversion conditions.” WALD, p. 211

[2] A major source of contamination in OTL: http://large.stanford.edu/courses/2017/ph241/dadabbo1/ and http://users.owt.com/smsrpm/Chernobyl/glbrad.html

[3] In 1966, disasters were considered to be a state issue, not a federal one: https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2018/12/04/how-federal-government-became-responsible-disaster-relief/?noredirect=on

[4] http://www.windsorpubliclibrary.com/?page_id=62911

 

[dartingfog]

October 9, 1966

Detroit remains calm despite radiation concerns

An eerie calm has fallen over the city of Detroit. For the past two days, southwesterly winds have carried radioactive particles from the Fermi plant towards Detroit. With rain in the forecast, there is increased risk of contamination. Officials have urged the residents of Detroit not to panic, but to evacuate the city in an orderly fashion [1].

Thousands of people in the Detroit area have shown up at hospitals claiming to have radiation poisoning. Doctors, however, say that most of the symptoms reported by patients aren’t consistent with radiation poisoning, and claim that the symptoms are the result of a form of mass hysteria known as radiophobia [2]. They say that Detroiters have not received a large enough dose of radiation to cause radiation poisoning, which typically only occurs when someone is exposed to high doses of radiation, or lower doses for long periods of time.

Nevertheless, officials are trying their best to inform the public of the danger posed by radiation, without unduly alarming them. Mayor Cavanaugh, attempting to allay residents’ fears, issued the following statement:

State and local officials have declared a state of emergency for the city of Detroit. Evacuation is not mandatory, but is recommended. While officials have determined the threat to public health to be minimal, all residents are urged to take precautions. Those who wish to leave the city are advised to leave in a peaceful and civil manner. Police are assisting all of those who wish to leave. Those who wish to remain in the city are advised to stay in their homes until further notice; children and pregnant women are at particular risk.

There is no need to panic. This voluntary evacuation is a precautionary measure. When the threat to public health is deemed to be over, authorities will announce an “all clear” message on radio, television, and in newspapers.

Despite the fears of some, most residents are not concerned about the radiation, which is invisible to all of the senses [3]. Detroiters are carrying on with their usual Sunday business, like going to church, visiting family, or playing pinochle. Most see no reason to leave, like one homeowner we interviewed on Detroit’s west side. “Leave? What’s the big deal? I thought there was going to be some big explosion or something. I don’t care what the government tells me,” he said, puffing on a cigarette.

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Spoiler: NOTES

:

[1] This is a daunting task. As stated by Fuller, WALD, p. 6, “For the Michigan State Police, who bore the responsibility for the whole state, the task of evacuating Detroit would be flatly impossible because the auto city had put all its faith in public transport.”

[2] Already well known in 1966: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radiophobia

[3] As much as some might think such an event might cause mass panic, keep in mind that there was no internet in 1966 and many people didn’t even have TVs. Radiation is invisible, odorless, and tasteless and because of this I think many people won’t take the threat seriously. People in the 1960s understood the dangers of nuclear weapons full well, but meltdowns won’t have the same psychological effect.

 

[dartingfog]

October 10, 1966


Black rain falls on Detroit, Pennsylvania

Half an inch of black rain fell on the city and its suburbs last night. The rain fell heavily for two hours between 11:00 and 1:00, accompanied with southerly winds [1]. The cause of the black rainstorm is believed to be the Fermi plant, still smoldering from the meltdown and explosion that occurred near Monroe five days ago. Shortly after 11:00 PM, the Fermi plant once again caught fire as rains poured down on the residual sodium left in the core.

Residents woke up to a dark, sticky residue that covered everything - roads, cars, lawns, and trees. Officials say that residents should not touch or taste the substance, nor should they try to clean off surfaces where the residue has accumulated. Residents in Detroit, Downriver, Windsor, and Macomb County have reported that the air has a “metallic” taste and paint was seen peeling off the walls of their homes. [2]

The black rain was not limited to the Detroit area. Unusually heavy rain also fell on northwest Pennsylvania overnight. Over three inches of rain fell on the town of Warren, Pennsylvania, about 50 miles east of Erie [3]. The nearby town of Bradford received similarly high rainfall totals. Not only were rainfall totals heavy, the rains (like those in Detroit) were black in color.


------------------------------------------------------------

Spoiler: NOTES

[1] As attested by OTL weather data from Windsor, Ontario: http://climate.weather.gc.ca/climate_data/hourly_data_e.html?timeframe=1&Year=1966&Month=10&Day=9&hlyRange=1953-01-01%7C2014-10-02&dlyRange=1940-08-01%7C2014-10-01&mlyRange=1940-01-01%7C2014-10-01&StationID=4716&Prov=ON&urlExtension=_e.html&searchType=stnName&optLimit=yearRange&StartYear=1965&EndYear=1967&selRowPerPage=25&Line=0&searchMethod=contains&txtStationName=windsor

http://climate.weather.gc.ca/climate_data/hourly_data_e.html?timeframe=1&hlyRange=1953-01-01%7C2014-10-02&dlyRange=1940-08-01%7C2014-10-01&mlyRange=1940-01-01%7C2014-10-01&StationID=4716&Prov=ON&urlExtension=_e.html&searchType=stnName&optLimit=yearRange&StartYear=1965&EndYear=1967&selRowPerPage=25&Line=0&searchMethod=contains&txtStationName=windsor&Year=1966&Month=10&Day=10

[2] As happened in OTL after a rainstorm 3 days after the Chernobyl meltdown: https://www.politico.eu/article/anniversary-chernobyl-poisoned-my-childhood-chernivitz-ukraine-1986-exposure-radiation-thallium/ and http://s.telegraph.co.uk/graphics/projects/Chernobyl-30-years/index.html

[3] This is much heavier than what nearby areas like Pittsburgh and Buffalo received in OTL. For comparison, OTL rainfall on October 9-11, 1966:

https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/cdo-web/datasets/GHCND/stations/GHCND:USW00094847/detail


Buffalo, NY: 0.47 in (12 mm)

Rochester, NY: 0.35 in (9 mm)

Syracuse, NY: No data

Binghamton, NY: 0.30 in (8 mm)

State College, PA: 0.26 in (7 mm)

Erie, PA: No data

Pittsburgh, PA: 0.58 in (15 mm)

 

[dartingfog]

October 11, 1966

Looting breaks out in Detroit as residents flee city; thousands trapped on roads

Yesterday’s black rainstorm has led to panic in a previously complacent Detroit [1]. Despite the mayor’s call for calm, his wisdom has fallen on deaf ears. Major freeways, including I-94, I-75, and I-96, are jammed with cars. Evacuation efforts have been an exercise in confusion as police are overwhelmed by the magnitude of the exodus from Detroit.

The city of 1.6 million people is quickly emptying out as families pack up their belongings for parts unknown. Hotels and motels in cities like Flint, Lansing, and Grand Rapids are already full. Several up-north resorts are reported to have re-opened for lodgers, despite being closed for over a month. Some are taking advantage of the situation by charging as much as $50 per night [2]. Those who can’t find a place to stay are staying with relatives or have gone to campgrounds.

But not everyone in Detroit can leave. Many of the city’s poorer residents are stuck in the city, as they do not have cars. Black Detroiters are especially at a disadvantage. There have been several reports that local hospitals are turning away Black patients, while admitting Whites who report radiation symptoms.

Others have taken advantage of the situation by engaging in criminal activities. Looting has been reported at several businesses on West Grand Boulevard, west of Woodward [3]. In response, Mayor Cavanaugh has enacted a citywide curfew between the hours of 9 p.m. and 6 a.m. The curfew also prohibits sales of alcohol and firearms. Incidents of violence were reported across the metro area as frustrated motorists fought to get out of the city as soon as possible. Several individuals are reported dead or injured in confrontations between angry drivers trying to escape the city [4].

------------------------------------------------------------

Spoiler: NOTES

[1] Some of you might be thinking: if they knew it was going to rain, why didn’t they evacuate sooner? The problem is that the meteorologists didn’t know that. The state of weather prediction was primitive in 1966 – weather could only be predicted a day in advance with any reliability.

[2] This would have been a lot of money for a hotel room in 1966.

[3] Not far from 12th and Clairmount.

[4] Among those killed in these road-rage incidents was 3-year-old Lawrence Nassar of Farmington Township, Michigan. Such incidents are tragically not uncommon in Detroit: https://www.freep.com/story/news/lo...freeway-shooting-christian-miller/2722887002/

 

[dartingfog]

October 12, 1966

Violence breaks out after Detroit resident misidentified as looter shot, killed

One week after the meltdown of the Fermi atomic plant, an explosion of violence has gripped Detroit. It began after a twenty-four year old Black male was killed by police outside of his own home yesterday near Linwood and West Grand Boulevard on Detroit’s west side. Police reportedly mistook him for a looter as he removed some personal items from his home. News of the shooting has caused outrage in Detroit, which is already in a state of turmoil after the Fermi disaster.

As news of the shooting spread, the neighborhood erupted into chaos. Neighbors started throwing rocks and bottles at police, injuring several officers. Nearby storefronts, closed due to the evacuation of many city residents, were the targets of looters, who broke windows and stole merchandise. Several buildings are reportedly on fire, and the Detroit Fire Department has been sent to battle the blazes.

Additional police officers have been sent to quell the violence. Evacuation efforts in the Detroit have stopped, and officers are being re-assigned to restore peace in the city. Mayor Cavanagh has requested Governor Romney for assistance from the Michigan State Police and Michigan National Guard. [1]

Spoiler: NOTES

[1] https://www.freep.com/pages/interactives/1967-detroit-riot/

 

[dartingfog]

October 13, 1966

Johnson: Law and order have broken down in Detroit, Michigan

While the fire at Fermi has stopped, fires have spread across the city of Detroit. Since rioting broke out yesterday, many small businesses and homes have been looted and burned. Ten people have died in the rioting, and many more have been injured.

Mayor Cavanaugh made the following summary: “It is very disturbing to see the number of people on the street. For want of a better term, they have a carnival spirit. There is still sporadic looting.” [1] Black leaders, including Congressman John Conyers, have called for an end to the riots, but to no avail. Standing on the top of a car, Conyers told the crowd that had gathered to go home, but was met with insults and shouts of "Uncle Tom". [2]

Governor Romney has asked for 5,000 Regular Army troops to reinforce 7,000 National Guardsmen and 2,000 policemen in quelling the rioting. However, he conceded that even this would not be sufficient. “There is reasonable doubt that we can suppress the existing looting, arson, and sniping without the assistance of federal troops.” [3]

President Johnson has ordered federal troops airlifted to Selfridge Air Force Base to be available for riot duty in Detroit, pending further Presidential order. “The federal government should not intervene except in the most extraordinary circumstances,” Johnson said. “The fact of the matter, however, is that law and order have broken down in Detroit, Michigan…The federal government and circumstances here presented have no alternative but to respond.” [4]

But in the midst of all of this turmoil and despair, there was one glimmer of hope. The fire at the Fermi plant has finally gone out, leaving behind only a burnt containment chamber. Over the past few days, firefighters have sprayed an experimental chemical called ternary eutectic chloride (TEC) into the containment chamber [5]. TEC is a powdery substance that was developed to fight sodium fires in the presence of uranium [6]. It is hoped that the smoke emanating from the destroyed plant will finally subside by tomorrow night.

-------------------------------------------------------

Spoiler: NOTES

[1] Detroit News, Jul. 24, 1967, 1-A

[2] http://time.com/4879023/detroit-1967-conyers/

[3] https://www.detroitnews.com/story/n.../blind-pig-raid-lit-fire-scar-city/103813436/

[4] http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=28364

[5] According to Wikipedia, TEC was invented in 1959, so it would have been available in 1966. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fire_extinguisher#Class_D_dry_powder_and_other_agents_for_metal_fires

[6] https://patents.google.com/patent/US3095372

 

[dartingfog]

October 14, 1966

Romney criticizes Johnson for Detroit riot response

Rioting continues into its third day in Detroit. Looting and arson have been reported in nearly every neighborhood, as far north as 8 Mile and as far west as Greenfield Road, with most incidents occurring along the Woodward, Grand River, and Gratiot corridors. Police and National Guardsmen have been deployed to counter snipers, who are terrorizing innocent civilians across the city. They will soon be joined in this effort by federal troops, who are expected to arrive tonight to restore order. And above all that, the air is filled with plumes of contaminated smoke, as fires burn buildings coated with radioactive soot. [1]

A fight of a different sort is brewing between the President of the United States and the Governor of Michigan. In his televised address to the nation yesterday, President Johnson said that his decision to send federal troops to Detroit was justified because of the inability of state and local officials to quell the rioting. “I am sure the American people will realize that I take this action with the greatest regret--and only because of the clear, unmistakable, and undisputed evidence that Governor Romney of Michigan and the local officials in Detroit have been unable to bring the situation under control,” Johnson said. [2]

Governor Romney disputed the President’s account of events, and said that he was "taking advantage of the situation politically," referring to the upcoming election [3]. Romney accused the President of giving the country "an inaccurate version" of events leading to the sending of federal troops into Detroit. Romney, speaking with restraint, said that Mr. Johnson had implied that Michigan had been vacillating about asking for federal troops. Romney said there was no hesitation and that he declined to declare a state of insurrection only because every home and business that was burned out in the rioting would have lost its insurance. [4]

Speaking with reporters this morning, Johnson declined to comment on Romney’s statement, but quipped that he had heard enough bad news for one day. [5]

------------------------------------------------------------

Spoiler: NOTES

[1] https://www.freep.com/pages/interactives/1967-detroit-riot/

[2] As he said in OTL during the ’67 riot: http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=28364

[3] Or to quote Romney himself from an interview in 1988: “I felt that President Johnson was taking advantage of the situation politically. And, uh, I knew that he must have known that, uh, the local police and the state police and the National Guard, they're not trained to deal with riots of that intensity, and that he had troops here who could deal with it because they were trained to deal with it. So I was convinced that, uh, he was undertaking to, uh, shift the blame from any blame from himself to me.”

http://digital.wustl.edu/e/eii/eiiweb/rom5427.0379.138georgeromney.html

[4] DN, Jul. 26, 1967

[5] Not an actual quote, but this is what he is referring to: https://history.state.gov/historicaldocuments/frus1964-68v04/d268

 

[dartingfog]

October 15, 1966

Riots quelled in Detroit

After three days of rioting marred the city in the wake of the nuclear disaster, Detroit is finally at peace. Police and the National Guard, along with federal troops, have taken control of the city. But the cost of the rioting is high: dozens are dead (most of whom were suspected looters), hundreds are injured, and thousands of buildings have been destroyed [1]. In some places, entire blocks have been leveled by flames.

Morton Sterling [2], chief of air pollution control for the Detroit/Wayne County Health Department, has determined that the threat of additional radioactive contamination from the Fermi plant is over. The evacuation order in Detroit has ended, and many people are beginning to return home from other cities. But residents returning home may find nothing more than a charred husk.

Spoiler: NOTES

[1] As OTL, analogous to July 25: https://www.freep.com/pages/interactives/1967-detroit-riot/

[2] Detroit News, November 20, 1966, p. 20-A

 

[dartingfog]

October 16, 1966

Johnson reaches out to Detroit: ‘I’ll be there’ [1]

Eleven days after the meltdown at the Fermi Nuclear Generating Station, President Johnson has pledged to go to Detroit to monitor recovery efforts in the city. Johnson will visit the city just 30 miles from the Fermi plant in an attempt to reassure a panicked public about the safety of nuclear power. He plans to meet with Detroit Mayor Jerome Cavanaugh and with former Governor Soapy Williams, who is running for a Senate seat. Conspicuously absent from his tour is Michigan Governor George Romney, whose handling of the disaster and subsequent riots has been criticized by President Johnson.

State visits to New Zealand and Australia [2] on October 19-22 have been cancelled in order for the President to “observe the situation” in southeastern Michigan. Johnson said that he still intends to attend the summit conference in Manila on the Vietnam conflict on October 23. In response, Prime Ministers Holyoake and Holt have issued official statements expressing their sympathy for the victims of the nuclear disaster.

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Spoiler: NOTES

[1] A reference to the Motown hit that topped the charts this week: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Billboard_Hot_100_number-one_singles_of_1966

[2] https://millercenter.org/the-presidency/presidential-speeches/october-6-1966-press-conference and https://history.state.gov/departmenthistory/travels/president/johnson-lyndon-b

 

[dartingfog]

October 17, 1966

Martin Luther King’s Detroit address

Just days after riots tore apart the city, civil rights crusader Martin Luther King paid a visit to Detroit yesterday to give a speech at the annual men's day dinner at New Bethel Baptist Church [1]. While the speech was intended to discuss inadequate housing and housing segregation in the city, the recent meltdown and unrest were key topics. King urged for the development of tenant councils and the use of community pressure to break down racial barriers in all-white neighborhoods and suburbs. In Detroit, civil rights groups have failed to organize tenant councils and there are widespread complaints of inadequate housing, due partly to racial discrimination. King said the techniques could be utilized locally without his leadership. "My presence is not necessary. If communities are waiting for me, we'll be another hundred years waiting for freedom."

Speaking of the recent riot, King said, “I’m absolutely convinced that a riot merely intensifies the fears of the white community while relieving the guilt…But it is not enough for me to stand before you tonight and condemn riots. It would be morally irresponsible for me to do that without, at the same time, condemning the contingent, intolerable conditions that exist in our society…And I must say tonight that a riot is the language of the unheard.” [2]

Despite his call for non-violent action, King said he was not interested in purging militant civil rights groups, like the Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee. Instead, he wanted to bring these people back “to the great principles”, saying “I am not interested in purging anyone but carrying (people) to higher goals.” [1]

King said that the Black community is outraged at the success enjoyed by some racist politicians such as Lester Maddox, the Georgia gubernatorial candidate. "Maddox is a symbol of hatred and man's inhumanity to man," King said. "Every revolution has its counter-revolution. But we are not going to despair. I don't think Maddox represents the wave of the future.” [1] [3]

----------------------------------------

Spoiler: NOTES

[1] From a speech in Detroit on the same day as OTL: https://www.newspapers.com/clip/10160866/king_lists_cures_for_citys_ills/

[2] From a speech Dr. King gave in the (wealthy White) suburb of Grosse Pointe shortly before his death: https://blogpublic.lib.msu.edu/red-...1968-martin-luther-king-speaks-grosse-pointe/ and http://www.gphistorical.org/mlk/mlkspeech/mlk-gp-speech.pdf

[3] I couldn’t find anything on Dr. King’s position on atomic power plants, as it wasn’t a major issue in the mid-1960s. That said: https://blogs.cdc.gov/yourhealthyou...ronmental-justice-a-leader-ahead-of-his-time/

 

[dartingfog]

October 19, 1966

Permanent evacuation zone established in Monroe and Wayne Counties

Two weeks since the disastrous meltdown of the Fermi plant, hundreds of thousands of people in southeast Michigan and southwestern Ontario remain displaced from their homes. Although Detroiters have been permitted to return to their homes, the fate of Downriver communities is grim. Authorities have established an “Evacuation Zone” that is comprised all of the land within approximately 19 miles from the Fermi plant and covers 525 square miles of land [1]. In Monroe County, this Evacuation Zone comprises the cities of Monroe, Carleton, and Maybee and the townships of Ash, Berlin, Erie, Exeter, Frenchtown, LaSalle, Monroe, and Raisinville. In Wayne County, the evacuation zone includes the downriver suburbs of Gibraltar, Riverview, Rockwood, Southgate, Trenton, and Wyandotte. Brownstown Township, Grosse Ile Township, Huron Township, and the southern part of Taylor Township are also part of the evacuation zone. More than 300,000 people reside in this area. A similar zone has been established by Canadian authorities in the mostly rural southwestern part of Essex County, Ontario, which covers about 100 square miles of land.

Many displaced residents have attempted to return home, but are being turned back. National Guardsman, who recently served to keep the peace in Detroit, have blockaded all major roads entering and exiting this region to prevent looting. On the north edge of this zone, fences are being erected along the south side of Goddard Road to block off residential streets. This includes a newly-built stretch of Interstate 75, a major thoroughfare for car and truck traffic.

Human activity is beginning to resume around the reactor, despite the hazards. Concrete barriers are being built around the reactor to trap radioactive soil that could be washed off into nearby rivers. To prevent additional contamination release into the environment, a massive steel and concrete structure is planned to cover the damaged nuclear reactor. It is expected that the construction of this containment structure will last six months. [2]

---------------------------------------------------------------------

Spoiler: NOTES

[1] For reference, the Exclusion Zone around the Chernobyl plant is a 30 km radius (approx. 19 miles) and was established 10 days after the accident. Note that this zone stretches all the way south to Ohio border, but does not include any land territory of Ohio, except for the uninhabited West Sister Island. The area is not an exact circle because it follows civil divisions, with the exception of Taylor Township, which is split in two.

[2] Compare: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chernobyl_Nuclear_Power_Plant_sarcophagus

 

[dartingfog]

October 20, 1966

Johnson makes Presidential visit to Detroit

With the midterm election just two weeks away, President Johnson paid a visit to the disaster-ravaged city of Detroit. Accompanied by Mayor Jerome Cavanaugh and former Governor Soapy Williams, President Johnson toured the city, visiting factories, schools, and churches. Johnson spoke at Cadillac Square, where he announced his 1964 campaign two years prior [1]. The speech was well-received by the audience, except for an interruption by a few antiwar hecklers, who were hastily dragged out by police.

“Two weeks ago, a mass of heavily polluted air—filled with poisons from a nuclear power plant—settled down upon the four million people of Greater Detroit," said Johnson. "For four days, anyone going out on the streets inhaled chemical compounds that threatened his health. Those who remained inside had little protection from the radioactive particles that passed freely through cooling and heating systems. An estimated 80 persons died. Finally, the winds changed direction, freeing the people from the contaminated air. The immediate crisis was ended. Detroiters began to breathe ‘ordinary’ air again.” [2]

Johnson ordered a “greatly accelerated” research effort to improve atomic power plant safety, and promised that his administration would create stricter regulations on atomic power plants. “The regulation of atomic power is a matter of highest priority,” said Johnson. [3] Johnson pledged that he would make a supplemental budget request for the 1968 fiscal year that would allot millions of dollars for decontamination efforts.

Turning his attention to the riots, Johnson denounced the violence and called for renewed efforts to address poverty and racism to prevent future violence. “Not even the sternest police action, nor the most effective Federal troops, can ever create lasting peace in our cities. The only genuine, long-range solution for what has happened lies in an attack— mounted at every level—upon the conditions that breed despair and violence. All of us know what those conditions are: ignorance, discrimination, slums, poverty, disease, not enough jobs. We should attack these conditions—not because we are frightened by conflict, but because we are fired by conscience. We should attack them because there is simply no other way to achieve a decent and orderly society in America.” [4]

Spoiler: NOTES

[1] https://www.nytimes.com/1964/09/03/...ign-monday-will-make-traditional-talk-in.html

[2] Based loosely on his near-contemporaneous speech after the New York City smog: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1966_New_York_City_smog

[3] Based on Johnson’s response to air pollution: https://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/document.php?id=cqresrre1967042600#H2_3

[4] https://millercenter.org/the-presid...es/july-27-1967-speech-nation-civil-disorders

 

[dartingfog]

October 22, 1966

Fate of displaced voters uncertain as midterm approaches

For those displaced by the Fermi disaster, the midterm elections may be the furthest thing from their minds. However, their dislocation may hinder their right to vote. Many of those living in Michigan’s 2nd district, represented by Democrat Wes Vivian, reside in what is now the permanent evacuation zone. Some voters in the 15th district, represented by William Ford (D), and in the 16th district, represented by John Dingell (D), also reside in the affected zone. [1] However, the evacuation has scattered residents across the states of Michigan and Ohio. Many are living in temporary shelters and have no permanent address. It is unclear where they will vote, as their usual local polling places are now closed off to all but a few soldiers and construction workers. The State Supreme Court is expected to decide next week on what measures will be taken to ensure evacuees will be able to vote. [2]

But the evacuation of residents in Monroe and Wayne counties won’t affect Selective Service, says Colonel Arthur Holmes, director of the Michigan Selective Service. Draftees who have been called up for service must report to their local draft boards. Monroe County residents are expected to report to the draft office that has been established in Dundee, while Downriver residents will be expected to report to Fort Wayne in Detroit.

Spoiler: NOTES

[1] I don’t know exactly where the US House district boundaries were in 1966. According to the Detroit News, Oct. 28, 1966 and Oct. 29, 1966, the 2nd district covered Monroe and Ann Arbor, the 15th district covered southwestern Wayne County and Dearborn Township, and the 16th district covered Dearborn and south Detroit (don’t stop…believin’).

[2] I also don’t know what contingencies for voting in the wake of emergencies were in place in Michigan in 1966, but given that the state is not prone to natural disasters, it wouldn’t surprise me if there were no such laws on the books. From http://law.emory.edu/elj/content/vo...html#section-32d54e2fa8c98847f77d372c47fc4ceb :

“A state’s approach to an election emergency—whether it engages in an election modification, postponement, or cancellation—is determined in part by the powers its election-specific emergency laws, or more general emergency statutes, grant to the governor or election officials. When state laws are inadequate or no applicable laws exist, courts are often asked to step in on a largely ad hoc basis as a constitutional matter and craft remedies out of whole cloth.”

 

[dartingfog]

October 24, 1966

AEC Chairman Glenn Seaborg resigns

Dr. Glenn Seaborg, chairman of the Atomic Energy Commission, stepped down today amid controversy over the agency’s role in the Fermi disaster. He had held the position for the past five years since his appointment by President Kennedy [1]. Seaborg was among the scientists who worked on the Manhattan Project under the direction of Enrico Fermi and won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1951. Seaborg helped negotiate the Limited Nuclear Test Ban Treaty and joined the delegation to Moscow for its signing in 1963.

Seaborg has been a strong proponent of atomic power, especially breeder reactors, and this support may have led to his resignation. In 1963, Seaborg told the Joint Atomic Energy Committee that breeder reactors could double their fuel inventory in 15 to 25 years and assured the public that the risk of an accident would be extremely small, due to the conservative design of the reactor system and safeguards such as secondary systems. [2]

There has been no word on who will succeed Seaborg as chairman.

Spoiler: NOTES

[1] In OTL, until Seaborg was chairman until 1971: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Atomic_Energy_Commission#AEC_Chair

[2] https://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher/document.php?id=cqresrre1964061000 Seaborg also published an article in Scientific American on the subject in 1970: https://www.jstor.org/stable/24927655?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents