Mystery Babylon, Book 2: The Dragon by Grey Jamie Lee

Author:Grey, Jamie Lee
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2022-02-28T00:00:00+00:00

***

Major General Orlov glanced up as Major General Nikita Pavlov stepped to the podium at the front of the war room.

“If I may have your attention, gentlemen.” The old warrior paused as heads turned his way. “We have a significant update on the port and shipping issue, and I wanted to have you all apprised as quickly as possible.”

Behind him, satellite imagery on the large screen depicted a damaged coastal area.

“This is the San Francisco region of America’s west coast,” he explained.

The camera zoomed in on the waterfront. Other than the waves, nothing moved. No humans. No vehicles. Not even a dog.

“And this is the Port of Oakland, where we had planned a major offloading of supplies and weapons. As you can see, the port facilities and the entire urban area were flooded. The water has receded, but damage to piers and pilings is extensive.”

Several still images appeared on the screen. In the first, the cranes needed to remove shipping containers from barges tilted at odd angles. The next image showed a massive mudslide, and the third revealed a sagging dock.

“We sent a helicopter crew in to assess the area,” Pavlov explained. “They provided the on-the-ground images, as well as an expedient report from geophysical experts.”

The satellite imagery returned, moving slowly over the area. Hills had turned into mud. Trees sloughed off the terrain like weak weeds in a heavy rainstorm.

“Our experts say that the combination of tsunami and earthquakes resulted in liquefaction, which is when firm soil becomes saturated and then essentially liquefies into loose mud or something like quicksand. The ground beneath structures and buildings becomes unstable, resulting in this sort of damage as the liquefied soil is unable to support the foundations, piers and pilings.”

The still photo of the cockeyed cranes filled the full screen. The concrete supporting their bases tilted at least 15 degrees, if Ivan’s guess was correct.

“Our teams are searching for any ports or docks on the Pacific Coast of North America where we might be able to off-load our ships and re-establish a supply line to our troops in the United States.” His watery eyes slowly swept the room of military leaders. “So far, we have not found any ports that are in suitable condition, but we are continuing to look.”

A younger general lifted his hand. “Could we focus on repairing a single port, and make use of it?”

He gave a single nod of his white-haired head. “Our Russian scientists are studying that option, as are the Chinese. However, due to the earthquakes, this liquefaction issue is pervasive. We will have to find firm ground in order to restore solid shipping facilities. This has proven difficult, since so much of the coastal land was saturated by the tsunami.”

He glanced around the room. “I know you’re each working on your separate issues, so I won’t take any more of your time. Did anyone else have anything we all need to discuss at the moment?”

President Abramov stepped from his office doorway into the room. “Let’s talk about cargo planes.

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