Best Served Cold by Pete Crowle

Author:Pete Crowle
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781784626747
Publisher: Troubador Publishing Ltd
Published: 2014-10-21T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 36

January 1st 2016

The world news media went into over-drive as the pictures of the burning reactor at Yongbyon flashed around the globe and speculation went viral on Twitter. The North Koreans issued a statement condemning the un-provoked attack by the US on its country. Several pictures of the night attack were posted on the internet together with photos of pieces of wreckage from the drones clearly indicating their US/South Korean origin.

As was usual in times of crisis, every news channel managed to dig up and dust off retired generals and diplomats to seek their opinions on what had happened and to speculate as to what was going to happen next. Computer animations of the workings of the nuclear reactor cooling system and the effect of cutting off the water supply were shown, together with fall-out estimates based on wind direction and comparisons with the Ukrainian, Chernobyl power station incident in 1986, when one of four nuclear reactors exploded there.

In anticipation of retaliation by North Korea unleashing its nuclear missiles the entire west coast of the US went into panic and highways became choked as families headed east. Those that remained, hastily converted their basements into fall-out shelters, stripping supermarket shelves of canned goods and bottles of water. The whole situation was reminiscent of the Kennedy era Cuban missile crisis in October 1962 when the world moved to within an inch of all out nuclear conflict. Entire food stocks disappeared from shelves as people stock-piled supplies in readiness for an attack. The frenzy was fuelled further by the knowledge that in 2013 Congress had authorised the building of west coast defences following intelligence reports that North Korea had demonstrated that it possessed the capability to reach the west coast of the USA with its medium range rockets capable of carrying nuclear warheads thought to be under development at Yongbyon.

The Pentagon ordered every US military unit to readiness state Defcon 2 in preparation for action. All American armed forces in south-east Asia rushed to get themselves ready for action within six hours and prepared for the worst.

International flights leaving South Korea were full to capacity, security staff were overwhelmed as hundreds of people flooded airports abandoning cars by the roadside as they rushed to secure whatever seats might be available, but there were none. All flights had become fully booked through internet sales within thirty seconds of the news. Airport and airline web-sites crashed under the thousands of simultaneous enquiries adding to the general pandemonium. The docks became besieged with escapees trying to get on board freighters, container ships, oil tankers; anything that would float. Hordes of people pushed up gangways and refused to get off ships. Harbour security staff could not contain the masses, their only recourse was to call the police but they couldn’t get through as all telephone lines were constantly engaged.

World news helicopters clattered overhead circling the crowds with their TV cameras transmitting the scenes around the globe in real-time as the world watched and waited for the North Koreans to retaliate.

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