maintenance tasks were “down hole” at the LCCs and LFs, and involved removing floor plates. These covered both battery compartments and storage compartments for survival kits.
Battery maintenance at one LCC or LF was a chore, but driving many miles between LCCs and repeating the exact same steps five or six times over and then documenting every detail of the tasks became absolute drudgery.
Joshua often used a T handle floor plate removal tool to lift up the floor plates to access the survival kit supplies and/or maintenance teams accessing the batteries. The floor plate screws were loosened using a large screwdriver. Then the T handles were screwed into the threaded holes and used to lift up the heavy floor plates. Depending on the size of the floor plate, one person could lift it, but it was easier with two.
In the capsule, seventy-five feet underground, electronics racks lined both walls. During alerts, officers sat in red-upholstered, high-backed swivel chairs. At one end was a cot with a hospital ward–style curtain designed to block light and sound so that one man could sleep, but it wasn’t very effective.
The electronic equipment was a mix of old and new. Since the system was more than four decades old, some of the older components looked very 1970s. A couple of places hidden inside the racks, he found “Dharma” and “180” graffiti—references to the communications bunker in the television series Lost.
Fifty missile silos in Toole and Pondera counties were deactivated between 2007 and 2011, and their facilities were stripped of all useful equipment for recycling by the Defense Reutilization and Marketing Office (DRMO). When the Crunch came, some of that gear was still heaped in the DRMO warehouses, awaiting surplus and scrap sales.
The DRMO yard became the hub for Malmstrom’s barter economy. In addition to trading JP-4 fuel, some glass windowpane units salvaged from Malmstrom’s many disused buildings were bartered for food. Locals from all around Great Falls wanted windows for building home greenhouses. These became the rage in the post-collapse economy throughout the northern states.
After September 11, 2001, security upgrades to the Minuteman III defense system began in earnest. Contractors poured thicker concrete around the silos, while others installed new security cameras and upgraded passive IR sensors. The rapid response team from the 341st Security Forces Squadron was expanded and issued new equipment.
Great Falls, Montana One Year Before the Crunch
Joshua had been introduced to Kelly Monroe at a church picnic, just a year before the economic turmoil engulfed the nation. Peter Blanchard, a missileer lieutenant in the 10th Squadron, had invited Joshua to come with him to the harvest picnic. They wore casual civilian clothes, so only their severe short-cropped haircuts signaled that they were from Malmstrom.
Peter Blanchard had said that he was interested in dating a young lady named Stacia, but she wasn’t there. Peter and Joshua walked over to Stacia’s friend Kelly. Peter said, “Hi! This is Joshua, from the base.”
Kelly said hello back with a smile.
“Where’s Stacia?” Peter asked.
“Sorry, she had to work today. But she should be at church tomorrow.”
“Oh. So I don’t suppose she’ll be at the Hawk Nelson concert tonight, either.”
“Nope. She said that she has to work until nine this evening. Sorry.”
Peter muttered, “I don’t know how I’ll ever have my schedule match up with hers so we can go to a concert or a dance.”
Then he elbowed Joshua and joked, “Joshua here already has Shirley, so his dance card is full.”
Joshua laughed and said cryptically, “I can get Shirley to trot, but she doesn’t foxtrot.”
Kelly cocked her head and asked, “Are we talking about a young lady, or a horse?”
“You nailed it. Shirley is my mare.”
“What breed?
“An American Bashkir Curly.”
Kelly beamed. “Those are gorgeous. How tall and how old is
Battery maintenance at one LCC or LF was a chore, but driving many miles between LCCs and repeating the exact same steps five or six times over and then documenting every detail of the tasks became absolute drudgery.
Joshua often used a T handle floor plate removal tool to lift up the floor plates to access the survival kit supplies and/or maintenance teams accessing the batteries. The floor plate screws were loosened using a large screwdriver. Then the T handles were screwed into the threaded holes and used to lift up the heavy floor plates. Depending on the size of the floor plate, one person could lift it, but it was easier with two.
In the capsule, seventy-five feet underground, electronics racks lined both walls. During alerts, officers sat in red-upholstered, high-backed swivel chairs. At one end was a cot with a hospital ward–style curtain designed to block light and sound so that one man could sleep, but it wasn’t very effective.
The electronic equipment was a mix of old and new. Since the system was more than four decades old, some of the older components looked very 1970s. A couple of places hidden inside the racks, he found “Dharma” and “180” graffiti—references to the communications bunker in the television series Lost.
Fifty missile silos in Toole and Pondera counties were deactivated between 2007 and 2011, and their facilities were stripped of all useful equipment for recycling by the Defense Reutilization and Marketing Office (DRMO). When the Crunch came, some of that gear was still heaped in the DRMO warehouses, awaiting surplus and scrap sales.
The DRMO yard became the hub for Malmstrom’s barter economy. In addition to trading JP-4 fuel, some glass windowpane units salvaged from Malmstrom’s many disused buildings were bartered for food. Locals from all around Great Falls wanted windows for building home greenhouses. These became the rage in the post-collapse economy throughout the northern states.
After September 11, 2001, security upgrades to the Minuteman III defense system began in earnest. Contractors poured thicker concrete around the silos, while others installed new security cameras and upgraded passive IR sensors. The rapid response team from the 341st Security Forces Squadron was expanded and issued new equipment.
Great Falls, Montana One Year Before the Crunch
Joshua had been introduced to Kelly Monroe at a church picnic, just a year before the economic turmoil engulfed the nation. Peter Blanchard, a missileer lieutenant in the 10th Squadron, had invited Joshua to come with him to the harvest picnic. They wore casual civilian clothes, so only their severe short-cropped haircuts signaled that they were from Malmstrom.
Peter Blanchard had said that he was interested in dating a young lady named Stacia, but she wasn’t there. Peter and Joshua walked over to Stacia’s friend Kelly. Peter said, “Hi! This is Joshua, from the base.”
Kelly said hello back with a smile.
“Where’s Stacia?” Peter asked.
“Sorry, she had to work today. But she should be at church tomorrow.”
“Oh. So I don’t suppose she’ll be at the Hawk Nelson concert tonight, either.”
“Nope. She said that she has to work until nine this evening. Sorry.”
Peter muttered, “I don’t know how I’ll ever have my schedule match up with hers so we can go to a concert or a dance.”
Then he elbowed Joshua and joked, “Joshua here already has Shirley, so his dance card is full.”
Joshua laughed and said cryptically, “I can get Shirley to trot, but she doesn’t foxtrot.”
Kelly cocked her head and asked, “Are we talking about a young lady, or a horse?”
“You nailed it. Shirley is my mare.”
“What breed?
“An American Bashkir Curly.”
Kelly beamed. “Those are gorgeous. How tall and how old is
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