Chapter Eight
“Between 1948 and 1963 the Soviet Union turned ten urban areas into so-called, “nuclear cities”. They did not represent the country’s total investment in nuclear weapon production insanity, however. Other institutes devoted to weapon design were scattered throughout the country—even in Moscow itself. But the ten localities listed below, once employing 130,000 workers, produced the nuts and bolts that kept the world on the razor’s edge of destruction for forty years (along with an assist from Uncle Sam!). There was very little money devoted to social spending in the Soviet Union, but the nuclear industry had a ball for all those cold war years!
You will notice that each city has a number. That is a post office box number located in a neighboring open city. The location of those ten cities was such a closely guarded secret. that the only way for mail to reach the residents was through a box number. The cities now have names, but the box designations still remain. The cities and surrounding areas are enclosed by double fence systems patrolled by armed guards of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Access to the buildings is restricted and controlled by the Federal Security Service.
At Krasnoyarsk-26 the cold war madness reached a peak. The plutonium production complex is located 600 feet under a mountain. The logic for that devilish construction decision was that the work could go on even if the city was destroyed. It is the real “doomsday machine” envisioned by fiction writers. It did exist and continues to exist some years after the fall of the Soviet Union. It turns out tons of deadly plutonium each year that serves as the triggers for hydrogen bombs even though bomb production has fallen off dramatically. The facility must operate since it is the only power generating plant in the area. It must provide heat and electricity to the city. Talk about a rock and a hard place!
The one benefit coming out of the tight security is the fact that the facilities have been protected from foreign spies and criminal activities that have sprung up throughout Russia. No one can tell how long it will be before the government and military officials fall prey to the corrupting influence of “Mafia money”.
Both the U.S. and Russian governments are concerned by the fact that thousands of scientists and engineers are unemployed and could in time sell their services to foreign counties intent on building nuclear arsenals of their own. Iran, Iraq, North Korea and China come to mind. Hence, programs of cooperation exist such as the International Science and Technology Center in Moscow which engages scientists in pursuing non-military projects; the Cooperative Threat Reduction program which provides support and equipment used to decommission and safely destroy the nuclear warheads; the Plutonium Disposition program in which both countries have announced their plans to dispose of fifty tons of deadly plutonium. Andy Douglas was supervising security measures for that program.
Let me say something about plutonium.
It is derived from uranium-238. and is designated as Pu in the periodic table. Because plutonium fissioned (separated) more efficiently than uranium-235, it became the favorite material for nuclear weapons. Even though only a few pounds are needed for a bomb, the country produced over one hundred tons of the wonderful stuff. Russia is thought to have turned out as much. The U.S. made thousands of all sorts of weapons during the cold war insanity. The problem remains: how to dispose of the material, especially when Russia is in such turmoil. Plutonium is converted into ingots and buttons that can be machined into triggers or detonators for the H-bomb. The unpredictable nature of plutonium is known, but not completely understood. For instance, filings can catch fire while chunks of solid metal do not.
Some of our friends in Russia became worried when they spotted well-known criminal elements skulking around the facilities. Andy foresaw no big problem when I approached him with the news. He declined to take anyone with him, sincerely believing that he would be in no danger. On second thought I should have overridden his decision, but I did not. I hope your trip is just that and nothing else. However. you know that all the facilities of Mansfield Industries, and they are extensive believe me, are at your disposal. The State Department and the Pentagon are watching you very closely; they finally are showing interest.
Thanks again for being yourself, a concerned and dedicated humanitarian.
Sincerely,
Sean O’Rourke, CEO Mansfield Industries.
There it is, thought Victor as he quietly folded the secret file. What do I do now? How do I find my friend? What a holy mess. I guess I’ll have to play it by ear—again.
He fell asleep while thinking of Dr. Strangelove.
