That One Time Pantex Almost Blew Up in a Massive Fireball

There are things with having Pantex in our backyard near Amarillo that should have us a little worried. We can live our lives not knowing certain things in life that happen but really are we better off? Is ignorance bliss?

Sometimes, we just really don't need to know that much. Especially when there was a time when the unimaginable almost happened.

That's right, one of those nuclear warheads nearly detonated.  Luckily, it didn't but let's take that trip down memory lane anyway.

Bungled Disassembly of a Warhead

The year was 2005 and the crew at Pantex was doing what they do. They were working on dismantling a W-56 warhead. Now, you may not know anything about explosives like this (I sure didn't). This particular warhead wasn't just any warhead. It was a nuclear weapon that was 100 times more powerful than the atomic bomb that was dropped on Hiroshima during World War II.

Let that sink in. Just think about the power and the destruction something like that can cause.

So, according to the investigations done after the fact (because we are clearly still here and alive, right?), during the dismantling process, a faulty tool was used. A faulty tool, imagine that. That faulty tool ended up putting too much pressure on the warhead which could have led to a big kaboom.

What Happened After That?

The "what could have been" is what comes to mind. Luckily, for us all, nothing did happen except for a fine that was levied on Pantex. There was an investigation and after everything was said and done the fine was $110,000. That would be a hefty fine for a lot of us. Is that really a big enough deterrent for what could have happened?

The DOE did come out after the incident and say that they had "confidence that Pantex will continue its outstanding work while keeping stringent safety and security policies in place."

So there is that. I will just go on and try to push out of my mind what that day could have ended up looking like. Luckily for all of us, it is just something that could have been.