America after the nuclear war: The John Glenn administration

[Reaganfan]

January 23, 1984. One month after the attack.

Radiation levels are slowly beginning to decline, but are still too hazardous in many areas for Government assistance. President Reagan spent most of January living in the Cheyenne Mountain Complex, along with many Military personnel. Vice President Bush is also alive and well at the Mount Weather Complex. Americans across the country try to resume some sense of normalcy by broadcasting from CB radios.

The hardest hit state by far was California, seconded by Missouri. All of the major cities in California were destroyed, and radioactivity may never get below dangerous levels. Missouri was also hit hard, with Kansas City, St. Louis and other cities falling victim to extreme-megaton thermonuclear ground bursts. Skylines have become nothing more than flat, charred land, having only been seen before at ground zero in Hiroshima less than 40 years before. Also, Titan missile bases in the midwest cause extreme fallout over Missouri and southern Illinois. Illinois itself was struck surprisingly by only three Soviet missiles, one which was airburst over the Chicago River, and two 50-megaton groundbursts in downtown Chicago.

Four states went without any direct missile impacts. Oklahoma, Iowa, Kentucky and West Virginia are confirmed to have not been struck by Soviet ICBMs, and while fallout levels are dangerous in extreme western Kentucky and parts of eastern West Virginia, for the most part those states and their residents are alive and well, and those states residents are the ones most conscious of Reagan's radio addresses.

With an approaching Presidential election, the Government has to decide how to continue the political scene. With Senator McGovern and Vice President Mondale the only two Democratic contenders alive (Senator Cranston was in Los Angeles, presumed lost, Senator Gary Hart was campaigning in Concord, New Hampshire (presumed lost) and Jesse Jackson was campaigning in Chicago (presumed lost), that leaves only McGovern and Mondale. Add to this, the fact that Mondale is a National Division Director for the upper Midwest, many wonder how this will play out. It's expected that voter turnout in a national election would likely be down to Civil War-levels. However, President Reagan insists that the American people must vote in this election.

It's eventually decided upon by a majority of the surviving Congress at Mount Weather to allow an open-style election, where people can write-in candidates. Nobody is much in the mood for campaigning. Afterall, the Reagan administration and the COG are still trying to restore computer and television technology to millions of surviving Americans.

[Reaganfan]

By May of 1984, the full scope of the devastation begins to materialize. On May 1, 1984, President Reagan receives word that the radiation count in his region of Colorado is now considered safe for limited exposure. Reagan and his advisers at NORAD decide that moving the President to Area 51, which has been virtually untouched by radioactivity, is the safest bet for a re-location.

Over the months, Reagan receives reports and images from the regions impacted by the bombs. Manhattan has been scarred by a giant crater, as well as the complete destruction of all buildings and landmarks. The Statue of Liberty collapsed into the Hudson River, while the Empire State Building and the World Trade Center disappeared. Chicago has a similar fate. Los Angeles was hit but not as severely as New York and Chicago, mainly because the Soviet ICBM that was ground-burst on the city fell short and detonated in the Mountains surrounding the city. Nevertheless, with America's major cities gone, Reagan faces an unimaginable dilemma. How do you begin a country that has lost everything that brought it to this point? President Nixon calls Reagan on May 3rd to give him an update on the California situation. Radiation levels are so bad, that even limited exposure in any Southern part of the state would be fatal. Meanwhile, the radioactivity from the missile bases in the Midwest continue to follow the pattern of the jet-stream, pushing up the Eastern Seaboard.

Vehicles are still able to maneuver in regions not directly impacted by the bombs, thus a mass exodus begins from areas outside of blast zones into the so-called "safe-regions", areas that were atleast 100 or more miles from a blast zone, and which are not under heavy fallout. At Area 51, Reagan sees a map showing the impact regions of the Soviet attack.

Alabama: Birmingham
Alaska: Anchorage, Early Warning Station
Arizona: Phoenix, Tuscon
Arkansas: Little Rock
California: Early Warning Station, San Francisco, Sacramento, San Diego, San Jose, Los Angeles, Long Beach
Colorado: Denver, Colorado Springs
Connecticut: Hartford, New Haven
Delaware: No detonations
Florida: Tampa, Miami, Jacksonville, Pensacola (AFB)
Georgia: Atlanta
Hawaii: Honolulu
Idaho: Boise
Illinois: Chicago (3 detonations)
Indiana: No detonations
Iowa: No detonations
Kansas: Missile silos, 2-4 detonations
Kentucky: No detonations
Louisiana: New Orleans, Baton Rouge
Maine: Portland
Maryland: Annapolis, Baltimore, Washington, D.C. (2 detonations)
Massachusetts: Boston, Worcester
Michigan: Detroit
Minnesota: Minneapolis, St. Paul, Duluth
Mississippi: No detonations
Missouri: Kansas City, St. Louis, Missile Silos, 6-10 detonations
Montana: Billings, Great Falls
Nebraska: Omaha
Nevada: Las Vegas
New Hampshire: Concord
New Jersey: Newark
New Mexico: Albuquerque
New York: New York City (2 detonations), Buffalo, Rochester
North Carolina: Charlotte
North Dakota: Fargo, Bismark, Grand Forks, Minot, Missile Silos 2-4 detonations
Ohio: Columbus, Cleveland, Cincinnati
Oklahoma: No detonations
Oregon: Portland
Pennsylvania: Philadelphia, Pittsburgh
Rhode Island: Providence
South Carolina: No detonations
South Dakota: Sioux Falls, Missile Silos 3-6 detonations
Tennessee: Memphis, Nashville
Texas: Houston, Dallas, San Antonio
Utah: No detonations
Vermont: No detonations
Virginia: Virginia Beach, Richmond, Arlington
Washington: Seattle
West Virginia: No detonations
Wisconsin: Milwaukee, Green Bay
Wyoming: Missile silos, 2-4 detonations

The states of Delaware, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Utah, Vermont and West Virginia received no detonations at all despite some early reports. However, 40 states were hit by atleast one bomb, with California having received seven. The worst hit state was Missouri with 12 detonations.

[Reaganfan]

Summer 1984 reveals a new start for scarred America. President Reagan gives his first television address on August 1st, and data indicates people in the 10 states not impacted by bombs still have radio, television and telephone communications. This is a great relief to the COG and the Reagan Administration, giving them hope that a future following the war may be possible.

On August 2nd, Vice President George Bush flies from the hills of Virginia to Area 51 in New Mexico and meets with President Reagan. Both men are seen embracing. NBC News is the first national network to resume broadcasting on August 16th, with their headquarters from Atlantic City, New Jersey. News anchor Tom Brokaw, who was in upstate New York at the time, has survived the attack, and has himself broadcast from New Jersey.

"I'm Tom Brokaw, NBC News. The world has been through nearly eight months of carnage following the nuclear war between the United States, the Soviet Union, and NATO and Warsaw Pact forces. As we come back on the air during this surreal time, here is what we can tell you. New York, London, Paris, Moscow and many more American, Soviet and European cities have fallen to ruins. Millions of lives have been lost. Radiation levels have decreased but in some areas are still potentially lethal. We, like all around the world, pray for the victims and as we try and piece together our world, pray for the hope that a brighter day may come.

What we know at this hour is that President Ronald Reagan is located with Vice President George Bush at a secure military installation somewhere in New Mexico where we expect to hear from him momentarily. There is still a nationwide ban on aviation, and the borders with Canada and Mexico remain closed. Special U.S. Military and Government recovery teams have been in place for the last several months providing food, medical attention, and recovery efforts outside direct blast zone areas. Radiation levels in the United States have decreased significantly the past eight months, but are still lethal in the San Francisco Bay region, as well as an area of 50 miles around lower Manhattan. The radiation count in the state of Missouri is also said to be deadly due to heavy fallout from the destruction of Kansas City, St. Louis and many ICBM Missile Silos."

As news in states where television is available resumes, many in the areas outside of blast zones who had built fallout shelters come out for the first time in several months, and make their way to COG checkpoints set-up near major Soviet impact points.

Reagan and Bush discuss the current Soviet situation. Bush's opinion is that off the record, the Soviet Union and the Warsaw Pact no longer exist. The only KGB and hard-line communist leaders left living in Moscow have been overthrown by the freedom rebel survivors and the Soviet Union doesn't seem to have any leadership or recovery forces, unlike the United States which still has a functioning Government and leaders. Bush exclaims, "The Soviet Union ended in 1983."

As far as politics goes, broadcasts on radio and television tell listeners that the Presidential election will be an all-write in election to take place on November 6th. Reagan tells viewers in a weekly address on October 6th that he would honored to have the opportunity to help rebuild and strengthen the United States following the war. The only other people who are curious as to the job are George McGovern, Walter Mondale, John Glenn, and former President Jimmy Carter, who announces that he would, "Lead with humility and dignity to rebuild America back to her former glory" if he were to be elected President. Polling places begin early voting at COG Voting Centers near checkpoints of blast regions. In the ten states not impacts and those regions without fallout, the Government oversees polling places in local regions not run by COG. Voting is set to begin October 16th to allow ample time for the votes to come in.

By November 16, 1983, the votes are counted and are as follows.

Ronald Reagan - 4,159,367
Jimmy Carter - 3,305,225
George McGovern - 1,921,866
George Bush - 890,976
Walter Mondale - 440,047
John Glenn - 940
Robert McNamara - 732
Richard Nixon - 405

Ronald Reagan has been re-elected President by an uncertain write-in system with Civil-War levels of voter turnout.

[Reaganfan]

I should add that this continues to be a hard story to write.

As bad as I made it, realistically, it'd be a lot worse. For example, I show...what...like... 100 Soviet missile strikes on targets. Realistically, the Soviets had atleast double what the United States had in 1983 and I know that we had atleast 1000 ICBMs in our Minuteman silos in the Midwest.

So...realistically...there wouldn't be 100 missile strikes...it'd be more like 1000-2000 launched at U.S. and NATO targets.

Secondly, I show some cities getting hit but some places going without impact when realistically, every single little farm town that housed a silo or every single Military base in America would be subject to impact.

And finally, I showed some Soviet strikes of up to 50 MT in my what-if timeline. They had those bombs as far back as 1961, although back then they weren't able to be put on ICBMs. I'm sure by 1983 they were on ICBMs, and the effects would have been way worse than my story.

1961 Soviet "Tsar" Bomba at point of explosion, 5 mile wide fireball



The shockwave was felt 430 miles away. Third degree burns from the flash could occur at 62 miles away.

Imagine the power by 1983, let alone with hundreds or thousands of those in NATO and U.S. targets. My story isn't even NEAR worst case.

[Reaganfan]

December 23, 1993

It's been ten years since the nuclear war between the United States and the Soviet Union. The full human death toll will never be known, but it is estimated that 120 million Americans were killed, and 250 million Soviets were killed.

Ronald Reagan, who passed away in 1991, served as President of the United States from 1981 to 1989. The continuity government continued to have write-in Presidential elections. The 1984 election resulted in civil war levels of voting, with Reagan receiving a majority. The division leaders continued their recovery efforts as radiation levels gradually decreased.

The 1988 election saw George Bush succeed Ronald Reagan as President, with a strong increase in voter turnout. The only other contender for the Presidency was John Glenn, who received 22 million votes to George Bush's 24 million. George Bush selected Donald Rumsfeld to serve as his Vice President, after Rumsfeld tenure as Division Leader #5. The Bush/Rumsfeld administration is seen more frequently than the second term of Reagan/Bush as television technology begins to reactivate throughout the United States.

Due to it's destruction, the Capitol has effectively been moved to Roswell, New Mexico near Area 51 where the Reagan Administration coordinated recovery efforts throughout the 1980s.

A 1990 aerial flight by the U.S. Goverment over Manhattan resolved the questions that lingered about the ultimate fate of New York City.



Lower Manhattan was ground zero for the 50 megaton blast, which is confirmed to be the strongest yield of any bomb used in the Soviet attack. A probe from the plane was dropped which showed significant amounts of trinitite, glass rocks created from the heat and melting of lower Manhattan when the bomb detonated. Ground level could be seen from the aerial view, and even street level could be seen. There were no survivors on the island of Manhattan during or after the blast. Radiation levels are expected to be safe for re-population and re-building by the Spring of 2004.

In 1987, President Reagan authorized the National Reconstruction Act of '87, which sent COG representatives to cities that were now safe from radioactive fallout, to begin rebuilding with hospitals, hotels, and shelters being the first priority. These contracts also allow the hiring of civilians and allow payments to them to begin to revitalize and rebuild the economy. By 1992, 70% of the eligible workforce were employed.

The greatest success of the NRA was the growth of the city of Newark, New Jersey as well as the growth of Portland, Oregon. It is estimated that Portland and Newark will become major cities in the future beyond what they were before World War III.

President Bush and Vice President Rumsfeld met with World Leaders throughout the start of the 1990s, and most surprising was that the new leader of the Former Soviet Union was not a KGB hardliner, but rather a West sympathizer. Mikhail Gorbachev, a more sympathetic Soviet  during the the war's cold period, he was one of the remaining survivors from the Soviet leadership and became the de-facto Soviet leader. Germany is now considered to be part of NATO from all borders, although losses were horrendous in the country. Italy and France survived surprisingly well, although Paris and Rome were targets of several megaton Soviet bombs.

Margaret Thatcher remains Prime Minister of the U.K. and has continued to oversee a relief and recovery effort close to what the United States has implemented since 1983.

In November 1992, the largest array of candidates spoke on radio and television in the United States for the Presidency against George Bush. They included Walter Mondale, Lee Hamilton and Robert McNamara, all of whom were members of the Government Continuity Leadership. Voting increased again as it had in 1988, but George Bush won a significant majority of the vote.

George Bush - 33,674,043
Walter Mondale - 25,749,345
Robert McNamara - 8,456,532
Lee Hamilton - 2,100,246

It is clear by 1993 that politics for the short term will be decided on the national level only, as once every four years for President of the United States through a write-in system until recovery efforts take better hold. Also, those openly vying for the Presidency remain people mainly in operations with the Government Continuity. It is generally assumed that by 1997, Donald Rumsfeld or Walter Mondale will be President of the United States, as it seems to be a "next-in-line" type of pattern.

[Reaganfan]

I have some questions:

1. What happened to Bill Clinton?

2. Is North Carolina rebuilding?

One can assume Clinton is no longer a viable President, since Governors are busy coordinating relief efforts with federal officials in states.

Yes, North Carolina is rebuilding.

[Reaganfan]

The nuclear war that occurred on 12/23/83 has drastically altered the history of the world.

In June 1996, President George Bush receives a briefing about a research mission carried out by the National Reconstruction Act between August 1993 and May 1996. It's results show the following findings:

- New York City was completely decimated by the Soviet attack, leaving a permanent crater on the lower end of Manhattan. Radiation levels were lethal between 1983 and 1991, and are expected to be at completely safe levels by July 2004. It is estimated that roughly 8 million people were instantly killed in New York and the surrounding areas.

- San Francisco had radiation levels too severe for survival until 1990, and the survey shows that it is likely that the San Francisco region experienced a strong earthquake sometime between 1986 and 1991, due to the fact that some remaining structures show signs of post-war damage. Radiation levels will be safe for rebuilding by September 2001.

- Los Angeles has been decimated much like New York, however, the yield and accuracy of these Soviet bombs appear to be much less accurate than those that struck New York and Chicago. It is estimated that many people may have survived the initial attack but died shortly after from extreme fallout. Radiation levels will be safe for rebuilding by July 1997.

- Chicago was struck particularly hard by the Soviet missiles. Evidence gathered shows that a portion of the Chicago River boiled during the detonation of the Soviet weapon into vapor and this was seen by a significant decline in the water depth close to what was downtown. Also, signs of melted radioactive glass were found in the river bed, suggesting complete evaporation of portions of the Chicago River during the explosion. The Sears Tower is estimated to have collapsed during the detonation, and all that remains of it are a column of steel beams no higher than 40 feet off ground level. Radiation levels will be safe for rebuilding by August 1999.

[Reaganfan]

Suddenly, President Ronald Reagan awakens. It is November 1983. He looks around. Nancy is in bed next to him.

It was a terrible nightmare. It's time to work with the Soviets to end the threat.

[Reaganfan]

It's 1996. It's been 13 years since the war.

The United States has new major cities. Indianapolis, which was spared, has now become a swarm of activity with many from the area around Chicago inhabiting. Many Americans live in RV-type set-ups provided by the COG Recovery Forces since the 1980s. Des Moines, Iowa is also a much larger city, with more buildings being constructed as many from hard-hit Missouri who managed to survive made their way to Iowa. Kentucky, Mississippi, and West Virginia were spared during the war, thus those residents and those who flocked there are living a semi-normal life following the war. Television and radio is back up, national news networks are mostly stationed out of New Jersey, where Atlantic City has become a major hub after the destruction of Newark and New York City.

No doubt the most challenging time was between 1983 and 1989, when the COG Government officials and division leaders tried to regroup Congress and the Governorships across the country. Those who were killed during the war and it's aftermath were succeeded and local and state Governments are now working in all 50 states. Indeed, many of the Capitols were moved as some were destroyed in the attack. Others, in Texas for example, where Austin was spared, remain the same. By 1994, residents in the nation lived normally, avoiding quarantined areas throughout their respective states.

George Bush, who served as President from 1989 to 1997, kept his 1988 pledge to restore America at the fastest pace possible. By 1996, politics stirred up a heated debate. Indeed, world affairs once again became an issue. In 1996, Russia still lies in ruins. There is no Governmental system of any kind. Many areas are patrolled by local enforcement, and there is anarchy, but remaining residents live within it and don't seem to question or long for a Government system.

Vying for the Presidency in 1996, Vice President Donald Rumsfeld made the pledge to continue the progress of the Bush years, while strengthening ties abroad. Division Leader and Senator John Glenn of Ohio, ran a campaign completely giving a fresh vision for America.

"America has seen war, and America has recovered. We're not living in a post-apocalyptic world. We are living in a world recovering from war. Times are difficult. But America is still working. We have all three functioning branches of Government, local, state and Federal elections, we have hospitals and police stations, and we even have television and radio. Yes, we have regions of the country that were destroyed that are uninhabited, and yes we must have patience and persevere when the time comes to rebuild those areas, but for now, we can hold our head high and declare ourselves survivors."

Unlike the write-in campaigns of 1984, 1988 and 1992, the 1996 election was the first national vote between two major party candidates. Vice President Rumsfeld announced that New York Senator Al D'Amato would be his running mate. Senator Glenn announces that his running mate would be Senator John Warner of Virginia, who was also Secretary of the Navy during the Nixon administration. Adding a Republican to the ticket helps to seal the deal for John Glenn, but using the electoral college for the first time since 1980 (The districts remain the same as in 1980 with lack of redistricting despite some areas destruction and re-habitation since 1983, redistricting is on the future agenda), the electorate is anxious to see the results.

John Glenn: 271
Donald Rumsfeld: 267

John Glenn - 47,560,311
Donald Rumsfeld - 44,300,245

John Glenn is elected America's 42nd President in 1996. He receives 47 million votes to Donald Rumsfeld's 44 million, making it a magnificent turnout election, a far cry from George Bush's 33 million four years earlier. At 75, John Glenn is America's oldest elected President.

On January 20, 1997, in front of television cameras for the first time since 1981, a Presidential inauguration is covered live on television, and is held in Norfolk, Virginia.

Coming soon...

America's Revival: The Presidency of John Glenn

[Reaganfan]

January 20, 1997 - Norfolk, Virginia

"We've seen war. War made the 20th century a time of heartache and sorrow. War has also made the future in the 21st century a future of uncertainty."

President John Glenn, the 42nd President of the United States, and the first elected through the electoral college since 1980, took the oath of office from Norfolk, Virginia that sunny January morning. President Glenn ran a campaign that had promised honesty to the American public from the government in the years following the war.

The Reagan Years from 1981 to 1989 were the hardest on the American public, and it wasn't until 1986 that America finally began the revitalization projects to build back cities destroyed in the war.

The Bush era of 1989 to 1997 was also one of continued COG rebuilding efforts, and analysis of the damage on America's infrastructure.

One thing was sure, the Glenn administration was going to be as transparent as possible. Within the first year of President Glenn's tenure, the administration, in coordination with the COG revitalization project, began declassifying materials and information not known to the public about the damage inflicted, the human toll, and even the actual events of the war itself.

On June 1, 1998, the Glenn/Warner administration released "The
Official Report on the U.S.-Soviet War". The report went into significant and controversial detail about how the war was carried out, and what the global implications were. The information, details, and evidence was gathered for 15 years by the United States Government between the time of the war until 1997.


TIMELINE OF EVENTS - All Times are Eastern Standard Time, all casualty and fatality reports are estimates

September 25, 1983

4:35pm
- President Ronald Reagan, in New York City with Javier Perez de Cuellar de la Guerra, the Secretary General of the United Nations. Chief of Staff James Baker informs President Reagan of incoming communications from Moscow. is informed by Soviet Premier Andropov that the Soviet tracking system incorrectly identified a nuclear missile attack against the Soviet Union.

6:00pm
- President Reagan, Secretary of State George Shultz, Vice President George Bush and the cabinet meet at the White House to discuss the Soviet situation.

6:45pm
- The U.S. Military moves to DEFCON 2 Alert

7:25pm
- Soviet Premier Andropov meets with Soviet Military and discusses their forces in Eastern Europe and the "provocative" moves by the United States.

8:00pm
- President Reagan speaks with Prime Minister Thatcher of Great Britain

8:30pm
- Warsaw Pact forces begin moving towards the West Berlin checkpoint.

8:40pm
- NATO forces begin a resistance

9:00pm
- President Ronald Reagan addresses the nation.

10:40pm
- Vice President George Bush leaves for Mount Weather

September 26, 1983

5:25am
- President Reagan receives word that Soviet forces are advancing towards West Germany

7:20am
- The Soviet and Warsaw Pact Forces mobilize at three strategic locations near the Fulda Gap, North German Plain, and the Danube River Valley in Austria.

3:25pm
- President Reagan meets with Congressional Leaders from both parties at the White House

September 27, 1983

3:25am
- The Soviet Union commences an invasion of West Germany near the Danube River Valley

3:30am
- President Reagan is notified of the Soviet invasion of West Germany

3:45am
- Soviet and Warsaw Pact forces begin a simultaneous invasion of the Fulda Gap and North German Plain, and an invasion of Turkey

4:00am
- Soviet Forces begin shooting air to ground missiles at U.S and NATO installations in West Germany.

4:15am
- The Soviet Union invades West Berlin

4:25am
- Fulda, Germany is heavily damaged, resulting in hundreds of casualties.

4:30am
- The U.S. Military moves to DEFCON 1

5:00am
- President Reagan addresses country from White House Press Briefing Room

5:25am
- President Reagan speaks with French President Mitterrand

5:40am
- President Reagan speaks with Italian Prime Minister Craxi

7:20am
- The Security Council and Joint Chiefs of Staff meet with President Reagan to discuss the Soviet invasion of West Germany.

8:00am
- Soviet forces reach the Rhine in Dusseldorf, Wiesbaden, Mannheim, Karlsruhe, and Duisburg and begin inflicting attacks on NATO defense forces.

9:15am
- Soviet forces begin a rapid movement of artillery towards Yugoslavia and Northern Italy.

12:30pm
- President Reagan addresses the nation

September 28, 1983

12:35am
- Soviet forces begin heavy NATO attacks in Belgium

4:50am
- Soviet forces receive heavy casualties in Milan, Italy.

8:00am
- Warsaw Pact troops begin three-pronged invasion of the Netherlands.

12:30pm
- President Reagan speaks on the telephone to Vice President George Bush

3:30pm
- A low-kiloton Soviet tactical nuclear weapon detonates six miles southwest of Brussels near the city of Gaasbeek, killing 5,000 people.

3:45pm
- Soviet troops advance through Strasbourg

4:00pm
- A low-kiloton tactical nuclear weapon air bursts over advancing Soviet troops near the Moselle River outside the city of Nancy, France. Fatalities unknown.

8:00pm
- Warsaw Pact troops and NATO forces both receive heavy losses in Northern Italy.

[Reaganfan]

September 29, 1983

1:15am
- Soviet forces invade Denmark

3:00am
- The Soviet Union takes Milan

3:15am
- President Ronald Reagan speaks with Italian Prime Minister Craxi

5:00am
- President Reagan meets with the Security Council

8:00am
- The Soviet Union detonates a low-kiloton tactical nuclear weapon over the city of Copenhagen, Denmark killing 900,000.

8:15am
- President Reagan speaks from the White House Briefing Room and declares the conflict, "World War III".

9:00am
- Naval Warfare begins slowly erupting in the Persian Gulf

11:00am
- Reports of horrific burn victims streaming out of the outskirts of Copenhagen

5:45pm
- Soviet submarine spotted in the English Channel

6:15pm
- President Reagan speaks with Prime Minister Thatcher

6:30pm
- Soviet submarines spotted in North Sea and Strait of Dover

6:45pm
- President Reagan speaks with French President Mitterrand

7:10pm
- Three Soviet tank divisions enter Orleans and Dijon

7:30pm
- A low-yield nuclear weapon is airburst over advancing Soviet troops near Nogent-sur-Seine, France. An estimated 5,000 French citizens are killed.

7:45pm
- A low-yield nuclear weapon is ground burst over the town of Lorris, 20 miles east of Orleans, eliminating the Soviet advance towards Paris. An estimated 1,500 are killed.

7:50pm
- The Soviet military launches a nuclear-tipped missile directly at Orleans.

7:52pm
- The U.K. activates their National Attack Warning System. France also activates their warnings.

7:53pm
- President Ronald Reagan activates the Emergency Broadcast System throughout the United States

7:54pm
- A Soviet low-yield nuclear bomb airbursts over the city of Orleans, France. An estimated 5,600 are killed.

8:05pm
- President Reagan addresses the nation

8:10pm
- French President Mitterrand address his nation

8:30pm
- Prime Minister Thatcher makes public statements

8:45pm
- Soviet troops are held off near Florence, Italy by allied forces with two small divisions headed for Rome and Southern Italy.

9:00pm
- Soviets have occupied Sardegna and Corse, maintaining a strong advance through Italian and French regions of Europe.

9:15pm
- Prime Minister Craxi addresses the Italian people

10:35pm
- Heavy fighting reported in Paris

10:50pm
- Large NATO causalities reported in the outskirts of Paris

11:15pm
- The Soviets take Paris

September 30, 1983

8:00am
- No major fighting occurring in the occupied regions between NATO and Warsaw Pact forces. Words of the potential for a cease-fire dominate the news.

10:00am
- President Ronald Reagan speaks with Prime Minister Schlüter of Denmark.

11:20am
- President Reagan holds a White House Press Conference

3:00pm
- President Reagan speaks on the phone with Vice President George Bush

9:00pm
- Ronald Reagan addresses the nation from the Oval Office

October 1, 1983

7:00am
- President Reagan has a working breakfast with his National Security Council. Reagan learns Soviet leader Andropov has been in direct communications with a leader from a Western nation.

9:00am
- Soviet ships and submarines flood into the English Channel, positioning themselves for a three-pronged attack at Britain.

10:30am
- Soviets advance at Dover and meet heavy allied resistance

10:45am
- Soviets invade Southampton

10:50am
- The Soviets invade Liverpool after a 16-hour journey up St. George's Channel into the Irish Sea.

12:00pm
- Soviet troops begin resisting NATO forces near Manchester, Southampton, and Canterbury.

3:15pm
- Ronald Reagan is informed of suspicious Soviet submarine maneuvers off the coastline of the United States

3:30pm
- The Emergency Broadcast System is activated in the United States

3:50pm
- President Reagan addresses the nation on radio and television

9:00pm
- Ronald Reagan meets with the Speaker of the House Tip O'Neill.

10:00pm
- President Reagan speaks on a teleconference with Vice President George Bush.

[Reaganfan]

October 2, 1983

4:45am
- President Reagan is notified that radio messages picked up by listening stations in the far East indicate that Soviet Premier Yuri Andropov has been in direct communications with Cuban Leader Fidel Castro.

5:35am
- Ronald Reagan meets with the Joint Chiefs of Staff and confirms that Soviet ships are accelerating towards the island of Cuba.

6:30am
- Ronald Reagan authorizes the Navy to begin a full scale "blockade" of Cuba, the first authorization since 1962.

8:00am
- Soviet troops are pushed back on the French front by NATO forces and the line is held just outside of Paris

9:00am
- Reports that Warsaw Pact troops have been decimated outside Florence in Italy are confirmed by NATO force

1:00pm
- The island of Sardegna is retaken by NATO alliances

3:00pm
- Light fighting continuing throughout Liverpool and Manchester between NATO and Warsaw troops

4:00pm
- Northern Ireland, and Norway all tighten their alert readiness for possible Soviet aggression

5:00pm
- Reports are that the Soviets have a stronghold on the city of Istanbul, Turkey.

6:00pm
- Reports of heavy fallout just outside of Brussels, Belgium and Copenhagen, Denmark from the nuclear detonations a few days earlier.

9:00pm
- President Reagan addresses the nation from the Oval Office

October 3, 1983

- First full day without any battle between NATO and Warsaw Pact forces

October 4, 1983

8:00am
- President Reagan learns that the Soviet ships have turned away from the island of Cuba and communications between Andropov and Castro have ceased.

October 7, 1983

7:00am
- NATO forces reclaim the cities of Plymouth, Southampton, Liverpool and Manchester.

10:30am
- The remaining Soviet armored divisions and Soviet ships begin pulling away from Great Britain.

12:00pm
- Reports are that the Soviet Union now occupies all of Germany, and that in France, the lines extend as far west as Amiens, France.

1:00pm
- New reports show that the radioactive fallout due to nuclear detonations in France has scaled back Soviet occupation in the region between Saint-Quentin to Haguenau back down to Bourges. Soviet occupied territory in the north is dubbed "Paris" and in the south is dubbed "Lyon".

2:15pm
- A map on Soviet television shows the two "states" in France as "Poka" to the north, and "Poka vsyo" to the south.

3:00pm
- Soviet forces claim the occupied northern territory of Italy down to the city of L'Aquila as "Stalin".

5:00pm
- President Ronald Reagan meets with his National Security Council.

October 12, 1983

- There has been no further chatter between Cuba and the Soviet Union for nine days straight

November 10, 1983

10:00am
- President Ronald Reagan arrives in London and meets with Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher

1:15pm
- ABC News obtains and airs a photograph taken by an unidentified 54 year old man outside of Brussels as a nuclear explosion occurs over the city of Gaasbeek.

November 13, 1983

6:00pm
- NBC News reports that Soviet Television has aired images of the ruins of the city of Copenhagen, Denmark.

November 20, 1983

8:00pm
- ABC airs the made-for-TV film, "The Day After", a provocative drama featuring the effects of an all-out nuclear war with the Soviet Union and the effects on Kansas City, MO and Lawrence, KS. The film is viewed by over 100 million people across America.

December 1, 1983

6:30pm
- NBC News reports that fallout shelter preparedness and air raid drills at schools across America is at an all-time high.

December 15, 1983

1:00pm
- President Reagan is briefed about the Soviet stranglehold on Paris and Soviet positions in Italy

December 21, 1983

5:00pm
- President Reagan discusses the SIOP (Single Integrated Operations Plan) with top Pentagon officials.

December 22, 1983

12:00am
- President Reagan speaks with Prime Minister Thatcher

1:00am
- Soviet troops are hit hard by NATO advances into the occupied Soviet territory near L'Aquila in Italy

2:25am
- Reports of "hundreds" of Soviet deaths in The Battle of L'Aguila.

6:00am
- Widespread rebellion among Warsaw Pact forces is reported in the Soviet-held city of Paris, France.

10:30am
- Soviet MIGs destroy two NATO stations near Luxembourg and Strasbourg.

4:15pm
- Three Soviet artillery divisions are destroyed near Reims, Stuttgart and Wiesbaden

8:30pm
- President Reagan, under the advice of the U.S. Secret Service, is moved to Mount Weather.

9:00pm
- Reports come in that Yuri Andropov and high-level Soviet officers are being evacuated to underground Soviet facilities

11:30pm
- President Reagan and Vice President Bush hold a private meeting at Mount Weather

December 23, 1983

12:55am
- President Reagan boards Air Force One at Andrews Air Force Base to fly to Colorado Springs

4:00am
- Air Force One arrives at NORAD command bunker in Cheyenne Mountain, Colorado Springs.

5:00am
- President Reagan contacts Prime Minister Thatcher

10:42am
- The Soviet Union airbursts two low-yield nuclear weapons over NATO troops in Northern Italy and two more in Western Germany.

10:50am
- NATO losses from nuclear explosions said to be "horrendous".

11:00am
- President Reagan is notified by the Strategic Air Command that Soviet fighters are nearing U.S. Air Space in Alaska and are nearing the United Kingdom over Central France.

11:02am
- Former President Richard Nixon is evacuated

11:05am
- The United States enacts it's "Launch on Warning" policy.

11:06am
- Former President Jimmy Carter is evacuated

11:07am
- The Emergency Broadcast System is activated in the United States

11:08am
- Former President Gerald Ford is evacuated

11:10am
- The U.S.-Soviet hotline between Reagan and Andropov is connected and both leaders begin a translated conversation.

11:12am
- The Soviet Union disconnects from the hotline call

11:15am
- All U.S. forces move to DEFCON 1

11:20am
- President Reagan tells his advisers to prepare statements for a 12:00pm address to the nation

11:25am
- Strategic Air Command reports an incoming Soviet missile attack with thirteen missile launches

11:27am
- The Strategic Air Command confirms over fifty missile launches from the Soviet Union

11:30am
- The Strategic Air Command confirms over 500 missile launches from the Soviet Union

11:32am
- General Bennie L. Davis, head of the Strategic Air Command, receives the order from President Ronald Reagan to launch a full scale nuclear attack on the Soviet Union.

11:33am
- The now declassified launch codes sent to the American silos from Ronald Reagan were: "Victor-3-8-November-Foxtrot-7-4-3-3" with an authentication of "Echo-Zulu".

11:40am
- All NATO and U.S. nuclear missiles are now in flight towards Soviet targets

11:41am
- President Reagan speaks on the telephone to Vice President George Bush

11:43am
- President Reagan speaks on the telephone to Prime Minister Thatcher and the line is disconnected

11:55am
- The first Soviet bomb strikes Los Angeles, CA
- Huge explosion reported from Nevada desert facing Las Vegas, Nevada
- Soviet ICBMs strike Seattle, silos in Montana and Minot, North Dakota.

12:03pm
- President Reagan feels the shockwave from a detonation four miles away from the underground NORAD facility.

12:08pm
- General James V. Hartinger, Commander of NORAD reports to Reagan that communications are gone between NORAD and the Early Ballistic Missile Warning System in England, as well as  the reported destruction of Thule Air Base in Greenland. Reagan is also made aware that Paris, London, and Manchester have lost their down-links, implying that Soviet warheads have destroyed those cities as well.

12:17pm
- The Soviet attack ceases with the final warhead airbursting over New Orleans, Louisiana

12:30pm
- Reports come in that Berlin, Warsaw, Moscow, Minsk, and much of the Warsaw Pact has been impacted.

12:35pm
- All fighting ceases worldwide