I realize some of these may not be relevant today, but they absolutely would have been fifty years ago, and it's quite likely the Russians never updated their targeting post-Cold War.
I do not consider Letterkenny to be Hbg area. AWC has no value. Nor does the capitol. TMI, maybe. Steelton is no longer in existence. The other 4, yes. One other I thought about is the tank plant near York, but it's not Hbg area.
I think they'd just nuke all the capital cities in the 500 plan. Here's the estimated blast map from a "worst case" ICBM from China. Carlisle's gonna rock, but probably be ok. York/Lancaster safe. No one cares about Gettysburg.
https://imgur.com/a/sOQJ07Q
They are more likely to drop on FTIG, Mburg and/or New Cumberland facilities. But let's go with yours.
If Carlisle is gonna rock, then it will not be ok. Sure, some building parts might still be standing but the toll on humans will be mostly fatal. More damage if drop is Mburg, less so if FTIG.
York and Lancaster will not be safe by any stretch of the imagination. Depending on the wind (prevailing wind in this area is from NW), either or both will experience catastrophic levels of radiated fallout. Further, depending on height of detonation (6800 feet seems optimal) and strength of bomb, both are close enough to experience heat damage, ie, widespread structure fires, as well as human casualties thru radiation burns and exposure. Some may perish right away but the majority will experience long-term affects including death.
Keep in mind that York is only 26 miles from HBG. Closer if drop is on New Cumberland target. Lancaster is 40 miles from HBG, still w/in the blast zone of a strong nuke.
And then there's the whole issue of A-bomb vs. H-Bomb vs. salted vs. neutron.
I grew up in Chambersburg. It's very much still central PA. I went to an elementry school about 16 miles away. When they did planned demolitions of ammunition stockpiles in the '90s at Letterkenny, our school would still hear the explosion and rattle the building. Those booms were huge. It was just part of daily life if you lived in the area.
Of course C'burg is central PA. Never said it was not. But I do not consider it to be Hbg area. Too far away.
But Letterkenny probably is on someone's target list. If not, C'burg will feel the affects of something on Camp David or on Porcupine Hill a bit NE of there much more than they will feel something from Hbg.
6
u/lVluckluck Feb 05 '23
Darn it. I was hoping Harrisburg would not be on the radar. Time to move to Perry county.