Two airmen nearly nuked South Dakota with the wrong screwdriver in 1964

The South Dakota Nuclear Screwdriver Mishap

The Minuteman Missile National Historic Site in South Dakota offers visitors a rare glimpse into America’s Cold War nuclear arsenal.

On December 5, 1964, a simple maintenance job at the nearby Lima-02 missile silo went horribly wrong when two airmen used the wrong screwdriver technique and accidentally triggered a nuclear warhead to crash 75 feet to the bottom of an underground silo.

Here’s the incredible story of how quick thinking and brave actions prevented what could have been a catastrophic nuclear accident in the heart of America.

Two Airmen Showed Up for a Simple Repair Job

Two airmen got orders at noon on Saturday, December 5, 1964, to fix a broken security system at Lima-02 missile silo.

The site sat 60 miles northwest of Ellsworth Air Force Base and just 3 miles from the small town of Vale, South Dakota.

Lima-02 was one of 150 concrete-and-steel Minuteman I missile silos spread across 13,500 square miles of western South Dakota’s prairie.

The airmen arrived around 2 PM to what looked like a plain gravel lot with chain link fence topped with barbed wire.

One Wrong Move with a Screwdriver Changed Everything

The problem started when an airman tried to remove a fuse from the security alarm control box. He used the wrong method with his screwdriver, causing a short circuit as he pulled the fuse out.

The mistake sent current through poorly insulated wiring that touched the metal casing around a retrorocket.

This unexpected burst of electricity made one of the retrorockets fire while still attached to the 56-foot-tall Minuteman I missile.

A quick repair job turned into a nuclear emergency in seconds.

The Warhead Blasted Off Inside the Silo

Pressure built up quickly in the tight space where the retrorockets sat just below the missile’s cone. The growing force ripped the 5-foot-tall, 3-foot-wide cone containing a 1.

2-megaton W-56 thermonuclear warhead from the rest of the missile. The 750-pound cone fell 75 feet through the narrow gap between the missile body and the silo wall.

Thick gray smoke filled the 80-foot-deep silo as the two airmen ran for their lives.

A Nuclear Bomb Took a Wild Ride to the Bottom

The falling warhead cone bounced off the concrete silo wall, then crashed back toward the missile itself.

It scraped against the missile’s second fuel stage in two spots as it continued falling. The cone’s rough trip also broke two of the three cables that held the missile suspended.

After its bumpy fall, the warhead crashed onto the concrete floor at the bottom of the silo, landing on its side.

A Young Airman Got a Call He’d Never Forget

Bob Hicks, just 20 years old, woke to his phone ringing around midnight in his barracks.

His missile maintenance team chief told him: “The warhead is no longer on top of the missile.” Hicks threw on his clothes and rushed to the scene with almost no details.

The young airman suddenly became the lead responder to America’s first-ever Minuteman missile accident, facing a situation no one had trained for.

Hicks Dangled Above a Potential Catastrophe

Crews lowered Hicks into the damaged silo inside a metal cage hanging from cables attached to the silo walls.

He worked in the tight space between the damaged missile and the concrete walls, surrounded by smoke and debris.

Using a metal rod, Hicks carefully cut through the electrical connections linking the missile’s different stages.

His careful work stopped the missile from firing and helped prevent a massive explosion.

Nobody Had a Plan for This Kind of Mess

Hicks came up with the idea to use a cargo net system to safely lift the damaged warhead from the silo floor.

Air Force leaders first ignored his suggestion, wanting to try other methods.

After thinking more, military officials realized Hicks’s cargo net approach offered the safest way to handle the damaged nuclear device.

The accident forced them to create brand-new recovery steps on the spot.

The Team Needed a Dress Rehearsal First

Air Force officials wouldn’t let anyone try the cargo net recovery until they practiced in another silo.

Crews spent the next couple of days running through the careful steps, making sure they could move a heavy warhead through the narrow silo space without causing more damage.

They improved their method with each practice run. Only after several good practice runs did officials allow the real recovery at Lima-02.

They Wrapped the Bomb Like a Fragile Package

On Wednesday, December 9, four days after the accident, recovery teams gathered at Lima-02 to begin the risky removal.

Workers carefully padded the sharp metal edges on the cone where it had torn away from the missile. They lifted the cone just one foot off the silo floor, enough space to slide a mattress pad underneath it.

Two cargo nets went under the pad, then crews pulled them up around the cone and hooked them to the lifting cable.

Raising the Warhead Took Nerve-Wracking Patience

Lifting the 750-pound cone out of the 80-foot-deep silo needed extreme care. Crews had to move the warhead through just a few feet of space between the missile and silo wall.

Any bump against the remaining missile could set off its fuel and cause an explosion. The operation moved very slowly, with the warhead inching upward.

It took two full hours before the damaged nuclear device finally reached the surface.

A Honey Business Now Sits Where Disaster Almost Struck

Technicians examined the damaged nuclear cone and found no risk of nuclear detonation.

The military transported the warhead away for disassembly, and the whole incident ended up costing what would be about $1. 85 million in today’s money.

The Lima-02 silo near Vale eventually passed into private hands after the military decommissioned it.

Today, the former nuclear missile site houses a honey-extracting business.

The original security fence still stands around the property, a quiet reminder of the day America nearly faced nuclear disaster because of a screwdriver.

Visiting Minuteman Missile National Historic Site

The Minuteman Missile National Historic Site lets you explore Cold War nuclear history for free. It’s spread across three locations along I-90 in South Dakota.

The Visitor Center is at exit 131, with Delta-01 Launch Control Facility four miles west and Delta-09 missile silo fifteen miles west.

If you want to see where the Lima-02 “Broken Arrow” incident happened, book a Delta-01 tour in advance.

These 45-minute guided tours cost a small fee and only take six people at a time. The park is open Tuesday through Saturday.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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