Atomic Bomb Accident at Mars Bluff
Posted by: 
rj_toot
N 34° 11.797 W 079° 39.783
17S E 623183 N 3784764
Interesting site in South Carolina where a family lost their home to an accidental atomic bomb drop, thankfully not armed with nuclear payload!
Waymark Code: WM6F0Z
Location: South Carolina, United States
Date Posted: 05/24/2009
Views: 31
In 1958, in the midst of the Cold War, the U.S. Air Force accidentally dropped an atomic bomb near here. The unarmed 7,600-lb., 10'8"-long bomb was aboard a B-47E bomber on a training mission headed for England. Its high-explosive trigger detonated on impact, making a crater as large as 35 feet deep and 70 feet wide. The bomb landed in the woods behind the asbestos-shingle sided home of railroad conductor Walter "Bill" Gregg (b. 1921). Gregg, his wife, their three children, and a niece were injured by the concussion, which destroyed the house and out-buildings and did slight damage to buildings within a 5-mile radius.
Marker Name: Atomic Bomb Accident at Mars Bluff
Marker Location: Roadside
Type of Marker: Historic Site
Marker number: 2126
County: Florence
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