1980 Damascus Titan missile explosion

1980 Damascus Titan missile explosion
Coordinates35°14′42″N 92°14′06″W / 35.245°N 92.235°W / 35.245; -92.235
NRHP reference No.98001434
Added to NRHPFebruary 18, 2000

The Damascus Titan missile explosion (also called the Damascus accident) was a 1980 U.S. nuclear weapons incident involving an U.S. Air Force LGM-25C Titan II intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) at Missile Complex 374-7 in rural Arkansas. The incident began with a fuel leak at 6:30 p.m. CDT on September 18, and culminated with an explosion inside the missile silo at around 3:00 a.m. on September 19. The 9-megatonne-of-TNT (38 PJ) W-53 nuclear warhead was ejected and landed a short distance away and no radioactive material was lost.