Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1959-04-19
Digging Out Closes
A-Bomb Exercise
$4,000 Killed;
CD Teams Back
To Restore City

District officials last night
wound up a two-day exercise on
softening the impact of an
atomic bombing and then dig
ging out the city.
Using an emergency head
quarters at Lorton (Va)
Reformatory. officials went
through the steps of assessing
the bomb damage and improvis-
ing steps to put the city back
on its feet.
The final phase Of the sixth
annual civil defense exercise.
Operation Alert 1859, saw
emergency teams heading back
into the stricken city theoreti-
cally hit by an enemy attack
Friday. At the same time.
mock wartime control measures
were ordered at a meeting Of
top District officials.
$4,000 Casualties"
For purposes of the exercise,
$4,000 persons were estimated
killed, $4,000 injured, stable
areas of the city destroyed or
damaged and services crippled.
The civil defense program
opened at 1880 am. Friday
with warnings of an enemy
strike. Two hours later, when
the take cover" signal sounded,
769, 900 persons had been "evac-
uated" over three major null
tiple-road routes. About 407 900
failed to escape the city when
the four bombs were supposedly
dropped on the area few min
uteS later.
The theoretical bombs were
dropped on National Airport
and Andrews Air Force Base,
Carderock and Westphalia, Md.
About per cent of the city
was destroyed" 6 per cent
severely damaged" rs per
cent moderately damaged"
and 40 per cent slightly dam
aged"
In the exercise, the District
government moved its head
quarters to the Lorton Reform
atory's administration building
to mesh operations with the
civil defense command post.
Information on the impact of
the attack was fed into the
command post through a series
OF emergency radio networks.
Government workers and
school children in the District
and in some of the nearby COM
munities took cover during the
exercise, which was part of a
Nationwide drill in which other
cities we're bombed" Most
citizens here were not expected
to take part except to note the
warning signal and consider
what action they would take II
a real attack were on the way.
Only the Conelrad frequencies
/ were permitted to broadcast
from 1880 am. to noon on Fri
day. Television stations also
were BACKED out during that
period.
Barge Drill Tried
Operation Alert saw a num-
Der of drill experiments, in
Guiding a barge evacuation
exercise from d. C. Village at
Blue Plains to Lorton.
When the warning signal
sounded, the three Commits
sionerS and five civil defense
officials boarded a helicopter
at the Ellipse for a flight to
Lorton.
For the District, the civil
defense operation included an
exercise in continuity of gov
eminent. Yesterday. top Of
flcials met for a mock Com
missioners' meeting and found
the government in the hands
of Assistant Engineer Com
missioner H. o. Webb. jr. The
three Commissioners we're miss
ing.
Col. Webb was briefed on the
situation in Washington by
District Civil Defense Director
John E. Fondahl and 10 other
officials. Based on this in
formation, Col. Webb ordered"
emergency measures subject
to later approval by the Com
Imissioners-to cope with the
problems of a supposedly de-
vastated city.