(Writer’s note:) “I found my conversation with William R. Forstchen, author of the best-selling novel One Second After, to be one of the most enlightening and interesting I’ve ever had. Regrettably, because of the subject matter we discussed, it was also one of the scariest conversations I’ve ever had.”

Dr. William Forstchen holds a Ph.D. in history from Purdue University. He has published more than forty books. His areas of specialization include military history and the history of technology. Raising his young daughter and concerned for her future safety, he decided to write a book about what he considers to be the greatest threat facing our country and its people. He selected his own hometown, a small community in the mountains of North Carolina, and the college he teaches at, Montreat College, as the setting for his reality-based novel of an EMP strike and the townspeople’s struggle to survive.

Imagine no lights, no phones, no computers, no cars, no heat, no air-conditioning, hospitals without power, no medications, no water, no refrigeration, food rotting and thousands of airplanes dropping out of the sky. Every facet of your life has been devastated. You can still breathe, but now what? What happens when no water comes out of the tap and there is no more food left on the grocery shelves? Where does your next drink come from? Where does your next bite of food come from? How long will you last? How soon will the ferocious competition for survival begin? Our whole social structure would quickly descend into utter chaos. Your life, your world, your existence would be totally altered. “Our elaborate communications, electrical, and transportation infrastructure is the foundation of our civilization” says author William R Forstchen. “If destroyed by an EMP attack, in a worst case scenario, it would mean the end of life for the majority.”

Former Speaker of the House, Newt Gingrich, describes the catastrophic effects of an EMP attack. “When an atomic bomb is detonated above the earth’s atmosphere, it can generate a “pulse wave” which travels at the speed of light, and will short-circuit every electronic device that the “wave” touches on the earth’s surface. Without warning it could destroy our entire complex electrical grid and everything attached into that grid. It would instantly throw all of our lives back to an existence equal to that of the Middle Ages. Millions would die in the first week alone.”

Is the threat of an EMP real? We know that EMP has been tested by both Russia and the U.S. in the 1960’s and found to be a real threat to any technologically advanced nation. When the Soviets first tested such a weapon in 1962 during the Cuban Missile crisis, it literally melted electrical wires on the surface and fused car ignition systems. Neither the U.S. nor Russia decided to use the EMP against each other at that time, but the danger today is that rogue nations, such as North Korea and Iran, are developing the ability to thrust a nuclear-headed missile into the upper atmosphere. A rogue nation may have no compunction against assailing the United States or other western nations with an EMP attack. One insane dictator intent upon securing his place in history as the man who brought down America or Europe or China or Russia might well be quite attracted to that idea.

As horrible as a nuclear bomb being dropped on one or two of our major cities would be—that devastation would be localized to some extent. Certainly the destruction of electrical power in those cities would have an effect on a section of the country, but a great deal of the country would continue to function with electricity. Not so with an EMP attack that uses three or four nuclear blasts in our upper atmosphere, spaced correctly to blanket the entire country with the electromagnetic pulse. All electrical power would go down in a second all across the United States. So the question becomes: How do we protect against an insane or erratic megalomaniac who has the capability within his grasp to launch an EMP attack?

First of all, we should throw the EMP issue out of political discussion. As Dr. William Forstchen clearly declares: “EMP is a nondiscriminatory weapon. It does not care if you’re a liberal or conservative, a democrat or republican, black, yellow or white. We’re all equally vulnerable. It is about a potential threat to all Americans.” It then becomes a question of how do we eliminate the threat and protect ourselves.

SLV: Does our present military defensive technology protect us enough and would we know when a rogue nation had initiated an attack?
FORSTCHEN: We do have a system now that works. However, it has received only minimal funding. There are, I believe, ten launch systems deployed in Alaska, and four in California. Also our new upgraded class of warships have capabilities as well. There’s another proposal, which I fully endorse—which is deploying a couple hundred very small satellites, no bigger than a watermelon into variable orbits around the earth that can react quickly and much like a shotgun, spray pellets that are at kinetic energy level. Quite simply, if you get a shotgun pellet hitting a missile at 28,000 miles an hour, it vaporizes the missile. If we’re only confronting 1 to 3 to 5 launches, we can bring them down. We do have the capability. We could build a darn good defensive shield in as little as three years. We’re not doing that—and by not doing it, it all but encourages our opponents to think EMP is a viable option.

SLV: What can we do about it?
FORSTCHEN: I have a threefold answer. 1. I believe every family should have their home prepared. It comes down to simply things like telling my daughter: “This is what an EMP looks like. It goes down, no matter where you are, head home, don’t wait. Walk for home.” 2. Stockpile water or something to stay hydrated. 3. Defend your neighborhood. Remember that during the cold war we knew that 90% of the people would die immediately where the nuclear bomb struck. With an EMP strike, 90% of the population of the United States will die slowly and terribly throughout the country. 

SLV: I happen to be college educated and try to keep up on the news, but still I didn’t know about EMP until this interview. How can we make people know about the threat of EMP?
FORSTCHEN: We have to have an educated America that understands: “My God, an EMP strike will put us back 1,000 years and 90% of us will die terrible deaths.” Since my book came out in March, Congress has found the time to pass a law forbidding private ownership of chimpanzees like the one who tore up the lady’s face, but they move like snails on the EMP issue. Sadly, we don’t have a Hollywood star going around wearing an EMP t-shirt to increase awareness of the issue. There is something built into our nature that hates to hear really bad news. We face enemies today that care little about retaliation…after they have succeeded in destroying the United States.

SLV: Newt Gingrich is an immensely powerful politician. He has stated publically that it’s a major threat. Can he help you get the word out?
FORSTCHEN: Newt, after reading the book One Second After, agreed to provide the Foreword. Newt Gingrich has been my friend for over a decade and we have written six books together, all of them NY Times best-sellers. As you said, he has publically stated that it’s a major threat and continues to help by bringing up the issue during his appearances on national news programs.

SLV: Don’t we have a right to protect ourselves by a preemptive strike against a nation that is developing EMP capabilities?
FORSTCHEN: “Iran has done vertical launches. A ballistic missile is designed to go from point A to point B. There’s no logical sense to shooting a missile straight up and watching it come down, unless you are testing for an EMP.”

SLV: So again doctor, shouldn’t our reaction to North Korea and Iran’s nuclear ambitions be stronger?
FORSTCHEN: That is my utter frustration. Ronald Reagan had his faults, but I cannot picture Ronald Reagan, as president on the first of April of this year, not communicating to North Korea: “Don’t even think about it.” And that would be the end of discussion, period.

Forstchen’s Survival Suggestions

1. Safe water and food:
Bottled water: Refill used bottles with filtered water and put in basement or a closet (at least a week’s worth, the more the better). Do not use recycled milk containers unless you sterilize them. Canned food: Remember to check expiration dates.

2. Medication: The usual first aid kit. Download from your computer NOW and learn basic survival treatment skills. Never let your med supply get too low before refilling.

3. Other Survival Needs: Sanitation products such as antibacterial soap, feminine products, toilet paper, mouthwash (to use as a disinfectant).

4. Personal Security: There are places in this world at this very moment where someone would kill you for a can of food. Someday that could be America. If you don’t own a gun and should decide to do so now, please get the proper training. In your neighborhood, having a conversation beforehand might be the crucial difference between your living and dying. Who can you trust? And sadly, who can you not trust? Who has special needs that others can help out with? A street or neighborhood plan can make all the difference in who lives and who dies.

5. Personal Health: Do your own personal assessment now. Could you walk ten miles hauling a twenty-pound sack of rice? Try to get in shape.

6. Plan as a Family: Talk and lay out plans. How does your child get home from school? How will you get home from work? Everyone should recognize IMMEDIATELY if we have been hit by an EMP. The signs are obvious. Power goes off, cars won’t start, cellular service is dead, and there is a complete blackout. Know the signs and react. He who reacts swiftly and logically stands a far better chance of survival than those who will wait for the government to sort it out. If you have pets, you might keep several months of food on hand for them. SLV

Issue 40 featuring: AJ Bailey, Karlie Montana, Charlie Laine and Melissa Jacobs