Threat to the United States from Electromagnetic Pulse Attack

The federal government is doing “nothing” to protect against an electromagnetic pulse (EMP) attack that could wipe out American civilization, Dr. Peter Vincent Pry, a leading expert on the subject, tells Newsmax.

For only $200 million to $400 million, the government could protect a key element of the power grid to keep electrical power from being wiped out for years, according to Dr. Pry, a former staff member of the congressional Commission to Assess the Threat to the United States from Electromagnetic Pulse Attack.

A single nuclear bomb exploded over the Midwest would generate an electromagnetic pulse that would destroy the chips that are at the heart of every electronic device. While military and intelligence networks may be shielded against EMP, most of the rest of the country’s technological infrastructure is not.

An EMP attack would wipe out personal computers and the internet. Cars would not start, gasoline pumps would not work, and airplanes could not take off. Heat and air conditioning would shut down, supermarkets would have to close, telephones would go dead, water would go out, and radio and television sets would not turn on.

• “EMP Attack Could Wipe Out U.S.”, Newsmax.com, 9/9/09.
• “Electromagnetic Pulse (EMP) Attack: A Preventable Homeland Security Catastrophe”, Heritage Foundation, 10/20/08.
• “The Electromagnetic Pulse Commission Warns of an Old Threat with a New Face”, Heritage Foundation, 08/03/04.
• “Electromagnetic Bomb: A Weapon of Electronic Mass Destruction”, AboveTopSecret.com, 6/16/04.