“So you mean that, as of this moment, there has been no electrical power in California, Oregon, and Washington for better than three hours?”

“Yes, sir. That’s true in those states,” the secretary of energy replied, “and, also in Nevada, Arizona, Utah, and Idaho.”

“For three hours,” the secretary of transportation pursued the question, “there has been no power for air traffic, street lights, electric trolleys, subways, or anything else anywhere in the western United States?”

“That’s right,” the energy secretary replied. “And, I might add, that means no power for television, radio, factories, or office buildings. Some facilities, such as hospitals, will of course have emergency generators. But fortunately the shutdown is taking place at the end of the day while there is still some daylight left. It’s the best we can hope for under these conditions.”

“I think we need some clarification on this, Madame Secretary,” Al Augustus said. “We’re in the midst of a civil defense emergency in northern California, Oregon, and Washington State. The level of chaos we have been witnessing out there is like nothing we could ever have imagined, but if I understand what you’ve just said, we will be unable to give those people any further broadcast warnings or instructions, and there is essentially no means of communication with roughly twenty percent of the United States population at this very moment. Is that correct?”

“I’m afraid so,” she said. “Mr. Augustus, my staff and I were faced with an impossible decision. We could not selectively apply power in order to leave the emergency warning mechanisms operating while we shut down the rest. I know that it makes our job a lot more difficult, but the choice was between temporary notification to the civilian population or preserving the long-range power capabilities of the region. We chose the latter. Absent serious earthquakes and tidal waves, the power should be back on in most of the states by tomorrow morning.”

In the midst of increasing tension, a navy captain assigned as aide to the secretary of defense entered the room and handed the secretary several documents. Augustus scanned them quickly, then stood up. “The situation is much worse than we feared. I’ve just received word that the remaining population of the western states is now in a state of uncontrollable panic. The meteor fireball was clearly visible in the evening sky. The noise of its entry into the atmosphere and its ultimate impact were audible for thousands of miles. In some places, apparently as far east as the Rockies, trees actually exploded into flames. Smoke from forest fires has reduced visibility in some regions to near zero. Cities and towns close to forests are also beginning to burn.

“As we now know, they have no electric power and are without their normal sources of news and information. To compound the problem, armed gangs are taking advantage of the darkness to loot stores, rob banks, and terrorize people.

“Ladies and gentlemen,” the secretary of defense said, “I have no choice but to order all our state militias to full alert status to try to restore order. Madame Secretary, part of the danger to power plants that you feared is now past. I respectfully request that you have your department instruct the power companies to reactivate all power in those states as quickly as possible.”