Tybee Island, Georgia – 1958: The Missing Nuke Beneath the Sea

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Introduction: America’s Forgotten Nuclear Mystery

On the night of February 5, 1958, the quiet coastal waters near Tybee Island, Georgia became the stage for one of the Cold War’s most unsettling accidents. A U.S. Air Force bomber, entangled in a training mishap, dropped a 3.8-megaton Mark 15 hydrogen bomb into the Atlantic Ocean.

Unlike most stories of lost war machines, this one has never been resolved. Despite an exhaustive search, the weapon — nicknamed the “Tybee Bomb” — was never recovered. To this day, it remains buried beneath layers of sand and seabed, a potentially active nuclear weapon lying just miles from the American coastline.

This incident remains one of the most haunting examples of what military officials call a “Broken Arrow” — an unexpected accident involving nuclear weapons. While accidents like Goldsboro (1961) or Palomares (1966) eventually led to recovery operations and containment, Tybee stands apart as a chilling reminder of what remains lost.

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What Happened That Night?

It began with a training mission out of Homestead Air Force Base in Florida. A B-47 Stratojet bomber was carrying the Mark 15 hydrogen bomb, escorted by fighter jets in simulated combat maneuvers.

At approximately 2:00 AM, one of the escorting F-86 Sabre jets collided with the B-47, slicing into its wing. The bomber’s pilot, Major Howard Richardson, fought to stabilize the wounded aircraft.

Carrying a bomb of such destructive capacity, the crew faced an impossible choice: attempt to land the aircraft with the weapon on board — risking a fiery crash that could scatter radioactive material — or jettison the bomb into the ocean to save their lives and the aircraft.

Richardson chose the latter. He released the Mark 15 bomb into the waters near Wassaw Sound, just off Tybee Island. Witnesses reported a large splash but no explosion.

The crew survived. The bomber managed to limp to Hunter Air Force Base in Savannah, where it landed safely. The bomb, however, had disappeared into the Atlantic.

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The Bomb: A Weapon of Unimaginable Power

The Mark 15 hydrogen bomb was no ordinary weapon. At 7,600 pounds and over 11 feet long, it carried a yield of 3.8 megatons — over 250 times more powerful than the Hiroshima bomb.

The Air Force initially claimed the bomb had been unarmed, suggesting it was missing its plutonium core (the fissile trigger necessary for detonation). In this version, the weapon still contained a large quantity of uranium and conventional explosives but could not cause a nuclear blast.

However, contradictory reports soon surfaced. Some classified documents suggested that the bomb might have been fully armed, making the situation far more alarming. If that were the case, the waters near Tybee Island still conceal a fully functional hydrogen bomb.

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The Search: 9 Weeks of Desperation

Immediately after the jettison, the Air Force launched an urgent 9-week recovery mission. Navy divers, sonar operators, and salvage teams scoured the seabed. Dozens of ships and aircraft combed the area, dragging nets and magnetic sensors.

The bomb was never found.

Part of the problem was the geography. The waters around Tybee Island are murky, tidal, and constantly shifting. Sandbars shift, burying objects quickly beneath layers of sediment. The currents scatter debris unpredictably. Even with extensive sonar sweeps, the bomb remained elusive.

By April 1958, the Air Force declared the bomb “irretrievably lost.”

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Public Reaction and Secrecy

News of the missing bomb leaked quickly, and residents of Savannah and Tybee Island were horrified. The idea of a hydrogen bomb lying in their backyard waters — lost, unrecovered, and possibly live — struck terror into the community.

The Air Force attempted to reassure the public, stating:

• The bomb was not armed and could not detonate.
• It posed no danger unless disturbed.
• The missing weapon was safe where it lay.

Yet, suspicion lingered. Critics accused the military of downplaying the danger to avoid panic and diplomatic embarrassment. After all, this was the height of the Cold War, and the U.S. was eager to project an image of total control over its nuclear arsenal.

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Could It Detonate?

This question has haunted the Tybee Bomb story for decades. Experts remain divided:

• Air Force Position: The bomb was missing its plutonium trigger, and therefore incapable of a nuclear detonation. At worst, its conventional explosives could cause a large but localized explosion.
• Skeptical View: Several declassified documents from the 1960s indicate that the bomb may have been fully armed. If true, a disturbance — such as corrosion, drilling, or underwater construction — could trigger a catastrophic event.

A 1966 congressional testimony by Assistant Defense Secretary W. J. Howard claimed that the bomb did contain “a complete nuclear capsule.” This contradicts earlier Air Force statements and suggests that Tybee Island may still harbor a fully functional hydrogen bomb.

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Environmental Concerns

Even if the bomb cannot detonate, it contains hazardous materials such as uranium-235 and lithium deuteride, both toxic to marine life and humans. Over decades, corrosion could potentially release radioactive contamination into the surrounding waters.

Local fishermen and environmental activists have raised alarms repeatedly, demanding fresh surveys and recovery attempts. Some reports claim radiation “hot spots” have been detected in the area, though official investigations have dismissed these as false alarms.

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Tybee Island Today: Living with a Nuclear Ghost

More than six decades later, the Tybee Bomb remains missing. The U.S. government officially considers it “safe” and has no active recovery mission.

For locals, it has become part of island folklore — a mix of dark humor and quiet unease. Tour guides mention it to visitors; some even call it the “Lost Nuke of Georgia.” But beneath the legend lies a sobering truth: a weapon of mass destruction is still lying off the coast of the United States.

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Comparisons to Other Nuclear Accidents

The Tybee incident is often compared to other Broken Arrows:

• Goldsboro, North Carolina (1961): A hydrogen bomb nearly detonated after a bomber crash, with three of four safety switches failing.
• Palomares, Spain (1966): Four hydrogen bombs fell; two ruptured and scattered plutonium across a Spanish village.
• Thule, Greenland (1968): A bomber crash scattered plutonium across the Arctic ice.

Unlike these cases, Tybee stands out because the bomb was never recovered. It remains, to this day, America’s most famous lost nuclear weapon.

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Legacy and Lessons Learned

The Tybee Bomb forced the U.S. military to confront uncomfortable truths:

1. Human Error is Inevitable – Training accidents and equipment failures can happen, even with the most powerful weapons on earth.
2. Transparency vs. Secrecy – Balancing public trust with national security remains a challenge. Many Americans still question whether they’ve been told the full truth.
3. Environmental Risks – The long-term consequences of lost or damaged nuclear weapons extend far beyond immediate explosions. They linger in ecosystems and communities for generations.

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Conclusion: A Nuclear Time Capsule Beneath the Waves

The Tybee Bomb is more than just a Cold War relic — it is a nuclear time capsule, buried beneath the sea, its exact status unknown. For over sixty years, it has symbolized both the technological might and the terrifying fragility of the nuclear age.

As tides shift and sands move, the bomb remains, waiting. Whether it lies inert and harmless, or whether it holds within it the capacity for destruction, is a question that may never be answered — unless it is found.

Until then, Tybee Island will forever carry the uneasy legacy of being the home of America’s missing nuke.

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