This was followed by dynamic waves of vacuum and overpressure that pushed, tumbled and tore apart any object in the path of the blast. People who were not crushed directly by the blast or the collapsing buildings were fried by the intense thermal radiation in the form of the wave of heated air that followed the blast. Fires broke out everywhere as the gas tanks of cars and cooking gas cylinders as well as wooden objects, carpets and curtains caught fire. First degree burns were received by people who were several kilometers from the blast center while those who were less than two kilometers away suffered third degree burns that often led to their excruciating death. Some had their retinas burned out by the thermal radiation while others were blinded by the intense flash of light. Those a little further away who happened to be in open areas received a dose of ionizing radiation that killed them instantly if they were lucky or agonizingly slowly if they were not.
The debris from the blast that were thrown sky-high fell back to earth. Some of the larger pieces hit people killing them straight away, others caused more collateral damage to property, but the worst part included highly radioactive fallout that covered a large area. Smaller particles of radioactive dust were carried by the dominant north-west winds towards Jordan and were deposited there by the unseasonal rain showers that also resulted from the blast. Due to the fact that the detonation took place at ground level the amount of radioactive fallout was much higher than that created by the atomic bombs that were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki which had been detonated several hundred meters above the ground. The large pieces fell quite close to the epicenter, forming an area of intense gamma and neutron radiation. The overall visual effects were somewhat like the 14 kiloton test shot Charlie that was carried out in Nevada in 1951, where the top of the mushroom cloud had a red-orange color caused by ionization of oxygen and nitrogen air molecules that formed nitrogen oxides.
People who saw the red color from a safe distance immediately associated it with blood and carnage, even without exact knowledge of the huge number of victims. Though the electromagnetic pulse caused by the bomb destroyed electronic devices within a radius of a few kilometers from the blast center, effectively cutting out all radio and electronic communications in the vicinity, a few landlines remained operational and conveyed the news of the devastation.
The first reports that an atomic explosion had taken place in the Old City of Jerusalem were sent almost simultaneously by satellites circling the Earth and by the network of seismic stations that monitored earthquakes and nuclear tests. Within less than 20 minutes unmanned drones of the IDF were circling above the area of the blast. The live photos they sent to the control room in Tel-Aviv were so shockingly clear that the normally vibrant atmosphere was replaced by a complete ghastly silence. After a few minutes some of the battle hardened officers wiped tears from the corner of their eyes and got down to business.
The first call of the day was to check whether the chain of command was still operating. The air force colonel in charge of the control room updated the emergency room in the underground bunker of IDF general command center. He was relieved to hear that the Minister of Defense and Prime Minister were on a tour of Israel's northern border on the Golan Heights and were accompanied by the IDF Chief of Staff and most of the senior officers of the General Staff. Just before boarding the helicopter that would fly him back to Tel Aviv the PM made a statement that was issued to all the local and international news agencies denouncing the heinous crime that was perpetrated in the Old City of Jerusalem that was sacred to all monotheistic religions. He particularly emphasized that the Wailing Wall, the holiest site of Judaism was targeted and expressed his grief that the same fate had included the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and the mosques on Temple Mount and wondered aloud who would be behind such a sacrilegious act.
David and "The Fish" were on their way to Jerusalem to check the extra security measures that were put in place after Ollie got away from the roadblocks the previous evening. They were listening to the radio when reception of the Voice of Israel from Jerusalem was suddenly replaced by static noise. They were near Latrun, about 30 kilometers from Jerusalem, when this happened and couldn't figure out what had happened until they saw the mushroom cloud rise rapidly above the Judean Hills in the direction they were heading. With great difficulty David managed to control the car and pull up by the side of the road without being rammed by other motorists that continued towards Jerusalem without understanding what lay ahead. Without another word, "The Fish" and David exchanged a glance and found an interchange on the highway that enabled them to turn the car around and head back to Tel Aviv travelling at a high speed with lights flashing.
After a few moments "The Fish" and David slightly recovered from the shock and deliberated where they should go first — the Mossad, ISA or directly to the Ministry of Defense and IDF headquarters that were both located in the Kirya complex in the heart of Tel Aviv. By the time they reached the entrance to Tel Aviv the radio had come back to life informing all listeners about the detonation of an atomic bomb in Jerusalem and warning people to get as far away from there as possible. They noticed that all traffic heading towards Jerusalem had stopped and the drivers were searching for a gap in the divider fence to turn around. The chaos was unimaginable and the situation got worse due to the number of accidents that blocked Highway 1, the main road connecting Jerusalem to the rest of the country, so that traffic on the busy highway was essentially at a standstill and no police cars were on hand to control the traffic.
However, by then David and "The Fish" had arrived at the Kirya and flashing their Mossad and ISA IDs were quickly allowed to enter the parking lot. They rushed to the tower of the Ministry of Defense and saw the officials running to and fro like beheaded chickens. They made their way to the floor where the Minister of Defense had his office and were showed in to the office of the Special Assistant for Unconventional Security who told them that the PM, Minister of Defense and Chief of Staff were already airborne in a helicopter that was expected to land within 10 minutes. The three dignitaries, accompanied by a posse of bodyguards, entered the office and immediately summoned David and "The Fish" for a report. They had already received several updates about the situation in Jerusalem and the emergency response teams were already set in motion but they now wanted to know who was responsible. Meanwhile the head of the ISA and head of Mossad had also arrived and stood peevishly with their subordinates knowing that they were in the line of fire.
After hearing about the events of the last 24 hours and the failed manhunt to catch Ollie the cynical politicians were already playing the "blame game" and looking for a culprit. Unfortunately for them this time they could not put the blame on their favorite scapegoats in the opposition political parties so the obvious offender responsible for the catastrophe was now the ISA that was in charge of the operation to stop Ollie and the bomb. The attribution and disclosure of the people and organization that actually detonated the improvised nuclear device were important, of course, but secondary to considerations of political survival. So the heads of government were now dividing their focus among three fronts: dealing with the extensive damage and the public panic was the top priority, next came finding excuses for the terrible sloppiness of the security services and those responsible, and finally designating the perpetrators and taking revenge.