The 52 special

Star City Disaster

by Ron Troupe – Daily Planet Senior Staff Reporter

STAR CITY, MAY 15 — With smoke still hanging in the skies above Star City, and federal disaster relief bogged down by bureaucratic entanglements, local authorities are turning to the surrounding communities for aid in an ongoing rescue operations. 

“Of course we’re searching the rubble for clues, but at this point we’re concentrating the majority of our efforts on finding people that might be hurt or trapped” said a visibly shaken Fire Chief Garman at a press conference yesterday. 

The routine hustle and bustle of an otherwise normal day in downtown Star City was shattered early Wednesday when an explosion incinerated a building on the Northeast corner of Amsterdam Avenue. Initially thought to be a ruptured gas line, municipal repair crews were evacuated when a second explosion rocked Amsterdam Avenue 52 minutes later. Responding quickly to the threat, Star City Fire & Rescue and the S.C.P.D., in conjunction with super hero Black Lightning, worked tirelessly to both contain the damage and rescue trapped civilians. Star City’s resident super hero, Green Arrow, was nowhere to be found and unconfirmed reports indicate that he may have been caught in the blast. 

Unfortunately the biggest shock of the evening was yet to come as moments after the second blast a series timed explosions systematically leveled dozens of buildings through the heart of Star City along the Amsterdam corridor.  

While officials would not speculate as to the number of casualties, a unidentified source within the Mayors administration said “It’s real bad. It’s like the city was sliced in half!”  

It seems as if Star City’s geography wasn’t the only thing rocked by the detonations. As activist groups decry the federal response time and local politicians engage in a blatant partisan blame game, the political situation in Star City is volatile. Exactly how this will affect the ongoing rescue and rebuilding efforts remains to be seen.