Four missiles are launched from container ships off the coast of the continental US. When the nuclear warheads detonate at 200km altitude in quick succession, a massive electromagnetic pulse (EMP) is unleashed. Five thousand civilian aircraft fall from the skies, three million pacemakers stop pumping, and the US power grid crashes...for good. Joe Tillman, an ex-SEAL and the senior watch officer for US Central Command (CENTCOM) watches the attack unfold in real time. Meanwhile, Eric and his fiancé are enjoying the view of a meteor shower from Crowder's Mtn. when they see the EMP flashes in the sky and the power blacks out across the Charlotte area. They watch as fires and explosions from falling jet liners erupt around them. Follow Joe and Eric as they flee from death and destruction in search of a safe haven; only to find that the chaos has followed them home. Officer of the Watch is the first installment of the Blackout series.