Washington, D.C. was hit early on in the Zombie Outbreak of 2010.
History[]
Washington, D.C. prior to the Zombie Outbreak.
Washington, D.C. was the capital of the United States of America before the massive Zombie assault. Formally known as the District of Columbia, Washington itself was a separate municipality within the territory of Columbia until an act of Congress in 1871 merged it with the territory into an entity called the District of Columbia. Washington was informally known as Washington, the District or D.C.
The District is located on the north bank of the Potomac River and is bordered by the states of Virginia to the southwest and Maryland to the other sides. The city had a resident population of 599,657; because of commuters from the surrounding suburbs, its population formerly rose to over one million during the workweek. The Washington Metropolitan Area, of which the District is a part, possessed a population of 5.4 million, the eighth-largest metropolitan area in the country.
Zombies 2010[]
In September of 2010, a deadly and disturbing epidemic of unknown origin quickly swept across the eastern United States, beginning near Washington, D.C. The reported symptoms within the first twenty-four hours of being affected by what came to be known as the '2010 Zombie Outbreak' included massive internal pain, skin irritation, chills, high fever, and severe, unbearable headaches. As the epidemic had no known cure, and its airborne status allowed it to spread so quickly, world governments were caught off guard. After 48 hours maximum, an individual affected by the 'Zombie Strain' would be killed by the unstable formula. However, the victims would not remain dead. Extreme stimulation of the glands and the usually inaccessible parts of the brain still partially functioning upon death would cause deceased victims to rise again after biological death. As blood vessels were beginning to recede from the skin surface (A side effect of the Zombie Strain), the person's 'reanimated' corpse would posses a weakened body structure and a deathly pale appearance. As the person they had once been was now dead, the body, now little more than a reacting piece of matter, would have no reasoning faculties and no longer be really human.
The Zombie Epidemic was in fact started at a private military development and research corporation facility, Shallingly. Shallingly was a privately funded chain of labs; their American branch specialized in biological warfare. They developed an unknown mutated organism which caused the Zombie strain to appear in humans from developing cells originally created as a rare disorder of human porphyrias.
Zombies in the streets of Washington.
Shallingly initially planned to sell the experimental weapon to the U.S. Military; the corporation aimed to net billions of dollars by providing the ultimate bio warfare strain. However, in September 2010, in Shallingly's Maryland location, an accident occurred when a airborne transport carrying several canisters of the manufactured and unstable strain in gas canisters crashed soon after it took off. The results would be calamity.
Shallingly's employees were the first to be affected by the spreading cloud of gas. The deadly cloud, carried by westerly wind currents, then moved east. Many people in Washington complained of physical illness. An outbreak occurred of what was assumed to be another common cold. However, in the end, conditions grew grave and all reported cases were fatal. By September 13, the dead were 'rising' from the morgues. Many in Washington attacked everything in sight, inciting chaos in the nation's capital.
By six PM that night the mall and most of Washington was overrun and the local law enforcement swamped. Around midday, SWAT teams attempted to barricade or blow out the bridges to Washington. However, only the Key Bridge was knocked down. Most of the government offices and important buildings have been abandoned to the creatures, with security teams for such facilities and soldiers retreating to larger structures to fight back. President Barack H. Obama of the United States and his entire Cabinet had already been evacuated through an emergency system to West Virginia by this point. From there, a plane took them safely out of uncertain territory to California.
The White House burning in the evening shortly after the President's evacuation.
It should be noted that the Defense Threat Reduction Agency has cut off Washington as part of its 'Contaminated Perimeter', abandoned (and officially doomed) territory in the United States. Contact with the capital has been lost since September 18.
Known Holdouts and Survivor Groups[]
- Holdout in the National History Museum
- Holdout in the Natural History Museum