Nevertheless, he was already a sick man. He had gotten more than gas at Bill Hapscomb’s Texaco. And he gave Harry Trent more than a speeding summons.
-- Narrator (Chapter 8)

Importance: Joe Bob Brentwood, the state trooper, contracted the superflu from Hapscomb when he stopped to warn him that people from Atlanta were on their way to Arnette because of Campion. As a result, Joe Bob was contagious and gave the disease to everyone he came in contact with, including Harry Trent to whom he gave a speeding ticket.

At 11:16, the WBZ transmitter was shut down permanently with twenty pounds of plastique. / Palmer and the others on the sixth floor were summarily executed on charges of treason to their government, the United States of America.
-- Narrator (Chapter 26)

Importance: To keep Palmer from continuing to transmit the truth about the superflu, the military used dynamite to blow up the television station’s transmitter, taking it permanently off...