Barry Baity, Enewetak Atoll (1978) Glimmer of Lights

Introducing a series of narrative articles about the Atomic Cleanup Veterans of Enewetak Atoll.

The following are first-hand accounts told by comparatively few survivors of the Enewetak Atoll Atomic Debris Cleanup Mission, Marshall Islands; a mission that took place from 1977-1980. Their stories appear as told to T-M Fitzgerald(published author, veteran, veteran advocate) because theirs are tales needing to be known.

Read - H.R. 5980: Mark Takai Atomic Veterans Healthcare Parity Act.

Introduction: “Where in the World is Enewetak?”

Enewetak is just one of many atolls and islands in the Pacific Ocean’s Marshall Island chain. Located about 2,365 nautical miles SW of Hawaii (just north of the equator), the Marshall Islands were once a major testing ground for nuclear weapons post WWII. This island chain is also home to the project called Cactus Dome, a 350’- wide blast crater located at the northern end of Runit Island that has become known as the ‘Nuclear Trashcan of the Pacific.’

Between 1948-58, forty-three nuclear weapons were detonated over Enewetak and its sister islands. Among these tests were ‘Ivy Mike’ and ‘Castle Bravo’ (a device 1000X as powerful as the bomb ‘Little Boy’ which was dropped on Hiroshima, Japan post Pearl Harbor.)

In 1977, a coalition of United States military forces and civilian support teams were sanctioned to ‘clean’ the islands of residual radioactive fallout. Men, many who were mere teenagers back in the day, were tasked with cleaning the contaminated fallout from the nuclear testing that occurred throughout the previous three decades. Keep in mind, that as recent as 2012, the United Nations reported that the cumulative effects from all that nuclear testing had effectively caused near-irreversible environmental contamination. There was a problem beginning in 1977 and currently, effects from that exposure have begun to manifest, taking toll on many surviving Enewetak vets and contractors today. Four decades later, survivors are telling their stories because the world needs to know.

Personal story by Barry Baity

Branch: Army MOS: 12B Location: Enewetak Year: 1978

Quote: “I would like for people to know that the guys who went to Enewetak in the late 70’s are having the same type of problems as the original Atomic Veterans had/are having and we should be given the same recognition and benefits as well.”

“I am but one of a few of the survivors of the 1977-1980 Enewetak Atoll Atomic Debris Cleanup Mission that took place in the Marshall Islands.

“A major focus of this group has been to help one another with information and moral support during some of the challenging times we’ve encountered following our time in service at Enewetak.”

A secondary focus/goal is to urge Congress to change current law and recognize Cold War Era soldiers and contractors of the Enewetak Cleanup Mission as “veterans and workers who participated in radiation-risk activities during active service.”

By obtaining their second goal, individuals experiencing health complications resulting from radiation exposure at Enewetak Atoll will be eligible to apply for funds that have previously been set-aside for other Atomic Veterans who have already been recognized and acknowledged for their service.

“I had heard of the Marshall Islands; Bikini Atoll anyway. Not so much about Enewetak. I guess before I was even sent down there, I knew we were going to be cleaning up after a bunch of atomic tests. I remember we were told not to worry about radiation, that we’d not be exposed to anything more than what we’d get from the sun.”

“I was trained as a 12B but when I was sent down there, I worked demolition on Medrin, Japtan, and Enewetak. Sometimes I went out and just picked up scrap and loaded it on trucks. We weren’t issued any protective gear. We were supposedly safe. They said all we had to worry about was plutonium dust. Well, after I heard that, I didn’t feel very good about the place. They never gave us dust masks or anything. We were told so long as we didn’t disturb the dirt, we’d be fine. Well, they were scraping dirt and we had munitions going off at times. They tried figuring out which way the winds were blowing, but you know, it didn’t matter. All the islands were contaminated.”

”I didn’t really know anything was going on worth worrying about. One day, this guy came out there, I don’t know who he was or who he was supposed to be with, but when he told us about plutonium, he didn’t give a whole lot of other information. That didn’t settle well with me. Years later when I went to the VA about my hearing issues, I didn’t know if my time down there had anything to do with the problems I was having or not. I didn’t know if anybody else was having any kind of issues or what.”

“When I tried to dispute a claim denial from the VA, my wife was became concerned and encouraged me to look into what else I could do. The whole idea of ionizing radiation caused her to start worrying and so she pushed me into looking into what I could find out about anything. You know, we dumped a lot of contaminated stuff into the lagoons. I swam in the one at Enewetak.“

“I’ve tried getting copies of my old medical records but the government has sent me next to nothing. Most recently, I sent for some paper work and they said I didn’t sign some paper or other, and I know I did but I signed another one and sent it back. I’m still waiting for a reply on that one. My DD214 didn’t show any of my TDY orders on it, but I stopped at the little clinic on Enewetak a few times for things and luckily, the little rubber stamp they used to stamp things on my papers showed that I was there.”

“When I went initially, I didn’t even know it was any kind of secret duty. That fact definitely doesn’t work to our benefit, but if I could get a message across to people today about our mission back then, I would like for people to know that the guys who went to Enewetak in the late 70’s are having the same type of problems as the original Atomic Veterans had/are having and we should be given the same recognition and benefits as well.”

"The primary focus for this group is to urge Congress to change legislation and recognize soldiers of this seemingly forgotten cleanup mission as “veterans who participated in radiation-risk activities during active service.”

Follow our cause: Atomic Veterans of Enewetak Atoll