Ron Madden, Enewetak Atoll (1978-79) 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 Ron Madden

Branch: Army MOS: 62E-20, NCOIC Location: Lowja Year: 1978-79

Quote: “There’s so much to talk about but so little to say. People tend to think you are just rattling on and they lose interest if you speak longer than a minute or two. "

“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.

“My unit was out of Ft. Bragg and we were chosen for duty based on our MOS. Before we went down to the Marshall Islands, we really didn’t know anything about the potential radiation issues.”

“As far as describing our safety equipment, there really wasn’t any protective gear to speak of. We wore cutoffs, jungle boots and maybe a shirt. We had no banana suits. They had respirators we could wear but they were pretty much useless.”

“I started having health problems about six years after I returned home. This was around 1985. The people in healthcare have basically blown me off whenever I’ve spoken about ionizing radiation.”

“The Internet has made a big difference in getting us all back in contact with one another. Enewetak really happened. It wasn’t just me. I’ve been on line and found out how so many other people were having health problems. Enewetak is the common denominator.”

“Our own government put us into a hazardous situation and today, all these years later, it seems like they really never cared about what the outcome was going to be. In hindsight, maybe we should have spoken up sooner but we didn’t know what we didn’t know. Forty years ago, we were all just a bunch of teenagers, young guys serving our country.”

“They always had to transport our meals to us over on Janet. They unloaded our food and other supplies in the same hot zones we were working to ‘clean’. We had to go right down through the middle of it all to pick up our meals. We didn’t know it at the time, but we were basically eating the stuff that would prove to be so dangerous years later. It was a twenty-four seven situation. It was ridiculous.”

“There’s so much to talk about but so little to say. People tend to think you are just rattling on and they lose interest if you speak longer than a minute or two. So many people’s hands are tied. Until Congress changes anything, that’s just the way it’s going to be. It’s been like this since we were there almost forty years ago: a huge waste of time. Until Congress steps up to help, we are stuck. You can’t make this stuff up. Anybody who has served in the military knows what our government tends to do. We aren’t the only ones. Send in the engineers! They’ll take care of it. But who’s going to take care of us? At least we tried.”

"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.”

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