The Opinion Pages | NY Times - Letters Help Veterans Who Were Exposed to Radiation - Public Input -
To the Editor:
Re “Veterans Feel Cost of U.S. Nuclear Tests” (front page, Jan. 29):
In 1956, I was in the Army stationed on Enewetak, an atoll in the Pacific. Unlike the military men stationed there between 1977 and 1980, we were always warned about impending dangers. But incorrectly.
We were told that everyone would receive radiation goggles to protect our eyes (or we’d go blind). One of my jobs was to requisition items needed for the tests, which included goggles. I was instructed to cancel the order for enlisted men (though not officers) to make room on the planes for new furniture for the colonel’s house.
We were told to face away from the mushroom cloud to protect our eyes before Test 1 (Codename: Lacrosse) of Operation Redwing in May 1956. The pilot hit the wrong target, and the bomb exploded in front of us (sans goggles).
We were informed that there would never be fallout on Enewetak. There were many such instances. Each time, we were instructed over loudspeakers to go inside immediately and close all windows tightly. But the aluminum windows were defective and wouldn’t close.
We were told before the tests began that the island would be evacuated if radiation levels were higher than 3.9 roentgens. When that happened, the allowable dose was increased to 7 roentgens.
I saw Navy men arrive at the island hospital after cleaning up contaminated islands. I saw them leave in body bags.
MICHAEL HARRIS
New York
The writer is the author of “The Atomic Times: My H-Bomb Year at the Pacific Proving Ground.”
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To the Editor:
In the late 1970s, a young soldier in my Army unit shared his experiences cleaning up radiated islands in the South Pacific. He said that for six months the daily duty uniform was a T-shirt, gym shorts, sun hat and combat boots.
His most chilling account, and one that has stayed with me for 37 years, concerns a visit to the island by a United States congressman. Though the G.I.s were in their duty uniforms, the congressman, who was there for only a few hours, was outfitted in the anti-radiation “spacesuit” denied to the troops.
This same soldier got testicular cancer a year after telling us this story. Coincidence? I think not. He was 22 years old.
Shame on our government and the Department of Veterans Affairs for their criminal disregard for the medical care of our soldiers and veterans. If our new president really wants to make America great again, he can start by ensuring medical care for ailing veterans who have been denied treatment for so long.
WORTH CHRISTIAN
Long Valley, N.J.
