MEDICAL SURVEY OF THE PEOPLE OF RONGELAP AND UTIRIK ISLANDS NINE AND TEN YEARS AFTER EXPOSURE TO FALLOUT RADIATION . (MARCH 1963 AND MARCH 1964) Introduction radioactive contamination wasslight enough to allow safe habitation. Because Rongelap Atoll was considered to be too highly contaminated, a temporary village was constructed for the Rongelap people on Majuro Atoll several hundred miles to the south, where they lived for the following 3% years and were examinedatyearly intervals by a special medical team. In July 1957, after careful evaluation of the radioactive contaminationsituation, Rongelap Island was considered safe for Theresults of a medical survey of the people ofRongelap in the Marshall Islands, carried out in March 1963 and March 1964, 9 and 10 years after the accident, are presented in this report. These people had been accidentally exposedto fallout radiation following a detonation of a high yield thermonuclear device during experiments at Bikini in the Pacific Proving Grounds in March 1954. An unpredicted shift in winds caused a deposition of significant amountsoffallout on four inhabited Marshall Islandsto the east of Bikini (see Figure 1) and also on 23 Japanese fishermen aboardtheir fishing vessel, the Lucky Dragon. Of the inhabitants of the island of Rongelap, 105 nautical miles away from the detonation, 64 received the largest fallout exposure: an estimated dose of 175 rads of whole-body gammaradiation, ~ contamination of the skin sufficient to resultiy beta burns, andslight internal absorption of radioactive materials through inhalation and ingestion. Another 18 Rongelap people away on a nearby island (Ailingnae), where less fallout occurred,received only an external gammadose of about 69 rads. There were 28 American servicemen on the island of Rongerik further to the east who received — about the same amountof radiation as did the” Rongelap people on Ailingnae. Lastly,” 157 Marshallese on Utirik Island, about 200 miles fur- . ther east, received about an estimated 14 rads of whole-bodyradiation. The fallout was notvisible on this island and noskin effects developed. The exposed peopie were evacuated from these islands by plane and ship about two daysafterthe. accident and taken to Kwajalein Naval Base about - 150 miles to the south, where they received exten- habitation. A new village was constructed, and the Rongelap people were moved there by Navyship. The annual medical surveys have since been carried out on RongelapIsland. A group of more than 100 Rongelap people, whowererelatives of the exposed people but had been awayfrom theisland at the time of the accident, moved back with the Rongelap people to their home island and have served as an ideal comparison population for the studies. This number hassince increased to about 200. Following the initial survey of the Utirik people on Kwajalein in 1954, a repeat survey wascarried out in March 1957. In addition, during the past survey, 8 - yews allowed to retu their home island, where s60b 1384 - - Vv ws Q 8 sive examinationsfor the following three months. In view of the generally negative findings on the American servicemen, they were later returned to their duty stations. The Utirik people were also Q. o Figure 1. Mapof Fallout Area (March 1, 1954), MarshallIslands. ° maura SS