1380.
—.
FALLOUT FROM NUCLEAR WEAPONS TESTS
INTRODUCTION.
Pollowing the detcnation of a thermonuclear device at the Pacific Test Site
on l March 1954, 2390 Marshallese people were exposed to significant levels of
gemma radjution from
lout.
Estimated total exposures ranged from 175r on
Rongelap to l4r un Utieak (2).
These pepulati ons were evacuated to Kwajalein for cecontaniraticon and care.
During the two
tuys
*
Tavlout exposure befcre evacuation vas campleted,
the
Marshallese aiso rene’. ed scme r6dtcactine satertals internally by ingestion and
iohalaticn.
Zotinatese
from the unalysis (1)
i
the intermal budy Prurcen from fallout vere cbtained
vf urine samples collected soon after exposure.
These data indicev:d that the acute huzard from internally deposited fission
fragments wis quite oaall
os cuxpared to whe whole body gamma ridciavion exposure.
Although the rodicunct...ty levels in the urine were low,
suffictent to train ..sccnable preeision and
the activity was
to warrant additicnal long tern
studies of the setiv.vy l.vels and cxereticn vatterms of this rather large and
well isolated population.
Tue p-vple from
tm June 1954
A°inginse and Utirik were returned to their hance islands
Radiation {atensities on Rongelap,
however, prectuded an early
return tu thés atoll aut the Rongelap people lived on Maguro from June 1954 until
July 1957.
Basic data on the focd crops of theFarsballese indicated that after
resettlement on the ccoutamtizated atolls intake of etrontium?? vould be increased
considerably, and that cesiun*3?,
zinc®S,
and cobalt were dietary constituents
of island and ocean foodstuffs, and also would be assimilated (2).
The expected
imcreases in the trace c.counts of rudionuclides in the food supply of a Large
population would afford an opportunity to investigate the rate of equilibration
and the discriatn.tion fxctors operating between food supply and man.
Urinary