3
being returned tothese islands. It became apparent that a special vessel was needed. and in 1973
the AEC arranged for the Army to provide an
LCU (landingcraft utility) based and maintained
at Kwajalein (with AEC funding). This vessel,
though small andslow, has the distinct advantage
that it can be beached,so that ship-to-shore trans-
fer of equipment and personnel by small boatis
unnecessary. Three 30-ft air-conditionedtrailers
have been placed on the tank deck, one equipped
as a “sleeper,” one containing a whole-body
counter (shadow-shield lead assembly and elec-
tronic equipment), aid oneset up forclinical ex-
aminations with a doctor’s office, a small labora-
tory, and an x-rayfacility. The LCU with these
trailers is now in full use and affords tremendous
improvements in the operations.
Examinationfacilities at Utirik consist of several
Butler-type buildings left by a weather station
group. On Rongelap several examinationtrailers
have beeninstalled so that the schoolhouse need
no longer be used. Examinations mailers have also
been installed on Ebeye and Majuro.
Major events in the Marshall Islands related to
thesurveys, including the political problems of the
past few years, are summarized in Appendix 1.
Before and after each survey, village meetings
have always been held on Rongelap and Uurik to
inform the people ofthe objectives of the examinations, the findings, and recommended treatments.
Because of the language barrier, the people did
not always understand the need for the examinations, or their results. Every effort is now being
madeto correct this. Preparation of a questionand-answer booklet on the effects of the fallout
and treatment on the Rongelap and Utirik people
was recommended by the Congress of Micronesia;
such a booklet has been printed at BNLfor the
Trust Territory Health Services andis being distributed; it should do muchto correct manyof the
former misconceptions (see Appendix 4).
During the 20 years covered by these reports
drastic changes have occurred in the Marshall
Islands District.
The population more than doubled from 1948
to 1973, the total going from ~ 10,000 to ~ 25,000.
The increases were most dramatic on Majuro (going from 1,200 to 10,300) and on Ebeye (going
from 750 to 5,000). On the outerislands the total
population changed less (Rongelap, 100 to 167;
Uuirik, 126 to 217), but the age distribution became abnormal. Young adults have gravitated to-
ward the district centers, and the ‘homeislands”
are left with children and old people. A recent survey on Rongelap showedthat of its 167 people,
115 were <15 years old and 30 were >50. The
flux is great: during any givenfield trip up to 30
people maybearriving orleaving.
The district has opened up to foreign travel.
Majuro hasa jet airport, paved roads,electricity,
and telephones. Expectations are rising, and when
public services fail to keep pace with increasing
demand. dissatisfaction is more vocal.
~":e atmospheric bomb tests ended in 1958.
Kwajalein was abandoned as a Navy Base in 1960
and was made part of the Army’s missile test
range. For the visiting medical teams, loss of Navy
assistance in transportation has increased the
logistic problems, but the continuing supportof
the ArmyBasehas been invaluable.
The people of Rongelap and Utirik have always
been most friendly and cordial to the medical
team. Except for political interference with the
1972 examinations, the people have always been
cooperative.
ll. Initial Findings
A. DOSE ASSESSMENT
1. Source
The radiation exposure of the Marshallese was
due entirely to fallout, since the detonation site
was too far awayfor thermal, blast, or direct irradiation effects. (In constrast, direct effects were re-
sponsible for all the injuries from the atomic bombs
in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, with little or nofallout.) The fireball from the 1954 Bravo device,
detonated from a tower, touched the surface of the
earth at Bikini, and large amounts of material
were drawn up and mixed with fission products in
the bombcloud. Because of an unpredicted shift
in the winds in the upper atmosphere,fallout was
deposited in a cigar-shaped area 20 to 40 miles
wide extending ~ 200 miles to the east of Bikini
(see Figure 1). The radioactivity was duetofission
products and some neutron-inducedisotopes; the
fallout containedlittle fissile material. The radiation was therefore almost entirely from gamma
andbeta rays of varying energy from numerous
fission radioisotopes. The time after detonation
whenfallout began was estimated as 4 to 6 hr at
Rongelap, ~7 hr at Rongerik, and 22 hr at Utirik