Ove 1 Ot
Box
232
6
Ewa jelein,Merehall Islands 96555
REPOSITORY
Doe /;2A JO
°
COLLECTION
PeesIN
/
ff
Steve Muller
Editor
Loan Ebeye Rainin
Ebeye, Marshall Islands
Dear Mr. Editor:
EX.D4 #34
BOX No. LEB §
10 - MEb, ar. HALO
FOLOER
BEST COPYAVAILABLE
It was very interesting for me to read the story by J.A. in
the April 30, 1976 issue of the paper, The facts of what it was like
at Rongelap on the morning of March 1, 1954 are new to me.
However, there were some statements in the story which were
incorrect and I would like to explain.
When the people were brought to Kwajalein after that day, they
were told to bathe in the lagoon 3 times a day. This bathing was
important treatment to remove the radiation powder from their skin
and hair.
It was this powder touching their skin whi¢gh caused the
blisters like from a burn to appear on their bodies.
The doctors who examined the people at Kwajalein found it important
to take small amounts of blood from the people and test it to see if
the radiation had affected it.
The blood was not simply poured away.
Since 1954 a team of doctors for ERDA ( the new name for AEC),
lead by Dr. Robert Conard of Brookhaven National Laboratory, has
examined the Rongelap and Utirik people each year. Some people at
Utirik were also affected by the radiation from the bomb test on
March 1, 1954. There now is a doctor who lives at Kwajalein who
visits Rongelap and Utirk 4 times a year to examine the people. The
doctors have found the people to be generally healthy.
They have found
no poison from the bomb to be still in the bodies of the people.
Radiation causes siclmess it is true.
Some types of sickness occurred
right away like the burns and losing of hair.
Other types occurred
Blowly and did not appear for many years like the thyroid nodtles.
There is no longer any radiation poison in their bodies now causing
BicknNess.
It 1s not true that from 1954 until 1965 no medicine was available.
It was onlp in 1963 that the doctors first learned that the radiation
had caused injury to the thyroid glands of the people. The injury was
BO plow that it took 9 years for the swelling to appear in the people's
necks,
Synthroid is not a drug to cure the people,
It is a drug that
prevents thyroid nodules from developing. It is not true that the
people will die if they stop taking Synthroid. It 4s not true their
lives will be shortened if they forget it for t day.
I thank J.A. for his story.
mistakes. T
Ue
I hope this letter explains some
9US 543?
onalArtady, 7 3