1 * agp
1 December 1978
Mr. W. J. Stanley
Director, Pacific Area Support Office
Deparlcant of Energy
P.O.3. 23929
.
Honalulu, Hawaii 96820
Sey
Dear Bill,
Taig letter is in response to a telephona requast I received from
Hafty Brown lata yesterday afternoon. regardingmy. opinions.aa to the feasibiliry
ofsmall helicoptor eupport fer the Medical Survey of the Marshall Islands.
As background for the following discussions, I'd like to restate an
opinion which I think we hava discussed previously im your office, pertainin.
to the long-range logistic plans for the BNL medical survey.
First, it wauil
appear than sometina in the near'future that the geographic area assigned to
BNL might expand appreciably, i.e., to imclude the people of Bikini and Eatiyestok.
This dacision ts pending at DOE/DOI. Thia, of course, would tremendously
enlarze the geographic area to ba covered by the médical survey temas and would
prespent severe logiatic problems for slow shipboard eupport.
Aa we have
discuased in ths past, the pesasibility of establishing small independent
examining facilities on each of the islands and supporting these installations
by
be
be
to
aircraft certainly should be considered carefully. The type of aircrafc ta
used apain preaents a variety of optiota.
I understand that a PRY 5A will
available from the University of Hawaii.
I have no further information a‘
the
dates of availabiliry or priority for ita utilization by this program.
Another option which I have been considering ia the ultimate use of a
heavy helicopter of the SH-3 type that would have both the range and operating
charact#rigties necessary for outer island aupport. Both of these options
would greatly increase the facility with which wa could evacuate patients fron
the islanda in the event of medical emergencies.*
Of course, all of this is conjecture at this point until sone final
decision is made as to the Bihini and Eniwetok populations. Oncaea that deciston
haz been mada and we have some tdes of our future patient loading, I think wa
ought to hava a logiatic meetings to develop some short- and long-termsplans
concerning these optiona.