Uranium Contaminates Camp Lejeune NBC Suits

Jacksonville Daily News ^ | November 20,2003 | ERIC STEINKOPFF

[blackbag]

Two sets of protective suits contaminated by radiation in Kuwait are in a box at Camp Lejeune awaiting proper disposal, military officials said Wednesday.

The suits, used by troops for protection from nuclear, biological or chemical substances, were exposed to depleted uranium when troops were cleaning tanks during the war with Iraq. The gear, commonly called NBC suits in the military, were shipped to Lejeune in a box.

The radiation was detected by Marines from 2nd Maintenance Battalion, 2nd Force Service Group when the box was opened at Lejeune. How long and how many Marines were exposed to the radiation was not immediately reported. Military officials did not say when the box arrived at Lejeune or when it was opened.

There were no reported injuries.

Capt. Teresa Ovalle, a Camp Lejeune spokeswoman, said it was likely that the Marines knew the suits were possibly contaminated and took steps to protect themselves.

According to a release from Camp Lejeune Public Affairs, the Marines closed the box after finding a low level of Alpha radiation. The suits were returned to the box, and it was resealed to prevent any further contamination.

Alpha radiation cannot penetrate the skin, but can be harmful to humans if it is inhaled, swallowed or absorbed through open wounds, the release said.

Depleted uranium is used in some armor-piercing weapons and to strengthen some types of armor, but officials could not explain how or why the radioactive substance was present in sufficient strength to cause contamination.

"Appropriate steps are being taken to ensure the box is properly processed for disposal as regulations dictate," the release said. Military officials could not explain what those steps might be, how the suits would be disposed or what regulations govern such a situation.

Radiation detection specialists with the North Carolina Department of Natural Resources said it was not under their jurisdiction because the box is on federal property. Public affairs spokesmen at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and U.S. Department of Energy said that the Department of Defense likely has its own program.

Public affairs spokesmen at Marine Headquarters and at Department of Defense headquarters could not explain what is required in such a situation by press time.

[TrueBeliever9]

The article does not state to whom the tanks belonged. As you know quite a few soldiers were flown to Germany and one died from exposure to "unknown" substance.

[Pan_Yans Wife]

ping

[blackbag]

This was purported to have come from cleaning the interrior of some tanks

[Darksheare]

Interesting.

[Squantos]

Nothin to see move along....just an old coleman lantern mantle left in the supply system........:o)

[.cnI redruM]

Sounds like an urban legend. Sort of like the soldiers who tried to sue for cancer from the tritium in the old compasses.

[mark502inf]

The suits, used by troops for protection from nuclear, biological or chemical substances, were exposed to depleted uranium when troops were cleaning tanks during the war with Iraq. There were no reported injuries.

Better be careful. It doesn't affect you right away, but over time it seems to have significant adverse health impacts. In 90-91 I was around a lot of depleted uranium, both before it was fired and then on the vehicles the DU rounds hit. Since then, I've noticed that my hair has gone gray, I've gained weight, I don't hear quite as well, my knees creak, its getting hard for me to read things up close, and there's even another problem that only my wife has noticed. I'm afraid to see what another 15 years will bring.

[theFIRMbss]

>Better be careful. It doesn't affect you right away, but over time it seems to have significant adverse health impacts.

In another thread,
a poster put up e-mail
from a real soldier:

"... One of them went off as an air burst near the main parking lot about 1,000 yards from the Presidential Palace. There were about 100 vehicles in the lot at that time of night, 20 vehicles were damaged, and no gas tanks exploded. Obviously, they are just pointing the rockets in the general direction and hoping they'll hit something. That's typical of the gang that can't shoot straight. ..."

If our troops become
indifferent to air bursts, then
I hope somebody

checks routinely for
all kinds of contaminants --
Maybe the bad guys

aren't such bad shots.
Maybe the bad guys know that
our troops rotate home

fairly often and
attacks on troops in Iraq
could get carried home.

I'm probably just
paranoid, but terror nuts
might think this stuff through...

[Matthew James]

They told us during Desert Storm that being on an M1A1 tank all day, fully uploaded, was the equivalent of one chest x-ray and therefore nothing to worry about. In fact, that's just about what the briefing amounted to: "Nothing to see here...move along..."

Hmmm... So, one day on the tank is "only" like one chest x-ray... Sooo . . . six months on-board the tank...

[xzins]

Does this article ring any bells for you?

[Blueflag]

Doesn't really ring any bells.

The only uranium in the M1-A1/A2 arsenal is in the rod of the sabot round. That rod is not exposed to the crew in the hull, in handling or the gun tube (during the firing process) so there is no obvious path from sabot rod to the interior of the tank.

Now, *IF* a US tank (or two) took friendly fire from a DU round -- from a Bradley -- which is not impossible cause they sometimes 'dust off' gomers from around the tanks, then it makes sense for the exerior of the tanks to get DU on them. IF/when the crews then opened the hatches and vents, the interior would of course get that fine dust inside. It would likely stick to everything. It's not like they hose down the inside of the hull in Iraq with carwash soap. So my point is that to me, the likely source of DU contamination is an external source -- the Bradleys (likely) or an errant sabot round (unlikely). To a smaller extent, the A-10s contribute to battlefield contamination as well. Have to look at numbers of total rounds expended per weapons system, or just rounds out of inventory.

There is the issue of "life dose" -- rads -- from exposure to ionizing radiation. Since FR likes to deal with facts, I'd hold off on any fear mongering and tinfoil hat polishing until we have some idea of the exposure level and duration of the crew members. It may turn out that my life dose from flying at FL 40 is worse than what these tankers got. People fear radiation out of a mixture of good sense and ignorance.

Today's X-ray machines employ far less radiation per image than the old dentist chair technician-must-wear-a-lead-shield-and-leave-the-room monsters. So comparing the exposure to "1 X-ray" leaves a lot of room for hyperbole. Again, while caution is warranted, let's wait on more facts.

net: The M1-A1 and M2/M3 are not inherently harmful to the crews because they carry DU munitions. The battlefield environment is made more hazardous by the use of DU, but likely minimally so. Contrast the hazard level of a battlefield environment where our tankers cannot engage at long range and see-first-kill-first because the rounds are not DU. WE save our troops in part becasue our DU munitions can kill at long range AND kill what they hit.

Imagine the fuss if we used lead or mercury (or other heavy metals) in our munitions ... ;-)

[xzins]

Blue, thanks for your expertise. I knew I could count on you. I agree.

If they used ANY other heavy metal, they'd be vilified just as badly, if not worse.

Our rounds save the lives of our troops BECAUSE our rounds are designed to kill the enemy.

[toddst]

Imagine the fuss if we used lead or mercury (or other heavy metals) in our munitions ... ;-)

Don't we use lead in munitions? I thought all standard small-arms bullets were lead core with guilding metal extreriors. Lead dust is essentually the same in potential for harm as depleted uranium (heavy-metal dust.) Sounds like much fuss about nothing.

[Blueflag]

My point exactly -- people 'fear' radioactivity because they are ignorant of its actions and lethalities.

High levels of heavy metals in the metabolism of any homeotherm (warm-blooded animal) are ALWAYS harmful, so yes, lead, mercury, most of the "unobtaniums" in munitions are all bad stuff in the environment. But, I would bet you that the millions of batteries we throw away in our trash are far worse tha all the munitions spilt on the earth.

If folks really understood how TOXIC plutonium is, they would understand the real and persistent threat of a 'dirty' bomb. Makes arsenic look like a piker.