09/21/2026
We got this message this morning and are excited to share it with anyone who is interested in the health effects of cleaning up radioactive debris from 43 atomic bomb blasts at Enewetak Atoll. Much appreciation goes to fellow Atomic Veteran Tex Burch for compiling this information from our Survivors Roster survey on our website at AtomicCleanupVets.com . It should be noted that (1) these results are from 888 participants responding; (2) There were 8,033 participants in our 1977-1980 Enewetak Atoll Atomic Cleanup Mission. So, this represents only 11% of our mission participants; (3) Some participants did not answer the health issues portion of the survey; (4) The survey did not ask about specific health challenges, so some health issues might not have been reported as being connected to radiation exposure. Especially teeth rot as evidenced in the Tooth Fairy studies from children of Atomic Test Era Veterans: (5) The number of mission participants who have died/survived since our mission who have not reconnected with us via our website. So, there are 7,145 mission participants who have died or are still living but have not participated in our survey.
From Tex Burch: "Ok. Been working on this (18 hours) since 2pm (yesterday). Total number of survivors reporting long term medical issues - 800. Members not providing answer to question were not included in gathered data.
Total reporting one or more issues: 476 (or 54% of responses)
Total reporting no medical issues: 324 (or 36% of responses)
Affected members: 59.5%
Unaffected members: 40.5%
Skin cancers, various: 21.6%
Organ cancers, various: 20.0%
Bone/ joint issues, various: 25.2%
Tooth loss/ jaw issues: 6.1%
( I believe this to be an underreported condition)
Cardio/ heart issues: 9.3%
Pulmonary/ lung issues: 11.2%
Kidney/ Thyroid/ Liver issues: 10.4%
Leg issues, arterial/veins/amputation: 1.1%
Neuropathy, hand or feet: 4.7%
Fertility/ Birth defect issues: 4.2%
Misc long term issues, various: 31.9%
These numbers indicate percent of members reporting issues, not the entire roster."
We encourage all mission participants to update their information as soon as possible. Especially those who gave not added their names to our survivors survey. This information helps our participants get much needed assistance from our Federal Legislators. Including but not limited to the PACT Act, the RECA Judgement, and Veterans Administration health care claims.
Roster of Known Survivors - Atomic Cleanup Vets https://share.google/qAqjkRwNNLWF9rlM5
