We had endured the agony of Christmas Island for ten months now, and still had another two to go before the full year was up when we would be posted elsewhere, Me to Malaya, and Paddy back to UK.
Left to right: Paddy, Richard Bonas, Sam Moir The picture was taken after the C.O.’s inspection of the new wooden billets 1959, we had lived in tents prior to this. Problem, full of bed bugs! The tents were not as bad.
The picture was taken after the C.O.’s inspection of the new wooden billets 1959, we had lived in tents prior to this. Problem, full of bed bugs! The tents were not as bad.
It would have been in October 1959, exactly one year since the last H Bomb Tests had been carried out at South East Point* that the information declaring this Bomb Site to be an Open Area and safe to visit was contained in Part Two Orders and displayed for all to read. It was compulsory to read “Orders” daily, and God help any man who didn’t!
So, one evening soon after, Paddy and me took a truck up to this safe area to have a look at what H Bombs could do. Arriving at South East Point and looking around there wasn’t much TO see really, except some rusting twisted scaffolding poles, the remains of what had been some sort of platform and a burnt out generator or two and Army vehicles in a similar condition.
I did notice however that the whole area was slightly “dished” with low ridges running out from the centre of the dish. Rather like as if a giant’s hands had scraped out a shallow depression and leaving small ridges where his fingers had scraped outwards from the centre point Strange. Also, any small bushes left were stunted and blackened as if from fire. More interesting to us as we walked around dressed in boots, socks, shorts and floppy hats, was the variety of strangely misshapen pieces of rock with unusual colours of metallic greens, blues, yellows etc. which we in our innocence picked up and studied closely, saying things like “Look at this one, see what a funny colour it’s gone”. “Cor, yes, so it has”. And so on.
There were no notices to warn the unwary. There was no concrete covering of the area, and the site was not fenced off. It was an Open Area and safe to walk on. Part Two Orders had said so hadn’t they? Who were we to question Orders? Of course we knew that “Radiation” was bad and could make a man sterile – there were plenty of jokes about that on the Island. But we were told that the doses were so small as to be “quite harmless” and we believed it. So much so that it wasn’t until the late 1970’s whilst talking to an experienced senior member of The Royal Observer Corps, whose main task would be to measure radiation and nuclear fallout in the event of a nuclear war, that I began to realise the enormity of what Paddy and I had done. Many others too, no doubt. I then related these events to the solemn-faced ROC officer who listened carefully and replied, “You must have had a massive dose of radiation, Richard”.
What does this Bomb Site look like now? Is it fenced off? Are there warning notices erected to keep people away? Is the whole area under several feet of concrete as it should be? I for one would be very interested to know!
Sorry, but I cannot now recall Paddy’s surname, but I do recall he was an Ulsterman and about my age of 21.
Richard Bonus, ex REME.
If anybody can identify Paddy, please let us know and we will pass the information onto Richard.
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I found the story very interesting having served at Christmas Island during the experiments testing the Atomic, and Hydrogen bombs the year before. My case is to be heard at the Upper Tribunal later this year. I have already been to four ‘First Tier’ Tribunals, three in Edinburgh and one in London. My last case was in Edinburgh , there was a Judge , but no person for the Ministry of Defence. They WON the case. I was expecting to have a court case in June 2018 in London, it was held in an office at the back of Fox Court where the Public and Press were not invited. Fortunately, I met a Friend at the Court (pre-arranged) and he was permitted to join me. One could excused for considering these cases to be a ‘Kangaroo’ Court. The Judges have twice given directions for the ‘Original Compendium of Radiation Film Badges for Operation Zulu’ to be presented to Court. This ‘Direction’ has been ignored.
My task was to assist the AWRE during the two atomic bombs ‘Pennant’ and ‘Burgee’. I went into Ground Zero two hours after the detonation of these bombs and collected all the radioactive debris scattered around, load it into my vehicle and deliver it to the decontamination centre at ‘B’ site. My QFE dosimeter was at its maximum of 5 Roentgens per hour (50 mSvs). During my time at Ground Zero (2 1/2 hrs) my dose was 12 1/2 r (125 mSvs). Mr Cockerill, the AWE Dosimetry Manager, allotted me with 2.4 mSv for my entire tour. I have requested that Cockerill attend my case for ‘Cross Examination’. The Ministry of Defence have failed to comply.
I have a mass of information relating to my time at Christmas Island but, I am denied the crucial information. Mr Andrew Tranham, has denied me any answers to my Freedom of Information questions relating to radiation levels or Film badges.
There is a lot more that I could say regarding the refusal by the Ministry of Defence to supply information, the documents they have forged or altered.
As stated, I am awaiting a date for my case to be heard.
The story of veterans being ‘ordered’ to attend the nuclear bomb detonation locations is not only applicable to Christmas Island .
The same ‘Order’ was made by the Range Commander , an Australian Colonel , for all new arrivals to be taken without protective clothing to the bomb sites and allowed to walk into the bomb craters . All of which was assured as being perfectly safe . With the benefit of hindsight , shown by the subsequent legacy of ill health and premature deaths of veterans , the hazard to health was cynically ignored .
No account was taken of the hazard of accumulated residual alpha and beta fallout radioactive particle inhalation or ingestion.
Of course , we all now know , in the 1950’s and 60’s during the height of the cold war all servicemen attending nuclear test locations were part of an ‘indoctrination process ‘ the aim of which was to ensure that radiation posed no significant risk to health .This was a convenient and cynical lie given the fact that exposure to radiation can take 5 , 10 , 20 or more years to manifest genetic damage .
I attended Royal Engineer , David Whyte’s First Tier FOIA Tribunal in 2012 and his 2018 Foxes Court Hearing and can confirm his comments regarding the MoD’s bad faith and withholding of evidence to benefit nuclear veterans and widows claims is an irrefutable fact .