40 Years of Government Sponsored Ecological Terrorism

Joyce Riley vonKleist, RN BSN

Captain, USAF, inactive reserve

When beginning an investigation of any kind, one must accept the inevitability that when going through the process of "leaving no stone unturned", the resulting scatter of insects lead to other stones. Such is the case when it comes to the investigation of nuclear, chemical and biological exposures and the research and development of these insidious weapons of mass destruction.

While researching the history behind the Gulf War experiments, I have been stunned almost on a daily basis by the revelations of other experiments conducted by the Department of Defense and the CIA on the American civilian and military population. Our most recent discovery is the that the Department of the Army was conducting biological, chemical and nuclear experiments at Ft. Greeley, Alaska and the town of Delta Junction, Alaska.

The documentation for the information that follows was taken from a 60-page report that included maps, photos and charts I received in a brown manila envelope entitled:

Do not think that the date of 1976 automatically relegates this information to a place in the past. This document merely reports the military activities and involvement up to that time. Information received recently from the Ft. Greely area leads us to believe that the experiments conducted in the past have continued to the present and that they are now affecting the health and welfare of not only the military and indigenous peoples who reside in that geographical area, but also the animals who migrate through the test site. We have received reports from both the U.S. and Canadian authorities claiming there are dramatically increased incidences of cancer, thyroid conditions and other illnesses and are investigating the relationship to the U.S. initiated testing. The questions we're asking are: "Why are troops rotated in and out of Ft. Greely on a six to nine month basis? Why are we getting reports of Hashimoto's Thyroiditis and thyroid, spinal and brain cancers? Why are the Canadian people becoming sick after eating caribou and buffalo that migrate through the Ft. Greely area?"

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

During August 1976, a Records Research study was conducted at Fort Greely to estimate possible contamination at the Gerstle River Test Site by chemical, biological, and radiological material, and to assess the possibility of contaminants migrating beyond the boundaries of the installation. As a result of the records search survey, it was discovered that the same organization, which conducted the chemical agent tests at the Gerstle River area, also conducted biological agent tests at the Delta Creek area of Fort Greely, Alaska.

Those in charge of this project were Captain James Verney and Captain David Moss of the U.S.A. Cold Regions Test Center. They served as points of contact for the assessment. Also, Mr. Bert Johns of Dugway Proving Ground was in charge of test operations for Dessert Test Center from 1962 to 1967. He possessed intimate knowledge of test and surveillance operations conducted at the Gerstle River Test Site during this period. There were only five copies of this official report that were to be disseminated to the Commander of the U.S. Army Cold Regions Test Center, Ft. Greely and Office of the Project Manager for Chemical Demilitarization and Installation Restoration, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland. The American Gulf War Veterans Association is grateful to an unknown concerned citizen who provided these documents anonymously.

Summary Description of Ft. Greely, Alaska and U.S. Army Cold Regions Test Center (CRTC)

Ft. Greely contains 661,814 acres and lies in the southeastern portion of interior Alaska known as the Tanana Lowlands. Its location if 64 degrees North latitude and 145 degrees, 43 minutes West longitude. The city in closest proximity is Delta Junction, which is five miles north. The nearest city of major population is Fairbanks, which is 100 miles to the northwest. The Alaska Highway and the Richardson Highway pass Fort Greely and join at Delta Junction. At the time of the Gerstle River Project (1962-1974), the U.S. Army Cold Region Test Center was a tenant activity at Fort Greely and had operational control. Quoting from the report: "The Delta Creek area, adjacent to the USAF bombing range, was used for biological agent testing from 1963 through 1967."

HISTORY

Fort Greely, Alaska Wing, Air Transport Command, Big Delta, Alaska, was first occupied by Army Troops in 1942. It served as a staging area for aircraft being ferried to Russia under the lend-lease agreement. It was later designated as the Army Arctic Training Center and in 1953 a permanent post was constructed. In 1964, the U.S Arctic Test Board was re-designated the U.S. Army Arctic Test Center. During 1966, the General Equipment Test Branch, which was located at Fort Wainwright, was absorbed by the Nuclear Biological, Chemical and Special Projects Division at Fort Greely. In 1976, the U.S. Army Arctic Test Center was re-designated the U.S. Army Cold Regions Test Center.

The Gerstle River Test Site, which parallels the Alaska Highway was acquired by the U.S. Army in 1952 for an indefinite period and was used by Dugway Proving Ground for chemical and high explosive testing from 1954 to 1962. In 1954, Dugway Proving Ground (DPG) initiated a comprehensive program for the surveillance testing of chemical and biological materials. From 1954 to 1962, a comprehensive Arctic Environmental/Surveillance Program on Chemical Corps material was conducted at the Gerstle River Test Site (GRTS). Limited cold weather dissemination testing of GB (sarin gas and VX, deadly nerve agents) was conducted in this area. (Note: President Clinton recently bombed a pharmaceutical plant in Sudan that he stated was producing precursor of VX --this has now been proven to have been false as the plant was truly a pharmaceutical production facility.) It is indeed startling to find out that our own country was, in fact, testing these deadly nerve agents within five miles of the inhabitants of Delta Junction, Alaska. Single round, GB-filled (Sarin) munitions were tested in the winters of 1955 through 1957. Six trials of VX-filled M23 mines were conducted in the winter of 1960-61. The majority of testing at the Gerstle River Army Test Site was with single round, statically fired, chemical munitions. However, GB filled 155mm howitzer shells were dynamically fired into spruce forests.

Sarin Gas, VX nerve agent, high explosives, (including mines, projectiles and rockets) as well as BLU 19/B23 bombs and bomblets, M23 Land Mines, M55 Rockets, 155mm Howitzers, and M121A-1 shells, were tested under the Codenames of: Whistle Down, Elk Hunt, Devil Hole, Swamp Oak, Sundown and Dew Point.

One very embarrassing situation occurred according to the report:

"Blueberry Lake became a controversial subject during the 1969/1979 period and to date is a sensitive issue. In the winter of 1965, a number of chemical munitions were stored on the ice of Blueberry Lake for ultimate disposal during the same year. For unknown reasons, the shells were neglected and finally sank to the bottom of the lake during the spring thaw. The incident became known sometime in 1969. Approximately 231 105mm Projectiles, M55 Rockets and cylinders sank to the bottom of the lake containing Sarin gas GA and HD (mustard gas) and VX nerve agent."

To add insult to injury, thousands of pounds of herbicides including 2,4D (does the name Agent Orange ring a bell?) 2-4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid, 2,4,5-T (Trichlorophenoxyacetic acid isooctyl ester, Alkanolamine salts, Dinitro-o-sec-1 tylphenol were utilized on the area.

Biological Testing was conducted from December 1963 through August 25th, 1967 under

Codename projects Night Train, West Side I, Special Study Alaska and Rev. Cloud. The munitions utilized were; A/B 45Y Spray Tanks using F100 and F105 aircraft, bomblets, dispensers and Disseminators. During the "Special Study Alaska", biological infectious agents Serratia Marcescens, E coli, and LVS (not determined) were mixed together for trials totaling 264 liters of agent that were aerially dispersed.

LEGAL CLAIMS

In the early 1970's, the Gerstle River Test Site at Fort Greely became a matter of controversy for Alaskan politicians in Washington, D.C. The discovery that the U.S. Army had conducted chemical and biological tests brought about accusations that the U.S. Army was responsible for the deaths of various animals in Delta Junction, the paralysis of two children and an outbreak of Tularemia. All claims prior to 1972 should be on file at the U.S. Army Claims Service at Fort Meade, Maryland, or the Office of the Judge Advocate General (OTJAG), Litigation Division, Washington, D.C.

The wife of a serviceman who was stationed at Ft. Greely, Alaska, from 1990-92 recently contacted me. Laura Cuozzo is a 29 year old housewife and mother of four children. She has single handedly re-opened the investigation into what has been happening at Ft. Greely over the past 30 years. Her story explains the heartache the civilian and military populations have been subjected to as a result of living and working in a nuclear, biological and chemical playground. The following is her statement and testimony:

Disturbing information about Ft. Greely

John & Laura Cuozzo
Telephone 813-969-0110
email: lcuozzo1@tampabay.rr.com
17409 Darby Lane
Lutz, FL 33549
 

Today I wish to share with you events which are taking place half a world away, yet affect every American citizen. Fort Greely and the sleepy town outside of it, Delta Junction, are located in the "Middle of Nowhere", Alaska. Actually they are about 100 miles south of Fairbanks. The simple people there live in the Land of the Midnight Sun. They are rugged individualists making their way on the Last Frontier. There is no crime rate there, for often it is too cold to venture out, yet a great crime is being committed there. No one cares because the location is remote, the population is few and virtually no one knows these places exist. This strategy had worked well for the U.S. Army so far. This discussion involves utter disregard for humanity and our environment. It is my intention to prove unequivocally that Ft. Greely has been used as a nuclear, chemical and biological weapons test site that has jeopardized the welfare and safety of its inhabitants for over 40 years. I will first relate many experiences encountered while living on Ft. Greely, their relationship to events taking place today and the results of on-going research.

First of all, I will outline important events which occurred on Ft. Greely during the period of October 29, 1990 until September 30, 1992. These facts have been compiled from my own recollection, the recollection of others present at the time and a photo albums which chronicles our stay. A vast majority of the photographs are labeled with dates and places.

The following events took place between December of 1990 until April of 1991:

I. SPC John W. Cuozzo, my husband, and CPL Jason F. Kelly were assigned to the MEDDAC unit as x-ray technologists. One day a team of men arrived, escorted by First Sgt. Steven Stenger, to investigate rumors of leakage on the base. Each member of the team suited up in radioactive protective clothing and was assigned a dosimeter by my husband. The team explained to John that they did indeed discover a leak and would stay to build a wall casing around the tank. He was told that there was nothing to worry about and explained to me that we were to tell no one else on the base about this matter.

II. During the Persian Gulf War, special readiness exercises were held at Ft. Greely. Airplanes from Eielson Air Force Base flew over all day dropping bombs out on the range. What distinguished these exercises from any others? Were they using depleted uranium?

III. Also during the Persian Gulf War, a study was done at the clinic. There was a campaign to test the lung capacity of people living and working on the base. It included those not entitled to receive health care at the clinic. When I went down to have it done and casually asked Cpt. David Peterson, R.N. why they were giving away free lung capacity examinations, he explained that he did not know. He was to recruit volunteers and report the findings. When my sister, Heather Breece, came to live with us in April of 1991, I brought her over to the clinic for lung testing because she smoked cigarettes, but by then the study had ended. Why was the Army interested in testing the lungs of everyone from the area?

IV. In the early months of 1991, I began experiencing extreme joint pain throughout my entire body. Every evening the pains came on strong. We deduced that the extreme arctic temperatures were wreaking havoc on my body, but no amount of warmth could subdue the pain. The next two events took place in the summer of 1991:

1. One day in August Sgt. Don Jenkins, John Vitek (a friend staying with us), John, Heather and myself decided to do some sightseeing in the area. We decided to climb Donnely's Dome located on Texas Range on Ft. Greely. We drove to the location, but did not see the path that everyone else takes to reach the summit. John Vitek and I had been climbing most of the way together until I separated from the rest of the group and moved further to the left in an effort to find the path and take the easy way up. I climbed through small bushes onto an area of open tundra. The mountain was so steep that my knees were in my chin and my hands were touching the tundra. At that point something happened. It felt as if my body had suddenly become attacked. Every lymph node on my head and neck swelled up. I experienced a strange headache and nausea. Panicking, I looked beneath me to see what had caused this. Realizing that my body's awkward position prevented this, I mistakenly moved further to the left and sat far enough away from the spot, but close enough to scope out the area. There was absolutely nothing to be detected. Unfortunately, my only choice was to retrace my steps to return to the group. I risked leaping over the area and rolling down the mountain side rather than touching the spot again. I returned to the group and watched as they went ahead to the top. That evening the pain became immense. Upon examination, John had found that the lymph nodes on my head had swelled up to the size of marbles. I remember that for two nights I could only sleep on my face which made it difficult to breathe, but I do not remember whether the incident had taken place on Saturday or Sunday. On Monday morning I was examined at the clinic. The doctor felt sure that this condition was due to a thyroid problem. He explained that he should be able to detect an infection somewhere in my body. He ran the tests, but the results came back negative. My condition perplexed him and he reran the tests, thinking that the lab had made an error, yet once again the results were negative.  Eventually the lymph nodes returned to normal, yet the headaches and nausea persisted for years. They would best be described as sublime and omnipresent.

2. The Army began conducting extensive radon testing of the base. Every family took turns relocating to the base motel for a period of days so that their housing could be tested. Then every soldier was asked to stay at the motel while their barracks were tested. My sister remembers our stay very well because at the time John had attended a buffalo cookout in Delta Junction. He brought back buffalo sloppy joes and buffalo steak which she simply refused to eat.  Eventually an entire barracks was condemned and the soldiers were asked to cram into another building. Sgt. Jenkins, along with another soldier, asked special permission to remain and it was allowed. Why was the entire base relocated out of their quarters when a simple radon detector in our basements would have sufficed? Why was Sgt. Jenkins permitted to reside in a condemned barracks?

Sometime between April of 1991 until Thanksgiving Day, 1991 the following event occurred:

Heather had been experiencing chronic fatigue, sharp pains in her uterus and spotting. One evening we took her to the emergency room at the clinic. Upon our arrival, Sgt. Jenkins, who worked as a medic in the ER, asked us if we were there because we had the flu. He explained that it was a very busy time because everyone was getting ill on base. Heather was examined, tests were run, the results came back negative, the condition went undiagnosed and persisted until a few months after leaving Ft. Greely.

The following events took place from the winter of 1991 until September 30, 1992:

1. Before becoming employed at the Post Exchange, I signed up as a Red Cross Volunteer. Mrs. Lewis was the head of the volunteer effort and had two small children. These children were always sick, pale and extremely thin, but the first thing everyone noticed about these children was their lack of hair. The mother and I once had a discussion about her children's health. She told me that their hair simply would not grow in some areas and in other areas would only come in silky fine. They looked like chemotherapy patients. She told me that both of her children had lived on Ft. Greely all of their little lives (her husband kept requesting extensions) and that the only meat they ever ate was the moose stored in their freezer from hunting season. They were poor and her husband hunted during the season so they could spend less money on their food bills throughout the year. She told me that the meat did not taste right to her and she suspected that it may have been the cause of her children's illness. She tried to buy beef at the commissary, but the children, not being accustomed to the taste, would not eat it and her husband had forbid her to waste any more money. She had taken them to doctors who could find nothing wrong with the children. Their father, Sgt. Lonnie Lewis, was assigned to MEDDAC, but attached to the Gerstle River Test Site (CRTC). He was becoming increasingly ill and no one could diagnose his problem.

2. While working at the Post Exchange, I began to get to know many others living on the base. It bothered me to discover that 5 people I knew had cancer. Two had ovarian, one cervical and I do not recall what types the men had. It struck me as odd that amongst such a small population at least 5 had cancer. How many more had been diagnosed? There seemed to be only one link unifying them all. All had lived on base past their original two year tour. All had asked for extensions.

3. Shortly before my family left Ft. Greely, orders came down that no one would be allowed to remain on base past their one or two year orders and that there would be absolutely no exceptions.

4. The last thing I did before leaving Fort Greely was to ensure proper health care for pregnant women on base. We were told that the OB/GYNs at Ft. Wainwright did not feel like making the monthly trip down to Ft. Greely and that we were to be examined by a M.D. on base instead. This seemed unacceptable to me and despite my husband's fears of backlash from the chain of command, I marched into the Base Commander's office on his first day-- what a welcoming committee. I demanded to know why the medical staff of Ft. Wainwright was too lazy to send one OB/GYN once a month to Ft. Greely, had asked that the women travel to Fairbanks instead and now were refusing to treat us altogether. He explained that he did not know their reasons, but that the entire group of OB/GYNs had banded together and were led by a Major. They were all determined to defy orders and there was nothing he could do. It was only when I threatened to contact every women's rights organization and the media that the Base Commander assured me that he would take care of the matter. My husband experienced no backlash from this issue and it was never mentioned again. From that point on and till this day, Ft. Wainwright sends an OB/GYN once a month to Ft. Greely. Why did the doctors really not want to come to Greely and refuse to treat us? What had they noticed about the residents of Ft. Greely?

As you can plainly see, many extraordinary things occurred during our time there. It has taken a great amount of courage to come forward with this information when I know it will be at first taken with disbelief. If lie detector tests, psychological examinations and physical examinations are called for, I will gladly comply. I welcome any effort to back the authenticity of this testimony for I am not lying, nor am I crazy, but I am ill and so are a great many others in this country and around the world.  Affidavits are coming from many of those mentioned above. When the others are found I expect theirs as well. This was my first experience dealing with the military, I was anxious to re-enter the real world and put it all behind me. Two things have hampered this: my health and my conscience. John had opted for an early out, received an Honorable Discharge and we moved to Tampa, Florida. It was here that my cognitive struggle began for I quickly realized that my ability to communicate with others was hampered by moments of confusion and of total memory loss. In 1988 I had taken the Army's entrance exam.  This exam is well noted for its accuracy in determining I.Q. levels. My score fell within the top 10% and at the enlistment center they offered me a MOS in Military Intelligence learning Czechoslovakian, yet now I am sometimes unable to carry on a simple conversation. It has been a humbling experience.

In March of 1994, an OB/GYN discovered a lump in my throat and urged me to have it checked out. After many tests, I underwent a very risky surgery to have the right side of my thyroid removed. The biopsy revealed papillary thyroid cancer. Papillary thyroid cancer can ONLY be acquired from radiation poisoning or fallout. Now there are radiation treatments, various tests and the use of Synthroid for the rest of my life. Strangely, after the tumor had been removed, the daily headaches and nausea disappeared and the pain in my joints has greatly lessened. Further testing revealed Hashimoto's disease. You have a better chance of being struck by lightening than getting this extremely rare condition. It is an immune system disorder relevant to a defective gene. That is what radiation does to your genes. It does not always outright attack them; it alters them.

Now that you have discovered my motives, I would like to inform you of all the information acquired as a result of private research. After reading reports of human radiation experimentation conducted by the Air Force in Alaska involving radioactive isotope iodine 131 (this is what gives many people thyroid cancer), I began to make a few phone calls.   The Institute for Energy and Environmental Research suggested that I may have gotten thyroid cancer as a result of drinking milk that had been contaminated with fallout as a child. Their representative explained that low exposures of iodine 131 over a long period of time can cause thyroid cancer and that it takes five years to develop. The only problem with this theory is that as child I never drank milk. I have lactose intolerance and the physician at the time instructed my mother and grandmother to not give me any milk products. I also did not grow up in a state which received high levels of fallout according to the National Cancer Association.

On July 21, 1998 per a telephone conversation with Cathy Lemar, Executive Director of the Military Toxics Project, I was informed that Ft. Greely has radioactive materials stored on site. She has sent me a copy of the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) report on Ft. Greely in which it states, "Begin removal of contaminated pipe and associated soil from nuclear power plant cooling water waste line in FY97" She also made me fully aware and has sent documentation of the role depleted uranium plays in giving people thyroid cancer. This new awareness was an encouragement to probe further.

To my amazement there is a wealth of information available on the internet. To understand the history of Fort Greely, you must understand that it is also called by two other names: the Northern Warfare Training Center and the Cold Regions Testing Center. Every year NWTC hosts troops from all over the country, including West Point Cadets, to train on its ranges and rivers. CRTC is responsible for a plethora of testing on Ft. Greely.  As part of the Cold War effort to develop and test nuclear weapons, Ft. Greely was chosen as a site to place the Atomic Energy commission's SM-1A reactor. The SM-1A was a medium sized, fixed-base (as opposed to portable), pressurized water nuclear power plant. Experiments were conducted there and called "Project Greely" during the years of 1964 and 1965. During the years of 1966 and 1967 I have found reports referring to the "Greely Event". NASA conducted nuclear tests from 1966 until 1970.

Project Greely Titles
"Overexposure at SM-1A reactor, Fort Greely, Alaska"
"Possible high radiation exposures at the SM-1A nuclear power plant (List of men to be subject to high exposures during reactor refueling)"
"Overexposure to ionizing radiation at SM-1A"
"Memo to file, subject: Selection of contractor for analytical work on SM-1A"
"Memo to JE Reeves, Et Al, Subject: Interim report of offsite surveillance for Project Greely"

Greely Event Titles
"Memo to O.R. Placak, Subject: Preliminary report for the Greely Event"
"Information meeting 650, 11:20 a.m., Wednesday, December 21, Chairman's
Conference Room, D.C. Office (Assignment of U.S. Personnel at IAEA, Rt on 12/20 Greely Event, Project Cabriolet, Etc)"

NASA Titles
"Neutron spectral considerations affecting projected estimates of radiation embrittlement of the Army SM-1A reactor pressure vessel"
"Inspection of europium-bearing control rods from the Army SM-1A stationary medium power reactor"
"SM-1A core 4 design analysis Final report"
"Postirradiation examination of fuel elements from core 1 and core 2 of the Army SM-1A stationary medium power reactor"
"SM-1A core 4 loading and startup core physics test report Final report"
"SM-1A reactor pressure vessel surveillance - Irradiation of follow-on capsules in the SM-1 reactor"

Mayor Glenn Wright has reported speaking to a lifelong resident of Delta Junction. As a child in elementary school she had remembered being told that  a small incident had occurred with the reactor. The school children were  asked to place cups on their desks every morning and they were collected  after the children left at night. She had always thought that this was done to collect and measure radioactive fallout.

The following information is from the EPA. Ft. Greely has two Superfund locations. The first one is Superfund ID# AK2210890115 and there is no detailed information available from their web site about it. The second is Superfund ID# AK8214522155. Its EPA# is AK9214522345 and it also has a Hazardous Waste Report and an AIRS report. On these   reports I found containers that have an illegal status and an operator status that reads, "INACTIVE/CLOSING, BUT NOT YET RCRA CLOSED". Admittedly these reports are all new to me and I am missing a great deal of information that would be in a more detailed report, yet the "NOT YET RCRA CLOSED" gives us quite a bit of information.

The Institute for Energy and Environmental Research's On-Line Classroom gives detailed information about the classification of radioactive waste. "Transuranic Waste (TRU): Waste containing elements with atomic numbers (number of protons) greater than 92, the atomic number of uranium. (Thus the term 'transuranic,' or 'above uranium.') TRU includes only waste material that contains transuranic elements with half-lives greater than 20 years and concentrations greater than 100 nanocuries per gram. If the concentrations of the half-lives are below the limits, it is possible for waste to have transurnaic elements but not be classified as TRU waste. In both the commercial and military sectors, some of the radioactive wastes generated are mixed with hazardous substances, such as organic solvents or other toxic chemicals. Much of this waste (especially the transuranic waste) contains substantial quantities of long-lived radionuclides, such as plutonium-239 and technetium-99. The radioactive components of mixed wastes are regulated under the Atomic Energy Act by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for commercial sources, and by the Department of Energy for military sources. The hazardous components, however, are subject to regulation by the Environmental Protection Agency according to an environmental law known as the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)". I am also very interested in finding out whether RCRA is responsible for handling chemical and biological agents as well.

When discussing Alaska, the term "phenomena" will frequently arise. Scientific phenomena take place there which take place no where else on this earth. Has our military, which should be the expert in this area due to their years of research, made others aware of such phenomena? According to the "Cold Weather Decontamination Study by Joseph C. Maloney, July 1960, Radiologic Laboratory, U.S. Army Chemical Research and Development Laboratories, Army Chemical Center, Maryland" it states, 'The vertical movement of deposited solid fallout into the ground is negligible under temperate condition, and a similar circumstance would be encountered when the ground is frozen. however, the fallout may settle through snow and ice by a combination of gravity and thermal action. Since the location of the fallout with respect to the surface of either snow or ice will determine the decontamination procedure to be followed, it is necessary to understand the phenomena associated with fallout migration. The NCEL has reported that sand, deposited on snow, migrated a maximum vertical distance of 1-1/2 inches until solar radiation no longer had an effect. Little else is known of this phenomena and consequently further information is required'. Might other phenomena might take place there in relation to nuclear, chemical and biological contamination? Former U.S. Senator Frank H. Murkowski in his 1993 speech, "The Environmental Legacy of the Cold War", states, 'More recently the Department of Defense issued an interim report listing sites at Fort Greely, Fort Wainwright, Adak, Dutch Harbor and Attu where chemical weapons were or may have been tested, stored or discarded'.

I have also learned that Army dosimeters were specifically designed to pick up any form of ionizing radiation, not only the kind used in x-rays, but also ionizing radiation emitted from reactors. John's and Jason's dosimeter results always came back o.k., but if they were the only two people on base wearing dosimeters, how else was the leak discovered if the tanks were buried underground. If their dosimeter results were truly all right then the Army's only other clue that radiation was leaking had to come from the number of people coming down with cancer on base.

And now I turn to an article entitled, "B-2 successfully drops improved bunker buster bomb", written by Senior Airman Adam Stump of the 354th Fighter Wings, Public Affairs, released March 26, 1998. The article boasts "A B-2 Spirit bomber dropped two B61-11 bomb shells to test their improved ground penetration capability March 17 at the Stuart Creek Impact Area, 35 miles southeast of Fairbanks". It goes on to say "The B61-11 is a new modification to a nuclear weapon that has been in the Air Force inventory since the 1960's". "The bomb cases contained simulated nuclear components made of depleted uranium...". The writer of the article goes on to explain the scientific experiment and attempts to assure the public that no danger exists. Did Eielson drop depleted uranium bombs on a Ft. Greely range during Operation Desert Storm and later attempt to test our lungs to ascertain whether or not the radioactive material we inhaled impaired our lung capacity? How long have they been testing depleted uranium on Ft. Greely?

The Mayor of Delta Junction, Mr. Glenn Wright, told me that aviation tanks located on Ft. Greely and Delta Junction were removed due to radioactive contamination. Certainly it is logical to deduce that these tanks took part in depleted uranium exercises out on the range. In a Newsletter of the Military Toxics Project, First Quarter-1997, called Touching Bases, there appears a letter from Mary Grisco, Chair, Military Accountability Committee, Sierra Club, Alaska Chapter--January 8, 1996 which states, "Ft. Greeley, outside of Fairbanks, contains many unexploded ordinance as well as storage areas of unidentified weapons. Neighbors complain of headaches and nausea and wildlife (their subsistence) tasting 'funny'. Ft. Greely continues training while issuing statements that public health is not being threatened". 

According to a Central Intelligence Agency document entitled, "Radiation Sickness or Death Caused by Surreptitious Administration of Ionizing Radiation to an Individual", it states, 'In 1954, a Soviet Secret Agent, Mikolai Khokhlov, gave himself up to U.S. authorities rather than carry out an assassination in West Germany. He subsequently joined the emigrant Russian revolutionary movement centered in West Germany. In 1957, while attending a Frankfurt conference, he became sick with nausea, vomiting and fainting.' It goes on to say, 'Thallium poisoning was suspected. On review of his activities on the day he became sick, he recalled a bad-tasting cup of coffee after his speech; he thought this coffee may have been poisoned'. This is exactly what residents of Ft. Greely and Delta Junction have been complaining about for a very long time. The date of this document is 1969,  so it is quite obvious that our government has been fully aware of the   situation and has refused to act responsibly in this regard.

At the DOE Openness: Human Radiation Experiments website, located at tis-nt.eh.doe.gov/ohre/, I searched the archives, performed a fielded search, and typed in the terms "Greely" and then "Gerstle". Our own government has already admitted to nuclear testing that occurred on Ft. Greely that had resulted in fallout. They have admitted to chemical testing performed on soldiers at Ft. Greely without their knowledge. It is here that you will find the admission from our government that these tests occurred at the expense of residents of Ft. Greely and Delta Junction and that our government simply did not care. They placed the importance of these tests above the safety and welfare of the very citizens it professed to protect.

And lastly, the most striking evidence to date has come from Mrs. Joyce Riley, head of the American Gulf War Veterans Association. This previously classified document is entitled,
"Installation Assessment of Gerstle River Test Site,
Records Evaluation Report No. 105, Volume 1,
December 1976,
Department of the Army,
Office of the Project Manager for Chemical Demilitarization and Installation Restoration,
Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland 21010,
For Official Use Only".
It begins with this statement, 'During 1976, a Records Research (R/R) study was conducted at Fort Greely to establish possible contamination at the Gerstle River Test Site by chemical, biological, and radioactive material, and to assess the possibility of contaminants migrating beyond the boundaries of the installation'. At least three times it is explained that this report is incomplete because they were unable to obtain all of the data for these tests. It states, 'Only the main post of Fort Greely is improved. The outlying test sites - Gerstle River, Delta Creek, Bolio Lake, Beales Range, Texas Range - are considered semi-improved, with mostly temporary structures.  Although Fort Greely is not a U.S. Army Test and Evaluation Command (USATECOM) installation, the U.S. Army Cold Regions Test Center (a tenant activity at Fort Greely) has operational control of Fort Greely. Chemical, biological, and dud-producing high explosive munitions (and riot control munitions) have been employed in these areas in recent years. The Cold Regions Test Center also uses these ranges for environmental testing. The same area is used by the 172d Infantry Brigade (Alaska) for training. Civilian use of the area is almost entirely recreational'

How many people have been exposed to these ranges over the years? By shipping most of its personnel out every one or two years and bringing in new soldiers and families, by training other companies of soldiers from all over America and even inviting private enterprise to train employees there, it seems that the numbers of people potentially exposed are astounding. In reference to the Gerstle River Test Site, this report states, 'The land is unsuitable for agricultural purposes'. In another section it states, 'Hunting is not allowed at Fort Greely. The entire post, with post cantonment and areas immediately adjacent to roads and recreational lakes, is not open to general hunting and trapping'. Well, people sure are hunting there now and  these same people are getting ill because of it. Every year, Delta  Junction holds a buffalo cookout. These buffalo roam all over Texas range, eat the groundcover prepared for them, and the people eat the buffalo. The U.S. Army has no way of controlling moose who might wander into those areas to graze and must be held accountable to those who subsist off of that meat.

'In the early 1970's, the Gerstle River Test Site at Fort Greely became a matter of controversy for Alaskan politicians in Washington, D.C. The discovery that the U.S. Army had conducted chemical and biological tests at Fort Greely initiated an intense investigation. Numerous articles appeared in local papers, federal releases, and national television accusing the U.S. Army of being responsible for the deaths of various animals in Delta Junction, Alaska, approximately 10 miles from Fort Greely. Newspaper articles also accused the U.S. Army of being responsible for the paralysis of two children in Fairbanks, Alaska, and an outbreak of tularemia in Vermont in 1968, in addition to many other accusations. There has been no evidence or scientific proof to link the Alaska tests with any of the above accusations'. Old habits die hard and once again people are asking for explanations.

'Earth-covered ammunition storage magazines are overgrown with natural grasses, Kentucky Bluegrass, and Artca Red Fescue. The goal is to camouflage the nature of the facility from aerial observation and four or five more years of undisturbed growth will complete the program'. And yet, '..the Team cannot vouch for the accuracy of the data'. How can anyone be sure that all nuclear, chemical and biological weapons have been removed from the area. They can not, nor do they care to find out.  Many of the symptoms I experience are the same symptoms experienced by the Gulf War Veterans, yet I was never there. Before moving to Ft. Greely I was an extremely healthy and vibrant person who never had any need to visit a physician. Now I am a sick 29 year old housewife and mother of four. Shall I, like a hypocrite, go with my family to church every Sunday and turn my back on this issue? To the contrary, every stone must be overturned. This type of knowledge requires responsibility and is an extremely delicate matter. Before her transfer back to the lower 48, my girlfriend confided that she had ovarian cancer. She told me that it had spread so quickly  that she had only months to live. Her face of anguish haunts me. My   husband, John, has for many years now discouraged me from trying to find  out exactly what happened on Ft. Greely. He is a veteran and the idea  that the military would do anything like this is almost like blasphemy to  him. As a patriotic American, it is not my intention to disgrace the military  in any way, rather, as a Christian woman, I feel a moral obligation to have this matter addressed and investigated further.

It is especially important that the military be held accountable before they pull out in the year 2001 and leave the Delta Junction community and the state of Alaska with this mess. Up to this date they have not been forthright in their findings concerning the human health situation and environmental contamination. Those who passed through Fort Greely may be suffering and dying without even realizing why.

Don Jenkins recalls, "Come to think of it, that is all we ever treated people on Greely for: headache and nausea with accompanying flu like symptoms. Besides that, we treated soldiers for broken bones which were the result of training exercises. For a three month period of time we had a real problem on Greely and were very worried. Everyone was coming in with these symptoms. We did not treat them, just ensured they did not become dehydrated."

Mr. Jenkins is extremely ill these days. He served his nation in the Gulf and then on Greely. Don was told that he is by far the sickest man to come out of the Fox Trot 122 Main Support Battalion and it is no wonder. The variety of symptoms he experiences include: gastrointestinal problems, loose bowel syndrome, headaches, chronic fatigue, swelling of lymph nodes with those on the right side of his neck very pronounced, respiratory problems, extreme joint pain and weakness, and stabbing pains due to noticeable liver swelling. For his meritorious duty, he has been rewarded with slaps in the face by our government and has no cheek left to turn.

John Vitek also has the Gulf War Syndrome. His stay on Greely had been brief. John has been consulting physicians ever since returning from Alaska for aches in his joints, muscle spasms, headaches, memory loss, ringing in the ears and stiff necks due to lymph node swelling . No one has been able to diagnose him. After relaying this information to him, he said, "Thank you. It is such a comfort to know why I am ill. Thank you so much".

Heather Breece still experiences chronic fatigue and just feels sick all of the time.

Jason Kelly said, "One thing I do recall about my health on Ft. Greely is that I was always tired and worn down. All day long in the clinic I felt tired and worn down. I always remember that". After Jason left Ft. Greely, he returned to feeling healthy again.

My husband, John received 12 hours of sleep a night while on Ft. Greely and never woke up feeling refreshed. Today he is in good health.

The U.S. Army may have slowed me down by inflicting this disease upon me, but I have not been stopped, nor will I stop until their reckless actions of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons testing have been stopped. How many times must the face of humanity be slapped before he rises up and cries, "JUSTICE!"? America, we lived and worked on a nuclear, chemical and biological weapons playground. Today many of us are ill. It is just this simple. Our government has perpetrated The Gulf War Illness upon this nation's people. Today I am calling for a revolution of Truth in this country. I am calling every good American to arms. Arm yourself with Truth. Truth is our government's greatest enemy. Truth shall prevail every time. It is only when we are once again armed with Truth that our nation will be great. As these words leave you now, sing to yourself the words of "America the Beautiful"… and weep.

UPDATE: After contacting Laura Cuozzo and realizing that innocent people were still being subjected to the aftereffects of nuclear, chemical and biological testing, I was contacted by representatives of the Canadian Parliament. They are now asking serious questions involving the experiments, which may have a direct effect on the caribou migration into Alaska and throughout the northwest. To satisfy my curiosity about the health effects on the civilian residents of Delta Junction, I contacted Delta Junction City Hall, the Public Health Nurse, the one local physician and several others. They confirmed to me that the incidence of rare tumors and cancers appears to be much higher than that found in the general population. Bolio Lake no longer has any fish in it and several areas on the base are totally off limits.

It is because of the real American Patriot's such as Laura Cuozzo and magazines like the Free American that we are still able to disclose information vital to the health and well being of all Liberty loving Americans. We must be our own advocates and research these issues as if our very lives depend upon them---BECAUSE THEY DO. We have heard ad nauseam of the experiments conducted on unwitting American children, the mentally retarded, prisoners and also the military. It is time the experiments be revealed, individuals be justly compensated and prosecution be pursued with regard to those who have perpetrated these illnesses and diseases on the very people the Constitution, Declaration of Independence, the Bill of Rights and the Nuremberg Code was designed to protect.

If you have information on this or any other experiments regarding nuclear, biological or chemical testing, please contact the American Gulf War Veterans Association:

P.O. Box 85
Versailles, MO. 65085
1-877-817-9829

There can be a million lies; there is only one truth. We will continue to bring you the truth.

For God and Country,

Joyce Riley vonKleist & Dave vonKleist

Gulf War Vets Home Page.