From the Los Angeles TimesMarking the 50th anniversary of the first U.S. nuclear meltdownA reactor in Chatsworth began leaking radioactive gas on July 14, 1959. Some area residents blame the facility for their health issues and say the site remains contaminated.
By Louis Sahagun
July 13, 2009
On the morning of July 14, 1959, Sodium Reactor Experiment trainee John Pace received the bad news from a group of supervisors who had, he recalled, "terribly worried expressions on their faces."
A reactor at the Atomics International field laboratory in the Santa Susana Mountains had experienced a power surge the night before and spewed radioactive gases into the atmosphere.
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Today, on the 50th anniversary of America's first nuclear meltdown accident, Pace will join federal regulators and former lab workers in a commemorative gathering at the Aerospace Cancer Museum of Education in Chatsworth.
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In August 1959, about five weeks after the accident, the Atomic Energy Commission published a press release indicating that "a parted fuel element had been observed," a reference to damage. But it added that there was no evidence of radioactive releases or unsafe operating conditions.
"They wanted to keep it secret," Pace said.
(more at the link)
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Los Angeles TimesHere is a link to
http://www.rocketdynewatch.org/index.php">Rocketdyne Watch, a group that describes themselves as
"... members of the communities surrounding the Boeing/Rocketdyne Santa Susana Field Laboratory (SSFL) to centralize information, update community members and provide information on the critical issues surrounding the investigation and cleanup of the radiological and chemical contamination at the SSFL."
And, here is a brief snippet of some of the last steps taken by the federal government under the stewardship of the Bush/GOP regarding SSFL:
in April, 2009, the EPA teams up with the DoE to
http://yosemite.epa.gov/r9/sfund/r9sfdocw.nsf/ce6c60ee7382a473882571af007af70d/27aebc3de0dac08888257515005dbdef!OpenDocument">investigate contamination in the area.