Dugway Incident 1969
In 1968 over 6000 sheep died during or as a result of the incident that took place that day in Dugway Proving Grounds, Utah. Picture the Headlines, Dugway Proving Grounds is responsible for killing American Sheep. A thorough investigation at all levels; local, state and federal was conducted to find out what happened. It was discovered that the incident stemmed from a series of test that were conducted at Dugway Proving Grounds, using the agent VX. What is VX you ask; VX is one of our persistent chemical agents that are also classified as an Organophosphate? This is the type of agent that will linger and not dissipate. It is considered a Nerve Agent. The first Nerve Agents were discovered prior to WWI. Tabun was created
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The first was a 155-mm artillery shell being fired. The second involved burning 160 gallons of VX in an open pit. The last VX test that was conducted, is the test suspected of contaminating the sheep. The sheep was believed to have eaten poisonous grass from the dispersing agent. This test included an F-4 fighter jet that was tasked to spray VX over a certain square footage. There were no checks and balances performed. The F4 did spray approximately 320 gallons of VX near Skull Valley. The test covered over thirty miles of the agent dispersing. Wind speed and direction for this exercise was definitely a factor. It makes sense that during the spraying test of this persistent agent that the wind would push it in the direction of the sheep and as they grazed on the grass fell victim to the deadly compound. There should have been a risk analysis conducted prior to the F4 Jet taking off, and after its return. If only someone had been able to check the aircraft between trips maybe they would have identified a leak, fixed the problem and moved on. They could have also implemented some type of decontamination. Not only would decon have employed some of the many Chemical Soldiers of this timeframe but it would have provided another safety measure not previously …show more content…
The sheep carcasses were checked years later at Edgewood Arsenal. Their blood and tissue samples showed that they had in fact been contaminated with VX. We learn these when we first come into the Army in the Soldier’s Manual of Common Task. They are now taught through Warrior Task and Battle Drills to the new Soldiers. VX has many sign and symptoms of poisoning. The following is a list of the typical symptoms someone may experience if they come in contact with Nerve agent poisoning; Runny nose, Drooling, Difficulty seeing, Tight chest, Difficulty breathing, Nausea, Vomiting, Muscle Twitching, Uncontrollably shaking, Convulsions, Loss of consciousness, Muscles contract, fatigue and weaken then finally death.
Works Cited
Author, Andrew Kincaid, Death on the Wind: Thr Dugway Sheep Incident, retrieved from http://www.oddlyhistorical.com/2014/02/01/death-wind-dugway-sheep-incident/
Author, Glenn Liddell, Dugway Proving Ground Advertisement, retrieved from
Http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKBG2yggt8Y
Author, Yvette D. Ison, Chemical Weapons Testing Created Controversy at Dugway
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Preston Brooks was born in Edgefield District, South Carolina on August 5th, 1819. He graduated from South Carolina College (now known as the University of South Carolina), in 1839, and after he graduated he studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1845. Brooks also served in the Mexican-American War with the Palmetto Regiment. After he had returned from the war, Brooks fought a duel with future Texas Senator Louis T. Wigfall. In the duel, Brooks was shot in the hip, forcing him to use a walking cane for the rest of his life.
My research paper is on Dugway Proving Ground incident of 1969. The incident actually took place in March of 1968. What happened in 1969 was that President Nixon reaffirmed the “no first use, retaliate in kind” which became a national policy for the employment of chemical weapons. (Mauroni, Al, p. 33) The incident involved the killing of 6,000 sheep according to The Salt Lake Tribune. A deadly nerve agent known as VX had drifted off the reservation contaminating the sheep feeding area. The Army conducted investigations to show that they had nothing to do with the death of those sheep. At the end of the investigation it showed that they were not responsible for the incident. I am going to talk about the history of Dugway Proving Ground, and what cause the sheep to die. The people are blame the government for the death of the sheep, and the government is blaming ranchers. The government said the sheep died from the pesticides they sprayed to protect their crops.
"Chemical Warfare Agents - Resources on the health effects from chemical weapons, emergency response & treatment, counterterrorism, and emergency preparedness.au.af." Specialized Information Services - Reliable information on toxicology, environmental health, chemistry, HIV/AIDS, and minority health. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 May 2010.
Trueman, Chris. "Chemical Warfare and World War Two." Chemical Warfare and World War Two. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Nov. 2013. .
Griffith high school students, at the intersection of E Pine St & N Broad St.
Fries, A. A., & West, C. J. (1921). Chemical warfare,. New York [etc.: McGraw-Hill book company, inc..
Convulsions, diarrhea, vomiting, skin discoloration, hallucinations, burning and cold sensations, coma, and death are all symptoms of convulsive ergot poisoning (Coll). Ergot poisoning was said to be the cause of the bewitched behavior of the afflicted girls during the Salem witch trials; however, convulsive ergotism only occurs in places lacking vitamin A, the symptoms of ergot were not present in the girls, and the girls were most likely faking all of the symptoms that they did have.
“There are certain symptoms you would need to seek emergency medical attention right away for, for example repeated vomiting, loss of consciousness lasting for more than 30 seconds, slurred speech or changes in speech, and changes in physical coordination such as stumbling or falling.” (Mayo Clinic, n.d.)
Poison gas was perhaps the most feared weapon out of all. Created to overcome the long stalemate style of trench warfare, its purpose was to draw out soldiers hiding in the trenches. One side would throw the poison gas into the enemy trenches and they would either wait for their enemy to come out into open fire or perish in the trenches. The first poison gas used in battle was chlorine at the start of the Second Battle of Ypres on April 22, 1915 by the Germans. Shortly after, followed the phosgene. The effects of these gases were ghastly. Chlorine was the most deadly as "within seconds of inhaling its vapor, it destroys the victim's respiratory organs, bringing on choking attacks" (Duffy). Phosgene had similar effects, except the fact that the effects started kicking in after 48 hours of inhalation. In September 1917, the Germans introduced the mustard gas or Yperite which was contained in artillery shells against the Russians at Riga. Those exposed t...
Over some period of time, affected children (patients) experience mental impairment, worsening seizures, and progressive loss of sight and motor skills. Affected patients become totally disabled and eventually die.
Extreme gasping and muscle spasms can occur. While losing consciousness, a person can vomit and then inhale the vomit. Panic, feelings of terror and assaultive behavior take place from the drug-induced confusion. Other problems can include difficulty in taking the drugs, failure of the drugs to induce unconsciousness and a number of days elapsing before death occurs. (NEJM)
There are many different types of seizures. Each different types of seizure can have different symptoms or signs that the patient could be going to have a seizure. Some symptoms can vary from loss of consciousness to nausea, vomiting. Some of the causes of seizures are lack of oxygen, infections of the brain, high fever, sleep deprivation, etc.
Cashman, J. (2000). Emergency Response to Chemical and Biological Agents. Boca Raton, FL. Lewis Publishers.
The patient has experienced fever, chills on body, headaches and anorexia as well as sweating especially during the night. The patient has also been feeling fatigued, muscle aches and nausea as well as vomiting especially after eating (WHO, 2010, p. 117). These symptoms started forty eight hours ago, and the patient has not taken any medication except for some aspirin.