A Never-Ending Atomic Disaster It was just after dawn on March 1, 1954, and the air was al-ready warm on Utrik Island, a small bit of coral and volcanic rock in the South Pacific that is one of the Marshall Islands.The island was home to 159 people, who lived by fishing much as their ancestors had done for centuries. The popula-tion knew only a little about the outside world—a missionary from the United States taught the local children, and twodozen military personnel lived at a small U.S. weather stationwith an airstrip that received one plane each week.At 6:45 a.m., the western sky suddenly lit up brighterthan anyone had ever seen, and seconds later, a rumble likea massive earthquake rolled across the island. Some of theUtrik people thought the world was coming to an end. Andtruly, the world they had always known was about to changeforever.About 160 miles to the west, on Bikini Island, the UnitedStates military had just detonated an atomic bomb, a hugedevice with 1,000 times the power of the bomb used at theend of World War II to destroy the Japanese city ofHiroshima. The enormous blast vaporized the island and senta massive cloud of dust and radiation into the atmosphere.The military expected the winds to take the cloud north into an open area of the ocean, but the cloud blew east in-stead. By noon, the radiation cloud had engulfed a Japanese fishing boat ironically called the Lucky Dragon, exposingthe twenty-three people on board to a dose of radiation thatwould eventually sicken or kill them all. By the end of theafternoon, the deadly cloud spilled across Utrik Island.The cloud was made up of coral and rock dust, all thatwas left of Bikini Island. The dust fell softly on Utrik Island,and the children, who remembered pictures of snow shownto them by their missionary teacher, ran out to play in thewhite powder that was piling up everywhere. No one realizedthat it was contaminated with deadly radiation.Three-and-one-half days later, the U.S. military landedplanes on Utrik Island and informed all the people that theywould have to leave immediately, taking nothing with them. For three months, the island people were held at another mili-tary base, and then they were returned home. Many of the people who were on the island that fatefulmorning died young, typically from cancer or other diseasesassociated with radiation exposure. But even today, thosewho survived consider themselves and their island poisonedby the radiation, and they believe that the poison will never go away. The radiation may or may not still be in their bod-ies, but it has certainly worked its way deep into their culture. More than half a century after the bomb exploded, peoplestill talked about the morning that “everything changed.” Thedamage from this disaster turns out to be much more thanmedical—it was a social transformation that left the peoplewith a deep belief that they are all sick, that life will never bethe same, and that powerful people who live on the other sideof the world could have prevented the disaster but did not.What Do You Think?1. In what sense is a disaster like the 2011 radiation leak inJapan never really over? 2. In what ways did the atomic bomb test change the cul-ture of the Utrik people? 3. The U.S. government never formally took responsibil-ity for what happened to the people of Utrik Island. What elements of global stratification do you see in thistragedy?
A Never-Ending Atomic Disaster
It was just after dawn on March 1, 1954, and the air was al-
ready warm on Utrik Island, a small bit of coral and volcanic
rock in the South Pacific that is one of the Marshall Islands.
The island was home to 159 people, who lived by fishing
much as their ancestors had done for centuries. The popula-
tion knew only a little about the outside world—a missionary
from the United States taught the local children, and two
dozen military personnel lived at a small U.S. weather station
with an airstrip that received one plane each week.
At 6:45 a.m., the western sky suddenly lit up brighter
than anyone had ever seen, and seconds later, a rumble like
a massive earthquake rolled across the island. Some of the
Utrik people thought the world was coming to an end. And
truly, the world they had always known was about to change
forever.
About 160 miles to the west, on Bikini Island, the United
States military had just detonated an atomic bomb, a huge
device with 1,000 times the power of the bomb used at the
end of World War II to destroy the Japanese city of
Hiroshima. The enormous blast vaporized the island and sent
a massive cloud of dust and radiation into the atmosphere.
The military expected the winds to take the cloud north
into an open area of the ocean, but the cloud blew east in-
stead. By noon, the radiation cloud had engulfed a Japanese
fishing boat ironically called the Lucky Dragon, exposing
the twenty-three people on board to a dose of radiation that
would eventually sicken or kill them all. By the end of the
afternoon, the deadly cloud spilled across Utrik Island.
The cloud was made up of coral and rock dust, all that
was left of Bikini Island. The dust fell softly on Utrik Island,
and the children, who remembered pictures of snow shown
to them by their missionary teacher, ran out to play in the
white powder that was piling up everywhere. No one realized
that it was contaminated with deadly radiation.
Three-and-one-half days later, the U.S. military landed
planes on Utrik Island and informed all the people that they
would have to leave immediately, taking nothing with them.
For three months, the island people were held at another mili-
tary base, and then they were returned home.
Many of the people who were on the island that fateful
morning died young, typically from cancer or other diseases
associated with radiation exposure. But even today, those
who survived consider themselves and their island poisoned
by the radiation, and they believe that the poison will never
go away. The radiation may or may not still be in their bod-
ies, but it has certainly worked its way deep into their culture.
More than half a century after the bomb exploded, people
still talked about the morning that “everything changed.” The
damage from this disaster turns out to be much more than
medical—it was a social transformation that left the people
with a deep belief that they are all sick, that life will never be
the same, and that powerful people who live on the other side
of the world could have prevented the disaster but did not.
What Do You Think?
1. In what sense is a disaster like the 2011 radiation leak in
Japan never really over?
2. In what ways did the atomic bomb test change the cul-
ture of the Utrik people?
3. The U.S. government never formally took responsibil-
ity for what happened to the people of Utrik Island.
What elements of global stratification do you see in this
tragedy?
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