Operation Upshot/Knothole
US Atomic Veterans
Arnie Goetchius
Date: Fri, 15 Sep 2006
From: Arnie Goetchius arnie.goetchius@att.net
To: pdxavets@aracnet.com
Subject: My Atomic Test Experience in UPSHOT-KNOTHOLE
Keith,
I enlisted in the Army in Sept 1952 after three years of mechanical engineering at Cornell University. I took basic training at the Field Artillery Replacement Training Center (FARTC) at Fort Sill, Oklahoma where I was the only enlistee in the training battalion. Every one else was a draftee and I really took a ribbing over that. After basic training, I was assigned to the 59th Field Artillery battalion (280mm Gun) where I was part of the survey team. The job of the survey team was to establish the coordinates of the target(s) and feed the information to the Fire Direction Center (FDC). While at Fort Sill, we practiced with High Explosive (HE) shells and lobbed them from one side of the base to the other. Part of my training was learning how to assemble the atomic shells to be used in the 280mm gun on which we were training. This gun was later to be known as "Atomic Annie" but we (at least in the enlisted ranks) never called it that in 1952.
In late April of 1953 we boarded a train with the 280mm gun and associated equipment for the trip from Fort Sill to Camp Desert Rock in Nevada. The train went through El Paso where we had an over night stop. That evening, many of those on board paid a visit to Juarez, Mexico. The impact of that side trip to Juarez probably had a greater negative impact on the health of the soldiers than any subsequent exposure to radiation. The next day the train headed for Las Vegas via Yuma, AZ and Barstow, CA. Having recently been promoted to Cpl., my job on the train was to guard the kitchen car. It was a converted box car that had stoves, grills and ovens added to it. The guards could eat anything we wanted all day long and we did!
After arriving in the Las Vegas area, we debarked and were bussed to Camp Desert Rock and were assigned to a tent. Every night, the army ran buses into Las Vegas and many of us took advantage of it. I entered the Golden Nugget and promptly lost all my money. I called my father and asked for some money and he replied immediately by sending the money through Western Union. Unfortunately, the money went to Las Vegas NM instead of Las Vegas NV but after a few hours, the money finally arrived. I then promptly lost a big chunk of it and at this point was convinced that I was a poor gambler. I used some of the money left to buy a carton of Kent cigarettes and a gallon of Gallo wine which lasted me the rest of the time I was there. I never went back to the gambling tables.
Fortunately, the Las Vegas casinos sent performers to Camp Desert Rock so I didn't miss out on any of the entertainment. One night we were visited by Jan Murray (comedian) and Toni Arden (singer) with a bevy of show girls. They put on a great show for us and it was very much appreciated. After the show, we returned to our tents except for a couple of us who went to the latrine. The latrine had showers and toilets sitting on a concrete slab but the tent siding and roof and not yet been constructed so it was an open air operation sitting right next to the main road. Unbeknown to us, all of the show girls had taken a bus tour of the camp and the bus came right by the latrine. One of the guys was taking a shower and I was sitting on the toilet facing the bus not 20 yards away. What could we do but wave and smile to the girls on the bus? They returned our waves with a big round of applause. It was the highlight of the trip and there was no radiation exposure!
The event it self was called Grable conducted on May 25 and was a part of Operation UPSHOT-KNOTHOLE. Prior to the shot, we were briefed several times on what to expect. We were given a dosimeter badge to measure the radiation. Based on the results of the test, it appeared that very few of us from the 59th battalion exceeded the limits of 3.9 rem. For the vast majority, most were exposed to less than 3.0 rem. For details of the shot including exposure estimates, see http://www.cddc.vt.edu/host/atomic/atmosphr/ustests.html#Upshot-Knothole
Our unit was assigned to the trenches about 2 miles from ground zero. J. Lawton Collins, Army Chief of Staff, was several trenches ahead of us so we weren't worried as long as the main man was in front of us. We were part of a team that would move forward to ground zero after the blast. The weather was hot and clear that day and we were in trenches about 5 to 7 feet deep. When the blast came, we were all hunched down at the bottom of the trench. I remember a bright light but don't remember any sound. After the wind passed over head, we were allowed to get out of the trench. One guy was so scared that he didn't know anything had happened. He was still rolled up in a ball at the bottom of the trench and we had to lift him out.
When we came out of the trench, we could see the mushroom cloud. We then moved forward to near ground zero where we could observe the destruction of houses and a railroad bridge that had been built for the test plus some animals that had been tied up at ground zero. They had a railroad locomotive and a freight car on the bridge which had been tossed several hundred yards by the blast. None of the animals appeared to have survived. Chemical Biological Radiological (CBR) teams preceded us on our movement to ground zero and marked every site that had been contaminated with radiation. Most of those contaminated sites appeared to have contained some kind of metal and it seemed as if the metal absorbed the radiation more then other materials. Obviously we stayed clear of these sites.
Our pre-test briefing discussed the impact of the Nagasaki and Hiroshima on the Japanese population. The army's estimates were that Japanese casualties were: indirect effects of the blast e.g. flying toilet seats - 50%, direct effects of the blast, e.g. blown ear drums - 35% and radiation - 15%. Based on what I saw at ground zero, that estimate appears to be reasonable. What I took away from this experience was that if I were ever to be involved in a nuclear attack and had any kind of warning, I would get down as low as I could, take a shower after the attack as soon as possible and stay from anything metal that could have been contaminated by radiation.
In January 1989, I received correspondence from the Defense Nuclear Agency outlining the "Radiation Exposure and the Nuclear Test Personnel Review Program". The purpose of the Program "is committed to provide each test participant the recorded radiation exposure or to assess the most probable exposure". According to the document they sent, 200,000 test participants had an average dose of .625 rem well below the Federal Guidelines (1989) which permitted up to 5 rem per year. There was a questionnaire as a part of the package they sent. I filled it out and sent it in but did not keep a copy. Based on the apparent low dosage I received, I have never concerned myself with that issue.
Arnie Goetchius
Email: arnie.goetchius@att.net
Keith Whittle
December 22, 2006
Operation Upshot/Knothole