Operation Redwing
US Atomic Veterans
Charles F. Morgan
Charles F. (Chuck) Morgan sent email about his duty at Operation Redwing.
Date: Sun, 26 Oct 2003
From: Alice & Chuck Morgan niutke@comcast.net
To: pdxavets@aracnet.com
Subject: My name
Keith,
I served with Headquarters Detachment on Eniwetok during Operation
Redwing.
I was thirteen when the two atomic bombs were dropped on Japan to
end World War II and I obviously knew they were powerful enough to end
that war. But now here I was standing on the beach on Eniwetok on May
5, 1955, waiting to witness that power personally.
It all seemed almost unreal, like a movie set listening to the countdown proceed from 10,
9,....1 and then the blast just up the chain of islands at Runit Island
just 12 miles away across the lagoon from where I was standing. We were
told not to look directly at the blast at the moment of detonation and
to count to three before we looked. When I finally turned around and
looked, I was in awe of what I saw. The stem of a mushroom cloud which
looked like it was fiery burning gases being driven thousands of feet
into the air. I stood frozen at the power being exhibited in this blast
and remember thinking that I hoped never to see one of these weapons
being used in anger again.
A month or so later a newspaper clipping
from a Chicago paper arrived in the mail and was amazed to see where
this first shot named Lacrosse was described by the Atomic Energy
Commission as a "little bang" and apologized to the press for not
showing them something more powerful. I had wondered at the time
whether there could be anything more powerful than this 40 kiloton (a
kiloton is equal to 100 tons of TNT) device.
Over the next two months, thirteen more devices were detonated at
Eniwetok and Bikini and after the first few we didn't even get up to
watch because it was almost like we felt that when you've seen one
you've seem them all. However, all this changed on July 21st because we
had been briefed that the next shot called Tewa over on Bikini, 190
miles away, would be detoned at dawn and we would be able to see, "a
dull glow in the sky." So, myself and two friends decided to get up and
watch before going on to breakfast.
We were standing on the shore
looking out across the ocean toward Bikini. when the whole sky lit up so
bright we almost had to turn away. Our only reaction was that that
wasn't a dull glow in the sky and it was 190 miles away. Continuing on
to the chow hall which was a quonset hut, we were halfway through
breakfast when the shock wave hit this prefabricated corrugated building
rattling the windows and building. Once again I thought, we are 190
miles away, what must it be like over at Bikini and I was glad I wasn't
there to know what this 5 megaton (5 million tons of TNT) device had
done.
Charles F. Morgan
Email: niutke@comcast.net
Keith Whittle
October 28, 2003
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