Operation Crossroads
US Atomic Veterans
Rod Van Ausdall
From: rodvan@adelphia.net
To: "Keith" pdxavets@aracnet.com
Subject: OPERATION CROSSROADS
Date: Tue, 4 Jan 2000
Like thousands of other 1940s teenagers in WW II, I served my country in the
Pacific Theatre, and, after participating in the invasions of Iwo Jima and Okinawa, returned to the States (San Diego) on my ship, the LST 944.
I went home on a wonderful thirty day leave and upon my return to San Diego, I had a little time to serve before discharge to civilian life and school, so I volunteered for Joint Task Force One and Operation CROSSROADS. |
Rod Van Ausdall
|
I returned to Pearl Harbor and was assigned to the cruiser SALT LAKE CITY, bound for Bikini as a target ship. She was my first wooden decked ship. Holystoning the main deck was a
once-in-a-lifetime chore for a steel deck sailor. The cruise to Bikini was pleasant with no wartime light discipline or General Quarters calls - a welcome relief from the activities of a few months before.
When we arrived off Bikini, we anchored the Salt Lake City in Bikini lagoon, and the crew
transferred. I drew assignment to the LST 861. The LST 861 was then tasked to take aboard Bikini natives and transport them to the island of Rongerik.
The preparation for the trip to Rongerik included the construction of primitive toilet facilities on the main deck and little else. I don`t recall how or what the natives were fed but remember they were only aboard one day and night. I`m not sure what was furnished for bedding, if any, but I remember the natives were restricted to topside, forward of the bridge deck area, for the trip to Rongerik. It was not a pleasant experience for the crew, and, as the natives had suffered abuse by the Japanese during the war, this resettlement by the American Navy must have frightened and bewildered them.
Upon our return to Bikini we assumed our primary mission which was to provide a floating Fleet Post Office for Joint Task Force One and supporting elements.
The tank deck of the LST 861 had been transformed into a large post office and furnished mail
service for every ship and element of Joint Task Force One. I suppose every captain`s gig , duty launch, LCVPs, and other small boats from the fleet came alongside each day with Guard and personal mail. We opened the LST bow doors, creating a dock, to make it easy to come alongside and enter the tank deck. There were mountains of mail - incoming and outgoing !
My memories of the lagoon and target fleet have faded but I remember the USS NEVADA had been painted red and was the ground zero target. We all thought this was a shameful way to treat the NEVADA. I recall admiring the German cruiser PRINZ EUGEN. With her long raked bow she was a beautiful ship.
A unique aspect of the Fleet Post Office operation was the sacks of mail we got from the philatelic community, all over the world, asking for cancellations of stamps with the atom bomb test cancellation cachet. Each collector sent 20-30 stamped envelopes to be hand cancelled.
Two cachets were used - one for the Able shot and one for the Baker shot. Sailors were assigned to "hand cancel" these letters with special hand stamps in lieu of the machine cancellation (which may have smeared the stamps). There must have been thousands of these letters. I recall no limit to the outside (non-participants) number of requests for cancellation but another post on this web page states the fleet participants were allowed only four envelopes per man. They are probably becoming hard to find now.
We were about 12-15 miles away during both tests and weren`t in any blast danger. We were
underway at the time of each shot. We returned to the lagoon after the shots. I thought it was
strange some vessels escaped damage and others close by were sunk or heavily damaged.
Scientists with Gieger counters came aboard and we were clicking "hot" but didn`t do anything
about it, The Salt Lake City remained afloat during both tests. I have since learned she was later sunk by the Navy during a terrific air/sea bombardment off San Diego. It is sad to think so many ships with glorious records were sunk without ceremony.
I recall , one night, after the tests, during the voyage back to Pearl Harbor, I went into the galley and when I returned to the darkness of the deck , my hand, which had flour on it, was glowing with light. After washing my hand the glow disappeared. I don`t know if this was due to radiation but the glow appeared remarkably similar to the phosphorous glow one sees streaming from porpoises when they play around the bow of a ship underway.
When we arrived in Pearl Harbor we were again declared "hot" and all hands transferred off the ship. I went aboard the USS Shangri-La for travel to the US and return to civilian life. I later served in the Korean War and am now 74 and feel great.
In 1984 I recieved a questionaire from the Navy inquiring about my health. I answered I was okay. Later I recieved a computer printout stating I received a "calculated" exposure of Gamma (REM) 0.380, during CROSSROADS, and this was not harmful. "The calculated dosage method was necessary to reconstruct the dosage recieved as only 15% of participants were badged. "
I personally believe there were too many variables and unreliable data sources to properly evaluate and accurately determine individual doses.
Rod Van Ausdall
rodvan@adelphia.net
--Keith Whittle
January 4, 2000
Operation Crossroads