uranium news

Nuclear illness scourge, The new Age, Mel Frykberg, 20 Oct 11,  Exposure to uranium at South African nuclear facilities over the years has left dozens of people dead and hundreds of others terminally ill, an investigation by The New Age has revealed.  “These nuclear workers have been used and abused like cannon fodder and then abandoned without any care or compensation when they were no longer of any use to the nuclear industry,” said Mashile Phalane, the former coordinator of Earthlife Africa (ELA).

ELA and the Pelindaba Working Group – comprising ­ex-employees and antinuclear activists – are leading the battle to get compensation for victims. Former nuclear workers claim that they were not provided with protective clothing nor given the necessary medical attention when they were exposed to radiation.

Most claim they were given ­little or, in many cases, no financial compensation and in many cases were summarily dismissed once their symptoms became known.  The country’s nuclear watchdog, the Nuclear Energy Corporation of South Africa (Necsa), stands accused by activists involved in the long-running campaign to ensure justice for victims and their families, of destroying the lives of hundreds of ex-employees.

Efforts to document Corral’s work history and exposure levels have turned into endless rounds of paperwork for him and volunteer advocate Sandra Belvail. They’ve had to track down decades-old payroll records and medical reports..

Former co-workers who started the claims process gave up.

“If they drag this process out, these guys will be gone,” Belvail said.

Chico Corral blames uranium industry for failing health But as others before him have learned, compensation is elusive The Spokesman Review, Becky Kramer 6 June 11, “….Now 79, Corral’s lungs show signs of scarring. Minor exertion leaves him short of breath. He believes his lung problems resulted from the two decades he spent in the uranium industry. (more…)

employees who worked outside of those dates still have to prove their cancer was caused by radiation at the plant….“They waited so long until almost everyone died,” Wytovak said.

They’re hoping for help in radiation case, Fuel Fix 3 March 2011, “…………“I thought it was a fertilizer plant,” said Wytovak, who discovered later during his 20 years at the plant that he had been part of an unwitting team extracting uranium for nuclear weapons. The phosphate ore was mined in Florida and shipped to Texas City Chemicals, and it was Wytovak’s job to work on the pumps and filters.
“It was all hush-hush,” recalled Wytovak, who also began to wonder whether it was harmful to his health after he was diagnosed with tongue cancer in 1977. The left side of his tongue was removed. (more…)