Pohakuloa Radiation Dangers
Pohakuloa
Radiation Dangers!
Depleted Uranium (DU) radiation, is just one of many toxins used at the 133,000-acre military Pohakuloa Training Area (PTA), located in the center of Hawaii Island from over 75 years of bombing and shelling. After years of military denial that DU was used at PTA, information surfaced in 2007 that confirmed its use, not only at PTA but at Schofield Barracks on Oahu, likely Makua Valley, possibly Kaho’olawe, etc. Even before DU was confirmed to have been used at PTA, our organization detected elevated radiation readings with certified radiation monitors several times background levels, blowing in the winds off PTA. DU which has a half-life of 4.5 billion years, was first used at PTA as a spotting round for the Davy Crockett nuclear weapon system in the 1960s. Modern DU weapons are used as armor-piercing penetrating weapons.
DU does not pose a danger when outside the body. But DU metal when burned creates tiny DU oxide particles that can be easily inhaled. Once inhaled, according to Dr. Lorrin Pang, MD, these particles can travel through the body’s lymph system and cause cancer in various organs. DU can also cause birth defects, and genetic damage that can be passed to future generations. Dr. Pang, a Hawaii resident, spent 24 years in the Army Medical Corps and was listed in the Who’s Who (top 3%) of America’s best doctors. Dr. Pang says especially vulnerable to DU inhalation are young children and pregnant women. See a short video by Dr. Pang on DU dangers here https://vimeo.com/19153948 Also watch an important 14-minute video about Pohakuloa – “Now that you know, do you care?” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5r10eRMjIRw Continued bombing and shelling at PTA can resuspend DU and other toxins that can be carried long distances in the wind.
On Thursday, April 25, 2024, the military invited school children and the general public to “Experience Pohakuloa Day” on the base. Our organization sent letters, emails, and faxes to every school on the island advising against any student excursions to PTA out of health concerns. In a Public Service Announcement to the schools, we included the link to the video by Dr. Pang.
The military has ignored a Hawaii County Council resolution (#639-08) that called for stopping all live fire at PTA and any activities that create dust until comprehensive, independent testing, monitoring and clean up of the DU present is done. So who, or what, is the military defending?
Protect Hawai’i Keiki!
Stop Bombing Pohakuloa!
1 . Mourn all victims of violence. 2. Reject violence & war as solutions. 3. Defend civil liberties.
4. Oppose all discrimination: anti-Islamic, anti-Semitic, anti-Hawaiian, anti-Black, anti-Asian, anti-Russian, anti-LGBTQ, etc. 5. Seek peace through peaceful means and work for justice in Hawai`i and around the world.
Malu ‘Aina Center for Non-violent Education & Action
P.O. Box 489 Ola’a (Kurtistown), Hawai’i 96760
Phone (808) 966-7622 Email ja@malu-aina.org to receive our posts.
For more information see https://www.malu-aina.org
April 26, 2024, Hilo Peace Vigil leaflet – week 1178 – Fridays 3:30-5 PM downtown Post Office
