WEBVTT - The Atomic Marine

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<v Speaker 1>This is Lei Habib and this is Our American Stories,

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<v Speaker 1>the show where America is the star and the American people.

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<v Speaker 1>And to search for the Our American Stories podcast, go

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<v Speaker 1>to the iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcast.

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<v Speaker 1>From nineteen forty five to nineteen ninety two, the United

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<v Speaker 1>States conducted one thousand and fifty four nuclear tests as

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<v Speaker 1>a part of the nuclear arms race with Soviet Russia.

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<v Speaker 1>Many of these tests were conducted in Nevada, where soldiers

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<v Speaker 1>were sent to be tested on by military scientists and

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<v Speaker 1>upper brass trying to figure out the psychological and health

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<v Speaker 1>effects brought on by the use of nuclear weapons. One

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<v Speaker 1>of those soldiers was Toby Madrid. Here's listener Richard Muniez,

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<v Speaker 1>who worked with Toby with the story of this atomic Marine.

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<v Speaker 1>The only two people I ever heard this story as

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<v Speaker 1>myself and his son Jr. As far as Jr knows,

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<v Speaker 1>he never told his story to anyone else. Toby was

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<v Speaker 1>in the Marines and in nineteen fifty one to nineteen

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<v Speaker 1>fifty seven out in nevadapproving grounds. It was a small camp.

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<v Speaker 1>It was called Camp Desert Rock, and it was barrys

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<v Speaker 1>and mess halls and things like that. But it had

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<v Speaker 1>one mission, one purpose. It was to support military personnel

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<v Speaker 1>while tests involved in the atomic bomb were conducted. Remember

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<v Speaker 1>sure if Toby to Madrid. We were in his office

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<v Speaker 1>if you can call a broom closet with a light

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<v Speaker 1>and a desk an office. He had a cup of

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<v Speaker 1>coffee in his hands, and he has feet upon the desk.

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<v Speaker 1>I mean, it was totally laid back attitude, but I

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<v Speaker 1>could see the tension in his job on. The funny

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<v Speaker 1>part about it was he wasn't looking at me, and

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<v Speaker 1>he wasn't looking at Jr. He was looking at the wall.

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<v Speaker 1>I had this distinct impression that if he bothered to

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<v Speaker 1>look at either one of us would never hear the story.

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<v Speaker 1>He said, they stuck us out in the middle of nowhere,

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<v Speaker 1>and if you ever been out that section of Nevada,

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<v Speaker 1>it's pretty much the middle of nowhere. And went on

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<v Speaker 1>to say that they told us we were to be

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<v Speaker 1>part of an atomic bomb test. Now, the name of

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<v Speaker 1>these tests that I looked up later on, it was

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<v Speaker 1>called the Desert Rock Exercises, and this is what we

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<v Speaker 1>call Desert Rock for Operation Tumbler Snapper. Well, he said

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<v Speaker 1>they took him out there and they were there for

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<v Speaker 1>several different several days beforehand, they Chrieff said, they took

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<v Speaker 1>him out there to have the trenches they built, defensive

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<v Speaker 1>fortified positions, all that stuff. Now, the idea was they

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<v Speaker 1>would be able to stand in these or squat at them,

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<v Speaker 1>provide some cover. And then he said, I remembered as

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<v Speaker 1>we were digging, there were trucks carrying tanks and jeeps

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<v Speaker 1>and things like that. Some of the vehicles were towing

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<v Speaker 1>artillery pieces out there, and some of the marinacy was

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<v Speaker 1>with went out with them, and they came back to

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<v Speaker 1>saying how they sort of dummies that were in uniform

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<v Speaker 1>and some of them were standing up. So we're lying

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<v Speaker 1>down that kind of stuff. Now, I went out to

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<v Speaker 1>research a little bit more and it seems to be

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<v Speaker 1>that he was out there for what they called a

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<v Speaker 1>shot Dog nuclear test, and this happened on May first,

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<v Speaker 1>nineteen fifty two, and involved the dropping of what we

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<v Speaker 1>call a Mark seventh bomb. Now, the Air Force was

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<v Speaker 1>doing the drops and they were using either B fifties

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<v Speaker 1>or B forty five to do these. So he said

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<v Speaker 1>the day of the test, they got them up, they

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<v Speaker 1>had breakfast, and they took him out there to the site,

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<v Speaker 1>and they got in their trenches and what they were

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<v Speaker 1>told to do. They were told to crouch below the

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<v Speaker 1>rim of the trench, had their faces down, their eyes

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<v Speaker 1>closed when the blasts happened. Now, they would get plenty

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<v Speaker 1>of warning beforehand that this was going to happened, you know,

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<v Speaker 1>they give him a warning the bomber to hear the

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<v Speaker 1>bombers coming in. Stood like that, and they needed to

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<v Speaker 1>be doing this, she said. Along around eight thirty or so,

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<v Speaker 1>they heard the aircraft coming in, and that's when the

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<v Speaker 1>warning happened. So they climbed to the trenches. They got

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<v Speaker 1>in the position they were told to get into. He

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<v Speaker 1>had said he was crouched down, he had his head down,

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<v Speaker 1>his eyes closed, and even with this, all of a sudden,

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<v Speaker 1>he said there was light. He seriously felt that he

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<v Speaker 1>had actually seen the blast of the bomb. Now what

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<v Speaker 1>he had witnessed here was the debtinish of a nineteen

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<v Speaker 1>kiloton bomb, and it exploded about one thousand meters above

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<v Speaker 1>the ground. And then he went on to say that

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<v Speaker 1>the light faded, but as it faded, there was thunder

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<v Speaker 1>like I had never heard before. And then there was wind.

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<v Speaker 1>I mean, the wind just came up and it was

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<v Speaker 1>so intense that brocked him back against the back of

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<v Speaker 1>his wrench. And then the wind reverse directions came back

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<v Speaker 1>and pushed him face forward into into the front of

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<v Speaker 1>the trench. And so then the second a few seconds

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<v Speaker 1>later came in order to leave the trenches. So they

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<v Speaker 1>climbed out. And as he put it, we've all seen

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<v Speaker 1>movies of the motionroom cloud an atomic bomb generates, he says,

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<v Speaker 1>seen it in real life. It was like it just

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<v Speaker 1>wasn't real. You know, you can't you can't wrap your

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<v Speaker 1>mind around something like this. And you sit there and

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<v Speaker 1>look at and say, something humans built generated this. And

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<v Speaker 1>he said it was already towering up into the sky,

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<v Speaker 1>and he compared it something that was like a cloud

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<v Speaker 1>that was boating up from Hell. And they told him

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<v Speaker 1>to start walking forward, and they did. He went on

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<v Speaker 1>to relate that as they moved along, he started seeing

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<v Speaker 1>some of those things have been so a few days before, like,

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<v Speaker 1>for one location member seeing the Sherman tanking, he said,

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<v Speaker 1>look like the Sherman tanks had been swatted aside by

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<v Speaker 1>some giant's hand. And then they started encountering some of

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<v Speaker 1>these dummies have been set up. Some were almost burnt

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<v Speaker 1>up entirely. Others were smoldering, so they kept walking. They

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<v Speaker 1>got within about three quarters of a mile of where

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<v Speaker 1>the bomb had exploded, and they stopped him. They turned

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<v Speaker 1>him around and marched him back out there, and he

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<v Speaker 1>said he remember hearing somebody saying it had gotten it

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<v Speaker 1>was too hot to go much further, and well that

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<v Speaker 1>basically man was too radioactive. They marched to a certain

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<v Speaker 1>site there they swept them off, hold them off, and

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<v Speaker 1>he said, it's actually surprised by how much dust came

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<v Speaker 1>off of him in his up latoon and really keep

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<v Speaker 1>the uniform he had been warning, he watered it up

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<v Speaker 1>and threw it away. Like I said, that's the only

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<v Speaker 1>time that we know of, that's myself and Jr. That

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<v Speaker 1>Toby actually ever talked about the day of the bomb.

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<v Speaker 1>A lot of people wounded up, getting sick and dying

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<v Speaker 1>because of exposure to fallout. The thing is, I don't

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<v Speaker 1>think a lot of people knew what they were headed for.

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<v Speaker 1>They were at a pivotal moment to history, and they

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<v Speaker 1>didn't realize it. I know the chef didn't. And this

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<v Speaker 1>is why we routinely celebrate our veterans on this show

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<v Speaker 1>because Our soldiers serve in so many distinct and dangerous ways,

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<v Speaker 1>and you just heard about one, the story of Tobby Madrid,

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<v Speaker 1>the Atomic Marine. Here on our American story Folks, if

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<v Speaker 1>you love the stories we tell about this great country,

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<v Speaker 1>and especially the stories of America's rich past, know that

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<v Speaker 1>all of our stories about American history, from war to innovation,

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<v Speaker 1>culture and faith, are brought to us by the great

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<v Speaker 1>folks at Hillsdale College, a place where students study all

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<v Speaker 1>the things that are beautiful in life and all the

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<v Speaker 1>things that are good in life. And if you can't

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<v Speaker 1>cut to Hillsdale, Hillsdale will come to you with their

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<v Speaker 1>free and terrific online courses. Go to Hillsdale dot du

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<v Speaker 1>to learn more.