Gruinard Island: Fire on island used for Anthrax experiments

[Mary Wilson]

4 days ago
(no author listed)

An uninhabited Scottish island where government scientists once conducted experiments with Anthrax has been hit by a fire.

People who saw the fire on Gruinard Island from the mainland described the scene as "apocalyptic".

They said the uninhabited island off Scotland's north-west coast was ablaze from "one end to the other" on Saturday evening.

The island was used for germ warfare experiments during World War Two.

It was declared free of Anthrax by the Ministry of Defence in April 1990.

... The experiment was deemed a success and the scientists returned to Porton Down - but the anthrax remained.

In an attempt to rid the island of anthrax spores, Porton Down instructed the heather be set on fire.

It remained off limits and it was not until 24 years after the experiment that the warning signs even mentioned Anthrax.

Porton Down experts checked the soil but the anthrax spores were "surprisingly resistant to degradation".

In 1986, Gruinard was again a hive of activity as teams of scientists, vaccinated against anthrax and dressed in protective clothing, prepared to return the island to its natural state.

They sprayed the soil with seawater and formaldehyde and it was again tested at Porton Down.

Finally, on 24 April 1990, the MoD declared Gruinard anthrax free.

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-60892350

 

[Mary Wilson]

The mystery of Anthrax Island and the seeds of death

26 February
By Steven Brocklehurst
BBC Scotland News

For decades, Gruinard Island off the north west coast of Scotland was too dangerous to allow public access.

It was known as "Anthrax Island" after it was contaminated during World War Two by scientists carrying out germ warfare experiments.

Anthrax is a lethal bacteria, especially when inhaled, and it proves fatal in almost all cases, even with medical treatment.

The secret wartime experiments left the tiny island uninhabitable for decades - until in 1981 a group known as the Dark Harvest commandos launched a move to focus attention on the deadly contamination.

It began with a letter to the Glasgow Herald newspaper, which said: "By the time you read this the campaign will have started in earnest.

"The first delivery will have been made - and where better to send the seeds of death than to the place from whence they came?"

That place was the Porton Down biological research centre in Wiltshire, the top secret Ministry of Defence laboratory.

The facility was searched and nothing was found. So they searched again and found a bucket of soil near the perimeter.

The letter claimed the soil contained Bacillus anthracis, better known as anthrax, a deadly agent of germ warfare.

The government scientists quickly worked out it came from 600 miles away on Gruinard Island. ...

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-60483849

 

[sharon sanders]

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