NATION IN BRIEF : WASHINGTON, D.C. : Islanders Accuse U.S. in Radiation Case

The government was accused of deliberately contaminating hundreds of people with radiation 40 years ago by exploding a hydrogen bomb near the Marshall Islands. U.S. officials had acknowledged that the fallout from the 1954 explosion had exposed some islanders to radiation, but they claimed it was only because of sudden changes in wind. However, documents presented at a congressional hearing showed that the government knew 12 hours in advance that the wind was changing. “The (bomb) shot was deliberately set off despite the fact that (Atomic Energy Commission) officials knew exactly which way the winds were headed,” Jonathan Weisgall, an attorney for the inhabitants of Bikini Island, told the House Natural Resources subcommittee.