When we hear the word “vacation” the first thing that probably comes to mind is the beach-- swimming in the water, diving in the sea, touring with the locals, and island hopping! But would you go have your vacation in an island that was left abandoned and uninhabited for about 75 years?
Gruinard Island was seized by the British Government during World War II to use for an experiment of their chemical bomb in 1942. It was because the British dreaded a chemical attack from their opponents so they tested “anthrax”, their own chemical bomb.
Since then, humans were prohibited from going on the island and no one but the British Government could go in there. It was soon announced that the island was contaminated by anthrax and it is poisoned and dangerous for anyone.
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In 1945, when the war ended. The original owner of the island wanted to purchase it back but the government did not let them as it was too dangerous. They said that the island must be anthrax-free first and declared safe before anyone or anything lives there.
But the decontamination process took place after over 50 years of waiting, as it was too dangerous and expensive.
On 1981, a mission called “Operation Dark Harvest” was done by a rebellious group of microbiologists to urge the government to start the decontamination of Gruinard Island. The group took 300 pounds of soil from the island and put it in two government facilities.
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April 24, 1990, Gruinard Island was declared anthrax-free and was already decontaminated for four years.
However, one scientist was not convinced that the island was already free from danger. Archaeologist, Dr. Brian Moffat said that “I would not go walking on Gruinard.”
How about you? Would you set your foot into this once contaminated island? Post your comments below!
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