Remarkable experiences of the nuclear tests in residents near the Semipalatinsk nuclear test site: analysis based on the questionnaire surveys.
The main objective of this paper is to identify salient experiences of those who were exposed to radiation by the nuclear tests at the Semipalatinsk Nuclear Tests Site (SNTS). In 2002, our research team of the Research Institute for Radiation Biology and Medicine, Hiroshima University, started to conduct some field research by means of a questionnaire survey. Through this, we expected to examine the health condition of the residents near the SNTS, identify their experiences from the nuclear tests, and understand the exposure path. This attempt at clarifying the reality of radiation exposure at Semipalatinsk through the use of a survey research method is the first of its kind. Among the responses to our survey, the present paper focuses mainly upon responses to the questions concerning the experiences of the nuclear tests. It deals mainly with direct experiences of nuclear tests of the residents characteristic to Semipalatinsk, including some new experiences hitherto unnoticed. The present paper touches upon their concrete direct experiences of flash, bomb blast, heat, rain and dust. We also discuss distinct experiences in Semipalatinsk such as evacuation, through the additional use of their testimonies. The data have been compared with the results obtained in a similar survey made in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. For the data analysis, a statistical method called logistic multiple linear regression analysis has been used.
Kawano
Noriyuki
N
Research Institute for Radiation Biology and Medicine, Hiroshima University, Japan. nkawano@hiroshima-u.ac.jp
Ohtaki
Megu
M
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001290:Attitude; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D062665:Epidemiological Monitoring; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007623:Kazakhstan / Q000453:epidemiology; D008016:Life Change Events; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009689:Nuclear Warfare / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011159:Population Surveillance; D018570:Risk Assessment / Q000379:methods*; D012307:Risk Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires