Fifty years after U.S. warplanes first sprayed a chemical weapon, known as Agent Orange, on Vietnam’s jungles to destroy enemy cover, America is helping clean up one of the most contaminated sites – Danang airport. (April 24)
[Notes:VOICE-OVER SCRIPT]
[Notes:AP TELEVISION – AP CLIENTS ONLY]
[Notes:Danang, April 24, 2013/file]
ONE OF VIETNAM’S MOST CONTAMINATED SITES IS OFF LIMITS…
IT’S BEEN FIFTY YEARS SINCE U-S WARPLANES FIRST SPRAYED A CHEMICAL WEAPON … KNOWN AS AGENT ORANGE … ON VIETNAM’S JUNGLES TO DESTROY ENEMY COVER,
THE AIRPORT THERE QUICKLY TRANSFORMED FROM ONE OF AMERICA’S MAJOR AIR-BASES… TO WHAT MANY CALL A DIOXIN “HOTSPOT”.
BUT THAT IS ABOUT TO CHANGE.
THE US IS HELPING CLEAN UP THE AREA.
[Notes:SOUNDBITE Joakim Parker, Mission Director, US Agency for International Development (USAID): “The United States and Vietnam do share a painful past. It’s taken time to overcome that. I would say, that with respect to getting to the point where we are today, which is moving very quickly, it has been a process
that has accelerated greatly in the developing relationship between the two countries.”]
DURING THE VIETNAM WAR… THE U-S MILITARY DUMPED AN ESTIMATED TWENTY MILLION GALLONS OF AGENT ORANGE AND OTHER HERBICIDES ON ABOUT A QUARTER OF FORMER SOUTH VIETNAM.
DIOXIN HAS BEEN LINKED TO CANCER, BIRTH DEFECTS AND OTHER DISABILITIES.
NICOLE GRETHER – THE ASSOCIATED PRESS.
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