Vietnam Veterans (EXPOSED TO AGENT ORANGE)

I have been able to get my fathers paperwork started for him at the regional VA office, I hope all veterans get the treatment and the resources they can.

i believe i was exposed a number of times but i never set foot on shore in vietnam so they don't count.

My first command(minron 11) i had a number(about 25) of mine sweep boats(MSB) that had been brought back from Vietnam
www.ussguide.net...
These boat were in bad shape and part of bringing them back into good shape was to strip all the paint off.
We did that with paint scrapers and gas torches by heating the paint till it blistered and smoked then scraping off the softened paint.
These boat had been in one of the areas of agent orange spraying and had in some cases been under the sprays from aircraft.
All the layers of paint that had been put on in vietnam would had been loaded with agent orange and we were breathing the fumes from this paint.
These were wooden boat and the wood would have soaked up agent orange like a sponge

my next command was a ocean mine sweep and i was part of operation endsweep.
on the way to sweep the mines from the harbors of north vietnam we island hopped across the pacfic and stopped at johnston island to refuel and take on food and fresh water.this was january 1973.
this water was treated sea water from the area around Johnston island
Both times the sweep i was on pulled in to johnston island we stayed over night and as our ships distalation system always had problems we got to take showers without rationing water and we filled the ships water tank a few time each stop. this would have left agent orange in our ships fresh water tanks.
www.hadit.com.../topic/44152-agent-orange-was-leaking-in-april-1972-on-johnston-island-fw-in-memory-my-health-our-day-in-va-appe als-court/
www.guamagentorange.info...

The VA claims that the minesweep could not have gotten and agent orange from Johnston island..

Another island the mine sweep i was on stopped at was Guam where we stayed for a couple week between going to and returning from sweeping the mines off north Vietnam.
the whole island has been found to have been contaminated with agent orange and the water supply we got for our ship was likely contaminated as it was treated rain water or well water from the ammo storage area of the navy base and it has been found that the area had been sprayed with agent orange to control jungle growth.
www.bluewaternavy.org...

I also used pure or not so pure trichloroethylene(TCE) in large amounts for cleaned equipment and parts all during my time in the navy and it was in the drinking water in Guam in high concentrations.
yet the VA claims that TCE was safe and no navy personal were harmed. just the marines at Camp Lejeune and know where else.
en.wikipedia.org...

I have had castlemans disease and/or sarciodosis both rare autoimmune diseases. neuropathy.in the arms and feet that i had after the autoimmune disorders but long before the diabetes, a heart attack with bypass surgery and now have diabetes.
I have been unable to work since 2003 and living on a VA pension not service connected..

Your call do you think these are service connected.
The VA does not and i have tried to get service connected for them but i have lost every time.
The only service connected i get is 10% for hearing loss and tinnitus from my long hours working in the ships engine rooms.

I read this thread when it was first started due to my father being exposed to AO during his tour of Vietnam.

He had issues such as rashes in his groin area over the years, and nothing more than that.

untill a few years ago, when he started having cancerous growths removed from his face. Then he startyed to have issues with severe bruising from the slightest bump or abrasion. He is 64 and the bruising lookd like something you see on a 90 year old man.

Now, last week he tells me he has stage III kidney disease, may be diabetic, might have prostate cancer, and diagnosed with COPD.

I AM SO PISSED at the gov, DOW chem, and whoever gave the go ahead to use this stuff. My dad says they would tell them how "safe" the stuff was, you could even drink it. Eff em all.

reply to post by Blu82

Good luck to you and your father.... There are numerous uncommon medical conditions that commonly occur amongst Vietnam veterans that aren't recognized as being caused by their military service.. The only people I have known that received compensation for issues related to Agent Orange had children that had leukemia or birth defects.. Areas with very large base camps or a large population of civilians were the most heavily sprayed.. The guys they are doing their studies on were the ones handling and spraying the defoliants.. Unlike the combatants, they were able to shower and change clothing regularly.... From what I understand, the only people that received compensation had to have been awarded 100% service compensation before 1995.... That was what I was told in 1994... I received 100% comp in 1995 retroactive to April 94 but still received no award even though I was listed as being exposed in 1982...They changed my rating to total and permanent in 1997 and that shuts the door on me to receive any additional comp... The award from the lawsuit was given out before January 95.

www.va.govreply to post by Blu82


Hello Blu82,

Thank you for your post about vet benefits. Suggest folks look at < www.va.gov >

Also folks may be interested in the history of Admiral Zumwalt and his family with regard to his earlysupport for agent orange and his later reversal of that support.


Today the VA treats the medical problems you listed as having having been caused by exposure agent orange by all active duty military members stationed in RVN during the years the chemicals were in use.

This is a big deal because the records of service are on file with the VA and the individual with a covered medical condition does not have to climb a mountain of paper work to get treatment and file a benefit claim.


The field of membership has recently been expanded to include brown water navy vets. If you looked into being included in the agent orange affected group and were excluded a few years ago, you may want to ask again to be considered.

The process can be confusing and you must be prepared to go at the military pace of "hurry up an wait"


Keep in mind the treatment and claims processes are absolutely separate administratively even if they are in one building.

reply to post by whatwasthat


Forget about getting any help though if you were born with Spina Bifida and your dad wasn't in the military.
I guess Spina Bifida is only a disability if it was caused by Agent Orange. Such a load of crap!

reply to post by Afterthought


There are lots of folks with serious condtions and many agencies that may offer help.

This post is about veterans, many of whom were drafted into military service and sustained injuries of the non kinetic type but related to combat hostilities.

reply to post by whatwasthat


I understand that this thread is about veterans. I know all about the Agent Orange Benefits Act and how they're getting ready to extend it to the grandchildren of Vietnam Veterans. The fact of the matter is is that doctors and scientists won't say what causes Spina Bifida, yet the government has decided to blame it on Agent Orange.

Ireland has the highest rate of babies born with Spina Bifida. Agent Orange has never been used in Ireland as far as I'm aware.

To add insult to injury, if the government and military were actually sorry for causing health problems by dumping herbicides on soldiers, then why are they doing it now on the border of the US and Mexico to help officers spot those who are trying to cross the border?

People need to do their research to find out what really going on. But, if people are more interested in just getting their money, then I guess I have nothing left to offer here.

Then he startyed to have issues with severe bruising from the slightest bump or abrasion. He is 64 and the bruising lookd like something you see on a 90 year old man.

reply to post by magilla


My dad (70) is going through this exact thing his Dr. at the VA said it was rotten skin. Iv never heard of it but he can just bump into something and bruise or get a cut and with the blood thinners he is on well he bleeds like a stuck pig. I do a lot for him now because of this and he cant stand it. Agent Orange IMHO ranks right up there with squalene that was in the anthrax vaccine that was given in the first gulf war. They deny its the cause of gulf war syndrome. I got the shot and nothing happened to me but others in my chalk got it and 2 of them are two brain cells away from being a vegetable due to cognitive problems.

reply to post by Afterthought


I am sorry to hear about the condition that you or your loved one is suffering from.

This additional information will not be of much help to you except to shed light on how US government decisions come out of legislation. A Navy Admiral lost a family member to cancer, very likely caused by exposure to agent orange in Vietnam. When agent orange was recognised as the problem causing several medical conditions the list was expanded to include proven as well a suspected medical conditions for veterans and their progeny.

Being included in the VA's list is an indication of concern, elevated to the equivelent in law as scientific proof but only for the class of indivduals covered by VA medical benefits. This VA administrative finding is intended to make a VA medical claim easier to process and not offered as scientific proof of the link between the chemical agent orange and any specific desease caused by exposure of and individual or their progeny.

This does not help the situation of someone injured by exposure to agent orange but not a uniformed military service member

reply to post by Afterthought


Hello Afterthought,

I have been on the Mexico border with TX and AZ recently. Border patrol is active and varied but I have seen no indication of herbicide use. Can you tell us where it is being used on the border with Mexico? I hunt upland birds and we eat what we shoot. This would be a concern if it is near where I go hunting.

reply to post by whatwasthat


Thank you for your condolences.

Here is the information about the spraying at the border:
www.commondreams.org...

The U.S. Border Patrol plans to poison the plant life along a 1.1-mile stretch of the Rio Grande riverbank as soon as Wednesday to get rid of the hiding places used by smugglers, robbers and illegal immigrants.

If successful, the $2.1 million pilot project could later be duplicated along as many as 130 miles of river in the patrol's Laredo Sector, as well as other parts of the U.S.-Mexico border.

Although Border Patrol and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency officials say the chemical is safe for animals, detractors say the experiment is reminiscent of the Vietnam War-era Agent Orange chemical program and raises questions about long-term effects.

"We don't believe that is even moral," said Jay Johnson-Castro Sr., executive director of the Rio Grande International Study Center, located at Laredo Community College, adjacent to the planned test area.

"It is unprecedented that they'd do it in a populated area," he said of spraying the edge of the Rio Grande as it weaves between the cities of Laredo and Nuevo Laredo, Mexico.

Border Patrol agent Roque Sarinana said the pilot project aims to find the most efficient way to keep agents safer and better protect the nation's border. "We are trying to improve our mobility and visibility up and down the river," Sarinana said.

Criminals have grown adept at using the dense foliage to elude capture, he said.

"They can come over almost undetected," he said.

One method calls for the cane to be cut by hand and the stumps painted with the herbicide, Imazapyr.

Another involves using mechanical equipment to dig the cane out by the roots. It is unclear if herbicides would be necessary in this scenario.

The third and most controversial removal method calls for helicopters spraying Imazapyr directly on the cane - repeatedly - until all plant life in the area is poisoned.

The Border Patrol said that after using the herbicide, it plans to make the river's edges green again by planting native plants.

Johnson-Castro said he has no issue with removing the cane, a non-native plant brought by the Spaniards centuries ago. The challenge, he said, is how it is done.

"We are saying it is one hell of a big deal," he said.

Laredo Mayor Raul Salinas said he believes federal officials when they say testing shows the chemical is not dangerous, but that he also realizes opponents of the project have concerns to evaluate.

"It is a complicated situation because we have to think about protecting our border," said Salinas, a retired FBI agent. "But let's do it in a sensible, reasonable way to make sure humans won't be harmed, nor the vegetation, nor the animals, nor the environment."

Although the above is from 2009, I wouldn't doubt that they're using it today. As described, it may be used in three different ways, so you wouldn't necessarily see someone spraying from above since it can be applied directly to the ground, but then it's still going to seep into the water where you're catching your fish.

I'll try to find a more recent article about it, but I would be careful if I were you. I think I got Spina Bifida because my parents were avid gardners and warnings weren't on weed killer back then. Then again, maybe it is genetic, but I don't think so. I think the government knows that herbicides cause birth defects, but since they're now growing it in the food, they aren't going to turn back now.

I'm do feel bad for the service men who have come down with cancers and other health problems, but the government can't be let off the hook because they've agreed to pay retribution for one incident. They will continue and simply apologize and pay out again when they poison more people and destroy the environment further. They need to stop. I consider the use of herbicides to fall under the category of chemical warfare. It's extremely dangerous and people need to be aware that they aren't going to stop. They'll keep it up in the name of "freedom" and "national security".