There has been a spectacular fire on Gruinard Island off Scotland. The Island was infamous as the site of British biological warfare testing in the 1940s and it was contaminated with anthrax and closed off for many years. Eventually after campaigning by local people and NGOs the UK government decontaminated the Island and it was eventually sold back to its original owner.
It’s not thought the fire will cause any contamination although it will obviously be devastating to wildlife which has re-established itself on the Island.
Report here from the Scottish Press and Journal which also published this picture:
https://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/news/highlands-islands/4101965/anthrax-island-fire/
Footnote: The United Kingdom declared that it had ceased to develop biological and chemical weapons about four decades ago. Up until 1980 it had used facilities at both Porton Down (England) and Nancekuke in Cornwall. Material from Nancekuke was disposed of to sea or disposed of by burial. Other materials relating to bio-chemical warfare were disposed of at sea to the West of Ireland and in the Beaufort Dyke.
Porton Down is said to now be used to monitor possible ‘threats’ from bio-chemical warfare and for example the poisons used by Russia at Salisbury were sent there for analysis.
Image: Gruinard Island the signs visible are now removed after its decontamination – Inset: Pic of the fire from the Press and Journal (see link).
Bernard Moffatt
AGS Celtic League (Submitted 27th March 2022)
