Palomares, Almería

Coordinates: 37°14′55″N 1°47′45″W / 37.24861°N 1.79583°W / 37.24861; -1.79583 (Palomares)
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Palomares, Almería is located in Spain
Palomares
Palomares

Palomares is an agricultural, fishing, and tourist town along the

above sea level. The village falls within the municipality of Cuevas del Almanzora
.

The ruins of El Artial lie just outside the village.

Crashes of a B-52 and a KC-135 in 1966

The town is noted for a fatal accident in 1966 in which a

U.S. Atomic Energy Commission
.

In 2001, the

Centro de Investigaciones Energéticas, Medioambientales y Tecnológicas (CIEMAT) still detected measurable levels of the radioactive elements plutonium, uranium, and americium over 10 hectares (24 acres) of Palomares.[1]

Annual monitoring by American and Spanish researchers has found no evidence of health problems, or of any contaminated food or water resulting from these crashes. Nevertheless, some areas remain contaminated and they cannot be disturbed. Although they are fenced off for safety, the result is that the region is economically blighted, and it has missed out on tourist developments like those in most other coastal towns. On 19 October 2015, Spain and the United States signed a statement of intent to discuss further cleanup of this area. Eventually, the United States agreed to remove additional contaminated soil from Palomares to a safe burial site in the United States.[2]

The crashes are explored by American author Charles Bukowski in his short story "Politics is like Trying to Screw a Cat in the Ass".

References

  1. ^ "Spain, U.S. Agree to Radioactivity Cleanup 40 Years After Atomic Accident". Fox News. FOX. Associated Press. 8 October 2006. Archived from the original on 13 November 2007. Retrieved 23 September 2007.
  2. US News
    . Madrid. Retrieved 19 October 2015.

37°14′55″N 1°47′45″W / 37.24861°N 1.79583°W / 37.24861; -1.79583 (Palomares)