Q3. And why did you choose to work at Rocky Flats?
I was temping at the university when a colleague told me about the job posting.
Q3. And why did you choose to work at Rocky Flats?
I was offered a summer internship with the Center for Risk Excellence, a DOE program.
Q3. And why did you choose to work at Rocky Flats?
I didn’t have a background in worker issues. I wasn’t an advocate for unions. I didn’t have an interest in the Cold War. I wasn’t a tree hugger. I cared about voice and invisibility, those who are left out of history.
Q7. Before you began working at Rocky Flats, did you feel the site posed any risk?
I didn’t know anything about the place.
Q7. Before you began working at Rocky Flats, did you feel the site posed any risk?
I had no idea what RF was.
Q7. Before you began working at Rocky Flats, did you feel the site posed any risk?
I had some idea of the hazards. I knew it was questionable but I wasn’t thinking about the long-range risks.
Q7. Before you began working at Rocky Flats, did you feel the site posed any risk?
(pause)
Q7. Before you began working at Rocky Flats, did you feel the site posed any risk?
You can’t see it, you can’t taste it, you can’t smell it, how can you protect yourself?
Q9. Do you feel you have an adequate understanding of the hazardous elements that exist at Rocky Flats?
I know a lot more about the dangers now because I know the history of the plant.
Q9. Do you feel you have an adequate understanding of the hazardous elements that exist at Rocky Flats?
I was around a lot of messed up stuff.
Q10. During the time you’ve worked at Rocky Flats, do you feel that your work has exposed you to any hazards?
I’ve possibly been exposed to exotic metals, Beryllium, Asbestos, radiation.
Q10. During the time you’ve worked at Rocky Flats, do you feel that your work has exposed you to any hazards?
Everywhere I walked, it was around me. I didn’t know what may come up and bite me.
Q10. During the time you’ve worked at Rocky Flats, do you feel that your work has exposed you to any hazards?
They had worker protection controls, dose symmetry, monitoring, PPE.
Q10. During the time you’ve worked at Rocky Flats, do you feel that your work has exposed you to any hazards?
They had me sign paperwork and I dressed head to toe in yellows.
Q10. During the time you’ve worked at Rocky Flats, do you feel that your work has exposed you to any hazards?
I pray I don’t have a latency period and struggle with that in my senior years.
Q10. During the time you’ve worked at Rocky Flats, do you feel that your work has exposed you to any hazards?
Every three years I am eligible for a physical, blood draws, x-rays, urine checks. The first few times I was tested, they didn’t think there was a problem. But 10 years after my first site visit, I received a letter about my lungs.
Q10. During the time you’ve worked at Rocky Flats, do you feel that your work has exposed you to any hazards?
They say 20-30 years later you can develop cancer or Berylliosis. I’m almost to that point now. If I get a lung problem, they won’t care. How will they figure out how I got it? How am I going to prove it?
Q10. During the time you’ve worked at Rocky Flats, do you feel that your work has exposed you to any hazards?
(pause)
Q10. During the time you’ve worked at Rocky Flats, do you feel that your work has exposed you to any hazards?
Any time you enter a site like that, you take a risk. The workers say, that’s the nature of the beast.