U.S. Army Huey helicopter
spraying Agent Orange
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Agent Orange Facts: Fast Fact Sheet
Fast, fun facts and Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ's)
about the Agent Orange.
What was Agent Orange? Agent Orange was
a highly poisonous herbicide used as a spray
for foliage destruction (defoliation) and
crop destruction, by US forces during the
Vietnam War
What was Agent Orange used for? Agent Orange was
used for destroying the almost impenetrable
dense terrain and the vital trails used by
the North Vietnamese forces and Viet Cong
who fought the Vietnam War use guerilla
tactics.
Where were the effects of Agent Orange?
The effects of Agent Orange were to destroy
the jungle trees and plants of Vietnam but
the effects of exposure to Agent Orange led
to numerous serious ailments, physical
deformities, birth defects, cancers and
mental disorders.
Agent Orange
Facts for kids
The following fact
sheet contains interesting facts and information on Agent Orange
Agent Orange
Facts for kids
Agent Orange
Facts - 1: The communist
North Vietnamese and their guerilla forces called the
Viet Cong led by
Ho Chi Minh
fought throughout the
Vietnam War
to oust the
President Ngo Dinh Diem
and his American backers from South Vietnam.
Agent Orange
Facts - 2: The Americans fought a hi-tech
war, using B52 bombers, helicopters, napalm and defoliants such as
Agent Orange to combat the guerrilla tactics of the communists.
Agent Orange
Facts -
3: The communists
successfully used guerilla warfare tactics fighting in
the dense, impenetrable jungles of the Vietnam terrain.
The dense canopies of trees made it almost impossible
for the pilots of high-flying, high-speed jets,
and the low-flying helicopters, to see and destroy
targets, such as those along the
Ho Chi Minh Trail
and their intricate interconnecting tunnel systems.
Agent Orange
Facts - 4: The communists ensured that
they kept the advantage of the dense terrain by ensuring that their
troops and vehicles were kept well hidden. They employed various
camouflage techniques to maintain coverage, such as weaving together
treetops to hide what lay beneath. Trees and plants that were cut
down during the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong operations were
re-planted to maintain coverage.
Agent Orange
Facts - 5: The American response to
combating the problem of the Vietnam terrain was to employ chemical
warfare and used defoliants, the most famous being Agent Orange, to
kill off the greenery that gave cover to the troops and and vehicles
used by the North Vietnamese and the Viet Cong and destroyed the
crops and contaminated the food that might be used to feed them.
Agent Orange
Facts - 6: The nickname
'Agent Orange' was given due to the orange stripe
painted on the 55-gallon drums in which the chemical was
stored.
Agent Orange
Facts -
7: Agent Orange was
developed for the U.S. offensive biological warfare
program at the U.S. Army Biological Warfare Laboratories
(USBWL) in Maryland
Agent Orange
Facts - 8: The environmental
and medical effects of Agent Orange were not fully
evaluated as to their danger and impact on people and
the environment.
Agent Orange
Facts - 9: The name 'Rainbow
Herbicides' was given to the group of "tactical use"
chemicals used by the United States military during the
Vietnam War. Agent Orange was one of the “Rainbow
Herbicides” that were used, along with Agents White,
Green, Purple, Pink and Blue.
Agent Orange
Facts - 10: The collection of
Rainbow Herbicides damaged the ecosystems and cultivated
lands of Vietnam, and led to buildup of dioxin in the
food chain. It is estimated that about 4.8 million
people were affected.
Continued...
Agent Orange
Facts for kids
Facts
about the Agent Orange for kids
The following fact
sheet continues with facts about Agent Orange.
Agent Orange
Facts for kids
Agent Orange
Facts - 11: Dioxin is one of
the components and a toxic contaminant in Agent Orange.
Dioxin can enter the human body from food, the vapors
and from physical contact.
Agent Orange
Facts - 12: Dioxin is not
water soluble, nor is it absorbed by plants. Dioxin can
attach to fine soil particles which are then carried by
water downstream and settle as sediment in the bottoms
of lakes and ponds. Dioxin can then continue to
adversely affect people who eat dioxin-contaminated
fish, shell fish and water fowl.
Agent Orange
Facts - 13: The U.S. program
of defoliation, codenamed Operation Ranch Hand operated
from from 1961 to 1972 during which time more than 19
million gallons of herbicides were sprayed over 4.5
million acres of land in Vietnam.
Agent Orange
Facts -
14: The effects of
Agent Orange have been in the form of illnesses on the
Vietnamese people and on the environment of Vietnam in
soil and water contamination. US troops also suffered
from the effects of contamination with the chemical.
Agent Orange
Facts -
15: 2.6 million US
military served in Vietnam and an additional 514,000 men
served in waters off the coast of Vietnam in the Blue
Water Navy, while close to 300,000 served elsewhere in
Southeast Asia including Laos, Cambodia, and Thailand.
Agent Orange
Facts - 16: US Soldiers exposed to Agent
Orange and other Rainbow Herbicides in Vietnam began to report
various short term illnesses including Type-2 diabetes, skin
irritations and psychological symptoms.
Agent Orange
Facts - 17: As time passed an increasing number of Vietnam
veterans reported long term health effects, which led to several
lawsuits against the U.S. government and the manufacturers of the
chemical Dioxin. Settlements in court are over $240 million.
Agent Orange
Facts - 18: A 1984 class-action lawsuit
against Agent Orange’s manufacturers, Monsanto and Dow Chemical,
resulted in a nearly $200 million Agent Orange Settlement Fund.
Agent Orange
Facts - 19: In 1991, President George H.
Bush signed the Agent Orange Act, which mandated that some diseases
associated with defoliants in relation to veterans with conditions
related to their exposure to Agent Orange should be treated as the
result of wartime service
Agent Orange
Facts - 20: Vietnam still remains heavily
contaminated by dioxin-like compounds, which are classified as
Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) defined as chemical substances
that persist in the environment, bioaccumulation through the food
web, and pose a risk of causing adverse effects to the environment
and human health.
Agent Orange
Facts for kids
Agent Orange - President John
F Kennedy Video
The article on the Agent Orange provides detailed facts and a summary of one of the important events during his presidential term in office. The following
John F Kennedy video will
give you additional important facts and dates about the political events experienced by the 35th American President whose presidency spanned from January 20,1961 to November 22, 1963.
Agent Orange
●
Interesting Facts about Chemical warfare for kids and schools
●
Summary of the Agent Orange in the Vietnam War
●
The Agent Orange, a major
event in US history
●
The effects of the chemical
Dioxin
●
Fast, fun facts about effects of Dioxin
● Effects of
Chemical warfare in the Vietnam War
● John F Kennedy Presidency and
Agent Orange for schools,
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