The case of Oleta Nelson demonstrates how many victims had to wait for the government to acknowledge fault and offer compensation — and why many may never receive it.

Isaac Nelson, her husband, remembers that neighbors called them outside on May 19, 1953, to watch a fallout cloud. It was from an atomic bomb test later nicknamed "Dirty Harry" because of its heavy fallout. They didn't worry because the government falsely told residents it was safe.

Later that night, Oleta Nelson suffered a headache that would pound for six months. A few weeks later, she would scream when much of her hair simply slipped off her scalp. She would soon develop brain cancer and die 12 years later.

Isaac Nelson joined early lawsuits seeking to make the government acknowledge that fallout caused such deaths and to pay for it. But judges ruled the government was immune from suits for actions it made for national defense.

In 1990, Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, and Rep. Wayne Owens, D-Utah, passed a law that apologized to downwind cancer victims and offered compensation. But Isaac Nelson didn't qualify. The brain cancer that killed his wife was not included among a list of cancers recognized as likely caused by the atomic tests.

With better research in recent years, Hatch passed another bill last year to expand the type of cancers covered — including the brain cancer Oleta Nelson suffered. Her survivors could finally now qualify for $50,000 in compensation.

Isaac Nelson was pleased when that bill passed but still bitter. "No amount of money will restore one hair to her head at this point. The government murdered my wife."

Obtaining money for people such as Isaac Nelson may be difficult the next few years. The Justice Department ran out of money for claims last spring — and has approved $20 million worth of claims since then that it has been unable to pay.

To make matters worse, the department only requested $13.9 million worth of funding for claims this year — not enough to cover even those claims already approved.

On top of that, changes that Hatch made to allow more people to qualify are expected to bring $70 million worth of claims a year, beginning in 2001. That means the Justice Department will likely be $76 million short of money to fund all claims this year.

Other radiation

Utah wasn't hit by radiation only from atomic bomb fallout. The government also spread radioactive dust via artillery shells, bombs and airplane spraying — and even intentional nuclear reactor meltdowns at Dugway Proving Ground.