Britain's mysterious WW2 'island of death'

In the 1960s, the BBC embarked on an investigation into local rumors surrounding a remote Scottish island called Gruinard, located off the coast of Scotland. Reports spoke of secretive World War Two experiments, alarming contamination, and mysterious animal deaths.

BBC reporter Fyfe Robertson described Gruinard as the "island of death" and "mystery island," emphasizing its desolate and isolated nature. He highlighted that in 1942, during the height of World War Two, the War Office conducted highly classified experiments on the island, shrouded in secrecy even two decades later. Local residents were kept in the dark about the activities occurring there.

Despite attempts by Robertson to investigate further, the Ministry of Defence had already declared Gruinard off-limits, and locals were unwilling to take him near the island due to fears surrounding its history.
Gruinard Island remained dangerously contaminated for nearly fifty years until the UK government deemed it safe on this day in 1990.

During World War Two, Gruinard Island served as the site for a covert British project known as Operation Vegetarian, aimed at weaponizing Anthrax, a lethal bacterial infection. The full extent of the experiments conducted on the island remained classified until 1997 when the government declassified a film documenting the operations.

Operation Vegetarian was initiated under the leadership of Paul Fildes, who headed the biology department at Porton Down, a military research facility in Wiltshire, England. Porton Down, established in 1916 as the War Department Experimental Station, initially focused on studying the effects of chemical weapon agents during World War One. However, by the 1940s, with Britain engaged in another war, Porton Down's mandate expanded to include the development of biological weapons intended to be deployed against Nazi Germany. The objective was to achieve significant strategic impact while minimizing direct combat between troops.

The strategy involved contaminating linseed cakes with Anthrax spores and dispersing them via aerial drops into cattle pastures across Germany. Once ingested by the cattle, the Anthrax would spread through the food chain, infecting those who consumed the contaminated meat. Anthrax, a naturally occurring but highly lethal organism, manifests symptoms that can be severe and rapidly fatal.

The proposed plan aimed to devastate Germany's meat supply and unleash a nationwide Anthrax outbreak, resulting in a catastrophic loss of life. However, to conduct realistic tests and understand how Anthrax would function as a weapon, researchers required an isolated outdoor location far from populated areas.
In the summer of 1942, the military acquired the remote and uninhabited 522-acre island of Gruinard and prohibited locals from accessing it.

Under the guidance of scientists, a military team embarked on chilling experiments on Gruinard Island, utilizing livestock as test subjects. They conducted a series of trials involving the release of Anthrax spores across the island's landscape.

The objective was to assess whether the Anthrax spores could survive an explosion in the field and remain virulent afterward. Professor Edward Spiers, from the University of Leeds, explained that around eighty sheep were tethered at various points downwind of the anticipated explosion. The detonation was carried out remotely, resulting in the dispersal of highly potent spores carried by the wind, causing infection and death wherever they reached.

The outcomes were catastrophic: within a short period after exposure, the sheep exhibited symptoms of infection and rapidly succumbed to the disease. Their infected carcasses were then examined through autopsies before being either incinerated or buried beneath tons of rubble.

Local residents observed some of these experiments, witnessing drifting clouds of Anthrax over the island. One resident, who had previously sold sheep to the scientific team, recounted seeing what he believed to be smoke descending upon the animals, which he suspected to be various poisonous gases, including Anthrax.

The clandestine trials persisted until 1943, when the military deemed them successful and scientists concluded their operations on Gruinard Island. Consequently, five million linseed cakes contaminated with Anthrax were manufactured. However, the plan was abandoned as the Allies' Normandy invasion progressed, leading to the destruction of the cakes after the war. By 1952, Britain had developed nuclear weapons, marking its status as the third nuclear power globally. Subsequently, it ceased its offensive chemical and biological weapons programs in 1956 and ratified the Biological Weapons Convention in 1975, committing to abstain from using, producing, or stockpiling such weapons.

'Operation vegetarian'

The aftermath of Operation Vegetarian had devastating consequences for Gruinard Island. Anthrax, known for its resilience, persisted in the soil for decades after the experiments, remaining a potent threat to both humans and animals. The island became uninhabitable, with even rainwater runoff posing a potential hazard due to Anthrax contamination.

Following the experiments, reports emerged of animals on the mainland near Gruinard Bay succumbing to mysterious deaths. While the UK government quietly compensated those affected, attributing the deaths to a diseased sheep from a passing ship, locals suspected a cover-up due to the swift compensation payouts.

The military enforced a permanent quarantine on the island, erecting warning signs to deter visitors. Despite attempts to decontaminate the site through chemical treatments and controlled burning in the post-war years, these efforts were largely ineffective. Subsequent tests in 1971 revealed the persistence of Anthrax spores in the soil, posing a significant risk to anyone venturing onto the island.

In 1981, the Dark Harvest Commandos, an environmental group, landed on Gruinard Island and collected samples of Anthrax-infected soil, leaving a bucket of it outside Porton Down to raise awareness of the island's contamination. Their aim was to pressure the government into taking action.

Five years later, scientists revisited the island and embarked on further decontamination efforts. They soaked the island in a mixture of seawater and formaldehyde, while also removing and incinerating contaminated topsoil. This time, their efforts proved more successful. Finally, on April 24, 1990, after 48 years of quarantine, the UK Government declared Gruinard Island Anthrax-free.

Gruinard Island was not the sole site where the UK conducted secret biological warfare tests, but it was the first. The repercussions of the events that unfolded there serve as a somber reminder of the perils of biological warfare and the destructive potential of humanity.