Plaigh air Bord 

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Plaigh air Bord

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Plàigh air Bòrd

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Biological warfare experiments off Lewis. Deuchainnean armachd bìth-eòlasach far Leòdhais.

How biological warfare experiments with bubonic plague were tested off Lewis. A’ phlàigh dhubh fo dheuchainn son armachd bìth-eòlasach far Leòdhais.

Seventy years ago in 1952, British scientists moored a floating laboratory off Tolsta on the Isle of Lewis to animal test the efficiency of viruses, including bubonic plague, as biological weapons. 

Bubonic plague once killed half the population of Europe, so the government was appalled when a fishing boat with a crew of 18 sailed through a cloud of virus. The programme reveals how the experiments were hushed up and the fishermen never told of their exposure to the plague.  

Deich bliadhna fichead air ais (1952) bha air acair far chladaichean Tholstaidh ann an Leòdhas, bàta coltach ri laboratoraidh le luchd saidheans Breatannach a’ dèanamh dheuchainnean air beathaichean feuch dè cho èifeachdach ‘s a bhiodh bhìoraisean, a’phlàigh dhubh nam measg, mar armachd bìth-eolasach.  Aig aon àm mharbhar dàrna leth sluaigh na Roinn Eòrpa leis a’ phlàigh dhubh, chan iongnadh e gun robh an riaghaltas air an uabhasachadh gun do sheòl bàta le ochd duine deug de chriutha tro sgòth de bhìoras.  Tha am prògram ag innse mar a chumar na deuchainnean fo chleòca agus mar nach do dh’innsear riamh do na h-iasgairean gun deach iad tro sgòth luma làn plàigh. 

In Gaelic with English subtitles

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