Far up in the North West side of the Ralik Island Chain lies several remote and isolated atolls. These beautiful atolls were once alive with communities and abundant in wildlife. However, today, they are still recovering from the nuclear tests conducted by the U.S. in the 1940s and 1950s. The impacted atolls include Bikini, Enewetok, Rongerik, Rongelap, Alinginae, and several others.
Bikini Atoll was the detonation site of many nuclear tests and the famous Castle Bravo hydrogen bomb. This atoll received the largest contamination and destruction.
The Bikini residents were temporarily relocated to Rongerik. They were told they could move back to their homes after the nuclear tests. This proved to be incredibly false. Bikini is still radioactive today and remains uninhabited 80 years later.
Residents leaving Bikini Atoll in 1946 – Courtesy of WikiCommons
The Bikini islanders tried to create new communities. However, Rongerik could not provide enough food to support the population. Many locals were extremely malnourished and or starving so after two years they were all relocated to Kwajalein. The Bikinians were relocated to Kili Island for their third move.
The Damage to the Northern Atolls
On March 1, 1954, these atolls were exposed to radioactive fallout as a result of the detonation of Operation Castle‘s Bravo.
Bikini’s neighboring islands: Rongelap, Alinginae, Enewetok, and Bikimi make up the north west atoll groups. Rongerik and Alinginae being the smallest of the four atolls. All of the islands across all of these atolls are still uninhabited today.
Haunted Legend of Rongerik
Rongerik is an unpopulated coral atoll consisting of 17 islands. The total land area is only 1.68 kilometers (.065 sq. miles), but the islets surround a lagoon of 144 sq kilometers (56 sq. miles).
In addition to its sad past with nuclear weapons, the beautiful atoll is thought to be haunted by the Demon Girls of Ujae. The legend states that the irooj (chief) set to kill two demon sisters from Ujae after they stole yellow fragrant flowers from his sacred and very beautiful tree. But once he saw the sisters he decided to take them both as his wives.
They lived in harmony until the girls convinced the irooj to allow them to visit their family in Ujae. Once they returned to their home island, the sister’s family sought to kill the irooj. The elder sister escaped but the younger sister wanted to stay with her husband. After a fight the irooj and the younger sister escaped back to Rongerik.
The gods allowed them to escape. However, they told the irooj that he had to keep his wife with him at all times. The irooj forgot once and went fishing on his own. The angered gods killed the irooj and forced the sister to remain on Rongerik. Broken hearted and trapped. Locals tell stories of how they’ve heard her screams late into the night.
We did not hear her screams, but we did hear lots of birds.
Rongerik Today
Rongerik is a beautiful, thriving atoll, despite the unhappy history and legend of the demon sisters. The waters are incredibly beautiful with millions of shades of clear blue sparkling water. The birds and turtles are thriving here along with the flora and fauna making it a true paradise to visit.
Getting to Rongerik
It was a 20 hour passage from Likiep to Rongerik (an overnight sail). We flew the genoa in 18-25kts of easterly winds and 3m seas. It was a bit choppy, but not horribly uncomfortable. We had 3 fishing lines out. We landed two yellow fin tuna while we were still in the lee of Likiep. The poles went away for the rest of the trip as both freezers were full. Can you see both tuna in the bottom right photo?
More Fun Links on Rongerik
- Website on the Demon Sisters of Ujae
- Information on the Bikinians Experiences and disappointments
- Information on Rongerik Atoll
Our blog posts run 4-6 weeks behind actual live events. We were in Rongerik during the last part of December 2024. We discover European artifacts from the 1800’s in Likiep – check out the last post.