Each week, host Anisa Khalifa tells one story from our home in North Carolina, at the crossroads of the South. From news to arts and culture, WUNC News’ “The Broadside” dives into issues that might not make the front page, but deserve a closer look. Along the way, we explore the nuances of our home — and how what happens here ripples across the country. Find new episodes of “The Broadside” every Thursday.
An army depot in Eastern Kentucky once housed something extraordinary and terrible: an arsenal of chemical weapons. The dangers of this stockpile hovered over the residents of the nearby city of Richmond for decades. Recently, the Army fulfilled a long-standing mandate to destroy their entire supply of these deadly weapons, but the road to get there wasn’t easy.
Special thanks to Ben Evans and Ben Sollee for providing archival audio from the documentary NERVE included in this episode.
Featuring:
- John Ismay, Pentagon correspondent for The New York Times
- Craig Williams, activist and Director of Kentucky Environmental Foundation
- Mike Kester, shift plant manager at Blue Grass Army Depot
Links:
- Check out John Ismay’s reporting on the dismantling of America’s chemical weapon’s stockpile.
- You can find a transcript of the episode here.
Donate: The Broadside is made possible by contributions from listeners like you. Support WUNC-North Carolina Public Radio and this podcast by making a donation.
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.