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The Palomares accident occurred on 17 January 1966, when two US military planes, a B-52 bomber and a KC-135 tanker aircraft, collided in the process of a midair refuelling operation above the town of Palomares, in the southeast of Spain on the Mediterranean coast. Both aircrafts were destroyed in the air. Four thermonuclear weapons, 11 men (four survived), and hundreds of tons of debris fell to earth in and around the town. Two weapons landed without incident, and both were recovered undamaged. But the parachutes of the other two weapons failed to deploy, and the high explosives in these last two weapons detonated and burned, causing some of the plutonium inside to also burn spreading plutonium contamination throughout the area. Plutonium particulate contamination was distributed in varying degrees over a 2.26 km² area including the northern edge of the village, farmlands and non-cultivated terrain.

The seminar will describe the accident and the recovery operations, with the initial land decontamination, and the long-term follow-up with a Radiological Surveillance Programme (RSP), including the affected population. It will also present the more recent characterization of the contamination distribution, the currently condemned areas and plans for a total restoration of the affected sites, with the adopted radiological criteria. The interaction with the affected communities, the local and regional authorities, as well as with other stakeholders are also commented.

Presented by Eduardo Gallego (Universidad Politécnica de Madrid)

Professor of Nuclear Engineering at the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM), where he was Director of the Department of Nuclear Engineering (2011-2014). Coordinator of the UPM research group in Science and technology of advanced nuclear fission systems, including an experimental facility for neutron detection and dosimetry. He has been Director of the Master's Degree in Nuclear Science and Technology at the UPM (from 2012 until 2024). Author or co-author of about 100 scientific articles in international journals. He has supervised twelve doctoral theses. At the Spanish Nuclear Society he has been a member of the Board of Directors (2020-2024), and at the Spanish Society for Radiological Protection he held the positions of Treasurer (2000-2004), Vice President (2010-2012) and President (2013-2015). Co-founder and member of the Management Board (2009-2022) of the European Platform NERIS (on preparedness for response and recovery to nuclear and radiological emergencies). Member of the Executive Council of the International Association for Radiological Protection (IRPA) (2008-2016) and Vice-President (2016-2020 and 2024-2028). At the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP), he has been a member of Committee 4 (2013-2025) and joined the Main Committee for the period 2025 to 2029.