----------------------------Original message----------------------------

Don, I ran into this on GLASnet (also known as PEACEnet/ECOnet/...) and
thought it might be of interest to people on the lists.  Since, I don't
know all the list to post to, I'm sending it to you.

I believe that Svet Zabelin can be contact via email at

forward the message.

 -----------------------   Beginning of message --------------------------

/** en.ussr: 86.0 **/
** Topic: New victims of "Sverdlovsk Syndr **
** Written 11:17 pm  Oct 12, 1991 by soceco in cdp:en.ussr **

         Dear friends,  we need medical consultations to find  causes
    of  this  illness.  Greens  from  Sverdlovsk and Socio-ecological
    movement are ready to  arrange  all  expences  for  medicins  for
    travel and work on the territory of Russia.
         Please, if you can help us contact trought glas!soceco.

         Coordinator
                                          Svet Zabelin

               New Victims of "Sverdlov Syndrome"

         Eleven students of the Ural University working at the potato
    harvest  at the Krasnoyufimsky Farm were hospitalized in Sverdlov
    with a diagnosis of toxic polyneuropathia.  This was  the  fourth
    case of serious poisoning of Sverdlov farm workers.
         The same  symptoms  occur  every  time:  numbness  and  then
    complete  loss  of  muscle  control.  Forty  people  were seen by
    doctors  who  traveled  to  the  farms  from   distric   centers.
    Unfortunately,  the  number  of  victims of the Sverdlov syndrome
    (since 1989, 233) is on the rise. Causes of the illness are still
    not  clear  at  this time.  Experts propose a number of different
    possibilities.
         On the 26th of August, a new team of students arrived in the
    village of the Krasnoyufimsky Farm.  After five days, the team of
    students  working  in  the  field were joined by a team of school
    children.  The tragedy occured two  weeks  later  when  after  it
    rained  the  sun  suddenly appeared and the wind began to blow --
    some of the students  who  were  from  the  chemistry  department
    suggested  that  this  weather changed brought about some kind of
    vaporization.
         According to victims' descriptions, they first felt numbness
    in the toes of  their  left  foot  (oddly,  all  of  the  victims
    suffered  symptoms  only  in their left feet).  Later their whole
    legs became numb as though they  had  fallen  asleep  under  body
    pressure. The majority of the victims also suffered from terrible
    headaches and nausea.
         Here is   the   story  of  one  sophmore  of  the  Chemistry
    department,  Yu. Skorik upon his return to Sverdlovsk. We found a
    lot of unmarked empty flasks in the field,  the contents of which
    are  therefore  impossible  to  know.  The  drinking  water   was
    transported  to  the  field  in  a suspicious tank with a warning
    "danger, do not use without respirator."
         An expert  in  toxicology  sent  the  flasks  to  an  oblast
    baterialogical laboratory  for  analysis.  But  even  now  it  is
    evident  that they contained bacterial substances.  There were no
    serial numbers on the flasks --  an  indication  that  they  were
    illegally  or  secretly  produced.  Most  likely  the flasks were
    brought to the field mixed in with organic fertilizers.  There is
    another  piece  of evidence:  all the students who later suffered
    from poisoning had refused to drink beer with their  friends. The
    sanitation  experts  took samples of soil and potatos immediately
    after the tragedy.  They are examining the cooking.net">food products consumed
    by  the  students  and  the  sacks  in  which  the  potatos  were
    collected.  A new sanitation team has been joined by  experts  on
    radiation hygiene.
         According to the doctors,  the condition of the  victims  is
    satisfactory.
         These are the details that unfortunately explain  nothing at
    all.
         The following are the doctors and experts  versions  of  the
    possible causes of this illness:
         --Reaction to pesticides used on the fields.  However, after
    an earlier incident in 1989 sanitation authorities prohibited use
    of most pesticides in the area and later  at  a  session  of  the
    oblast  Soviet  it  was  decided  not to use pesticides at all --
    thus, pesticide use was being strictly controlled.
         --There was  another  similar  incident in July of this year
    with six cases of the same symptoms and experts could find almost
    no  explanation.  One  expert  in  toxicology says he knows of no
    chemical that could cause such numbing of a particular extremity.
    A  statement  from  the  World  Health  Organization claims:  the
    description of this disease has no correlation to those known.

           Translation of    an    article    from     "Komsomolskaya
    pravda"newspaper.

** End of text from cdp:en.ussr **