Veterans from top-secret Area 52 sickened by toxic substances - but get no benefits as ‘it doesn’t exist’

Two US military veterans who served at top-secret “Area 52” said that they were exposed to toxic substances which made them sick - but that they can’t get federal medical benefits because the government won’t acknowledge they were there.

Air Force Technician Mark Ely inspected Soviet fighter jets that had been secretly obtained while Dave Crete worked as a military police officer, according to CBS News. Mr Ely said that he had to sign a non-disclosure agreement to work on the base.

He participated in a classified mission at the Tonopah Test Range, about 140 miles outside of Las Vegas, Nevada. Mr Ely, 63, said that when he started his job he was physically fit. Now, the men are suffering from physical ailments that they say stem from tests conducted near the site.

The US military conducted nuclear bomb tests near Area 52 in the mid-1980s. According to CBS News, the tests scattered toxic radioactive material nearby.

Mr Ely alleges that radiation from the tests scarred his lungs, caused cysts on his liver and left him with tumors which needed removed. Mr Crete said he struggles with breathing issues, chronic bronchitis and had a tumor removed from his back.

Mr Crete also said that he’s heard about other types of cancers that his former colleagues believe stemmed from the site, and has been working to track down some of the men also employed at Area 52 to find out if they suffer from medical conditions.

Some federal benefits have been made available to veterans that served in the area but they don’t apply to the men, they said, because the government won’t acknowledge they were there. The federal government has made $25.7bn available to employees who primarily worked for the Department of Energy.

“Upholding the national interest was more important than my own life,” Mr Ely said. “There’s a slogan that people say: ‘Deny deny until you die.’ Kind of true here.”

The Department of Defense confirmed that the men served but did not confirm at which location. Despite the mission’s classified status, the public is becoming aware of the mission because of illnesses suffered by service members.