In the Dark of the Valley

EMMY AWARD NOMINEE

In 1959…

…an unconfined partial meltdown of a sodium reactor at the Santa Susana Field Lab caused such a devastating radiation leak, that many consider it to be the worst nuclear disaster in U.S. history. Studies have shown that the radiation released at SSFL was 260 times greater than the radiation released at Three Mile Island.

Located just 30 miles from Downtown, Los Angeles, the meltdown was concealed from the public eye for 20 years before being uncovered and the contamination never fully eradicated. The partial meltdown unveiled decades of negligence and unsafe handling of extremely toxic radioactive and chemical materials.

The affected community has demanded a full cleanup of the area for decades, but they’re receiving pushback from the sites corporate and government landowners, as these juggernauts and their persuasive lobbyists have successfully stalled any hope of a cleanup. Until Recently.

Led by Melissa Bumstead, whose daughter was twice diagnosed with a rare form of leukemia, the movement towards protecting the community has found new life. This once shy and timid mother-of-two has now become the biggest threat to Boeing, DOE and NASA. Her leadership has created a wave of resistance against corporate and government interest.

As the fight takes a toll on Melissa's mental state and her relationship with her family, she begins to realize that there are other sites like SSFL spread across the country; and that her community may not be the only one at risk.