First dioxin detoxification centre opens in Danang

The Danang Association for Victims of Agent Orange (AO)/Dioxin on February 20 inaugurated a detoxification and rehabilitation centre for AO victims, the first of its kind in the central city of Danang.

Funded by the US Harris Freeman Foundation with a total investment of nearly VND2.3 billion (US$108,000), the two-storey centre includes steam and rehabilitation rooms.

Danang is home to over 5,000 AO victims, more than 1,400 of whom are children. 

From 1961 to 1971, the US Army sprayed more than 18.2 million gallons of Agent Orange onto more than 10 percent of the land in southern Vietnam. 

It is estimated that more than 4.8 million Vietnamese were exposed to AO/dioxin. Many of the victims have died, while millions of their descendants are living with deformities and diseases due to its effects.

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