Any way the wind blows . . .

Developing an accurate, historical record of the 1958 partial meltdown at the Santa Susana Field Lab's On-Site Sodium Reactor Experiment is something every resident should care about.

It is, after all, a major event in this area's history- whether those concerned with property values care to admit it or not- and yet so little is actually known by the average citizen about what happened that day in the hills overlooking Simi Valley and who was affected by it.

When 50-year-old documents containing weather information vital to understanding the possible impacts of the meltdown suddenly wind up in the hands of Boeing Co., folks have the right to wonder where they've been all this time, especially considering the lack of disclosure that has plagued the site and its history for so many years.

Boeing, which turned over the weather data to the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, claims the information was discovered during its ongoing review of more than 1.5 million historical records. In 1999, when asked by federal agencies to produce the same information, Boeing officials said they were not aware it existed.

While there are no facts to support the allegation that Boeing is not telling the truth, it's hard not to question how such important information simply fell by the wayside during all these years. The fault more likely lies with the site's previous proprietors- Rocketdyne and the Department of Energy- but placing blame is not the issue here.

The concern is for the families of former Rocketdyne employees, who for years have been left to wonder if the deaths of their loved ones were due to natural causes or something else.

They deserve to have closure. We all deserve the truth.

Let's hope if there's more information about the meltdown lying in wait, it doesn't take another 50 years to find it.