Marshall Sanders, former colonel, nuclear specialist
WASHINGTON - Marshall E. Sanders, 90, a retired Air Force colonel who headed the service's military education program and later concentrated on preparedness for nuclear accidents and emergencies, died of cancer Oct. 12 at his home in McLean, Va.
Colonel Sanders spent 20 years in the Air Force before retiring in 1970 as deputy commandant of the Air Force Institute of Technology at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio. For three years, he oversaw the administrative activities of the large university system that provides education and training for Air Force and Defense Department personnel.
After retiring from the Air Force, Colonel Sanders worked for the Office of Emergency Preparedness in the executive office of the president, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
In his second career, he focused on preparedness for peacetime nuclear accidents and emergencies involving other hazardous materials, relatives said.
He also served as a US adviser to the International Atomic Energy Agency in Austria. He was a member of the US delegation to the 1986 conference in Vienna that drafted international agreements regarding early notification and mutual assistance for nuclear accidents.
Colonel Sanders, who was born in Lees Cross Roads, Pa., flew bombers during World War II, and after the war was senior adviser to the German Ministry of Defense.
His wife of 65 years, Thursa (Bakey), died in April. Colonel Sanders leaves two sisters.
