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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Three workers exposed in radiation incident at Idaho DOE site

Associated Press

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho – A cleanup contractor says radioactive material contaminated the skin and clothing of three workers during an incident earlier this month at a U.S. Department of Energy site in the Idaho desert.

A spokesman for contractor CH2M-WG Idaho, also known as CWI, said Friday that the employees are back at work while awaiting test results to determine whether they received internal radiation exposure. Erik Simpson says it happened May 10 as workers were cutting into a box to remove and repackage radioactive debris.

The Post-Register reports that a technician outside the enclosed area noticed elevated radiological activity. The three workers were checked and found to have significant skin and clothing contamination.

Simpson says they were wearing protective suits and respirators and that no radioactive material was found in nasal swabs or in their respirator filters.