WTLV TV: Explosion in Jacksonville, Fla. releases radioactive materials

[cal04]

(edited to update)

The Jacksonville Fire Rescue Department is on the scene of an explosion on the Southside. Tom Francis, JFRD Public Information Officer, says an explosion occurred at 7575 Baymeadows Way that resulted in the release of radioactive materials.

Unison Industries, according to their website, manufactures aviation equipment, is located at the site. JFRD says one person was transported to St. Luke's Hospital. During the medical treatment radioactive levels were detected.

Francis says the levels detected were similar to those in an x-ray, which are not life threatening. Hazmat teams are trying to determine how much decontamination is necessary. Approximately 40 people were evacuated from the Unison Industries building as a result of the radiation leak.

Stay with First Coast News and firstcoastnews.com for the latest information.

http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/topstories/news-article.aspx?storyid=50598

[HereSince1628]

1. Accchh! Just the breaking banner....

My account was turned off for half and hour...Paranoia, paranoia, setting aside paranoia

[VirginiaDem]

2. what the heck is this? n/t

[Occulus]

3. there's the "dirty bomb" the Republicans wanted so badly

And watch. You'll hear those exact words later on today- regardless of whether it's true or not.

By the way- there goes Alito onto the court. Republicans will say that we need to quickly address the explosion in Florida, ram a vote through regardless of what happens, and then start gloating.

Just watch. They'll milk this for all it's worth.

What are the initial reports on this? How bad was it?

[deminks]

4. Here is one link

http://www.local6.com/news/6591105/detail.html?rss=orlpn&psp=news

[Tesha]

5. 'nuther link, sounds like NBD (as compared to NBC)

http://www.wtlv.com/news/topstories/news-article.aspx?storyid=50598

JACKSONVILLE -- The Jacksonville Fire Rescue Department
is on the scene of an explosion on the Southside. Tom Francis,
JFRD Public Information Officer, says an explosion occurred at
7575 Baymeadows Way that resulted in the release of radioactive
materials.

Unison Industries, which according to their website manufactures
aviation equipment, is located at the site.

JFRD says one person was transported to St. Luke's Hospital.
During the medical treatment radioactive levels were detected.
Francis says the levels detected were similar to those in x-ray,
which are not life threatening.

<more>

[VirginiaDem]

7. could me nothing...

"similar to those in x-ray, which are not life threatening."

[HereSince1628]

6. Waiting, hoping its insignificant.

[democrat in Tallahassee]

8. why didn't * stop it?

[illflem]

9. This was on web MSNBC's breaking news

a few minutes ago but now is gone.

[deminks]

10. Unrelated (?) but another hazmat situation in Jacksonville today

http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/local/news-article.aspx?storyid=50599

School Evacuated & 11 Children Hospitalized


JACKSONVILLE, FL -- Eleven students and a teacher from St. Paul's Catholic School in Riverside have been taken to a hospital.

Authorities evacuated the school Monday morning after several students became ill.

The teacher brought in some cloves for a lesson on spices. Two boys ate some of the cloves and began feeling sick. Other students complained of headaches and nausea. Firefighters told First Coast News cloves cannot make someone sick.

Paramedics transported the victims to area hospitals. A hazmat team scoured the school with special equipment but found nothing

[davidinalameda]

14. actually clove oil in strong enough doses can upset your stomach

wonder how many of the cloves the boys ate

[gauguin57]

18. My Dad ate whole cloves to help himself stop smoking

(decades ago).

[Ian David]

19. Sounds like a group hysteria thing. Probably nothing in the school. n/t

[daleo]

11. Probably released from an industrial device

Maybe for checking welds or something. Plenty of devices use radioactive sources (e.g. to inspect pipelines in the oilfield, for well logging, etc.) I don't know specifically about aviation.

[Roland99]

12. What aviation equipment requires radioactive material?!?!

[gratuitous]

13. That occurred to me, as well

:shrug:

[maddezmom]

15. very good question

:shrug:

[formercia]

21. It's used for inspecting metal componets for cracks and other flaws

Sometimes, an x-ray machine just isn't enough.

[bananas]

16. AP: Fla. Blast Injures Eight, Releases Gas (krypton-85)

Kryptonite!

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/30/AR2006013000636.html

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/news/archive/2006/01/30/national/a103848S14.DTL

Fla. Blast Injures Eight, Releases Gas

The Associated Press
Monday, January 30, 2006; 2:00 PM

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- A gas cylinder explosion released a small amount of radiation inside a building Monday, sending eight people to hospitals, officials said.

About 70 other people were being decontaminated as a precaution, but the health risks were believed to be minimal, said Jacksonville Fire-Rescue spokeswoman Bennie Seth.

Seth said the problem at Unison Industries was krypton gas, which is colorless and nontoxic. It wasn't immediately clear what the krypton gas was used for, though radioactive krypton-85 is sometime used to detect leaks in sealed containers, with the escaping atoms detected because of their radiation.

Unison Industries makes alternators for turbine engines and ignition generators for Tomahawk cruise missiles, according to its Web site.

[formercia]

22. Krypton -85 is an inert gas

I had a whiff of it a long time ago and i'm still here.

[Walt Starr]

17. Who needs dirty bombing terrorists?

We've got our own industrial complex doing it with no political agenda!

[CAcyclist]

20. Then it's not x-rays

X-rays are generated by turning the x-ray machine on, like microwaves. They don't leak into the environment , so whatever it is that was picked up - it's not x-rays.
Edited to add- didn't read all the way through to find out it was krypton gas.