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Grand Canyon Visitors May Have Been Exposed To Radiation For Years (azcentral.com)

joeflies writes: Park safety manager Elston Stephenson provides details about buckets of uranium that exposed visitors to radiation, and the subsequent cover up. The radiation was detected by a teenager that brought a Geiger counter to the building, and was subsequently "cleaned" up by employees equipped with dish washing gloves and a broken mop handle. "If you were in the Museum Collections Building (2C) between the year 2000 and June 18, 2018, you were 'exposed' to uranium by OSHA's definition," Stephenson wrote. "The radiation readings, at first blush, exceeds (sic) the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's safe limits. [...] Identifying who was exposed, and your exposure level, gets tricky and is our next important task." Stephenson said he had repeatedly asked National Park executives to inform the public, but never got a response.

"According to Stephenson, the uranium specimens had been in a basement at park headquarters for decades and were moved to the museum building when it opened, around 2000," reports AZCentral. "One of the buckets was so full that its lid would not close. Stephenson said the containers were stored next to a taxidermy exhibit, where children on tours sometimes stopped for presentations, sitting next to uranium for 30 minutes or more. By his calculation, those children could have received radiation dosages in excess of federal safety standards within three seconds, and adults could have suffered dangerous exposure in less than a half-minute."

4 of 191 comments (clear)

  1. Explains the reviews by Tablizer · · Score: 5, Funny

    "The canyon is fantastic! I had an absolutely glowing experience; our tour group lit up with joy."

    1. Re:Explains the reviews by NFN_NLN · · Score: 5, Informative

      "The report indicated radiation levels at "13.9 mR/hr" where the buckets were stored."

      "The commission lists a maximum safe dosage for the public, beyond natural radiation, is no more than 2 millirems per hour, or 100 per year."

      If you spent a day (7-8h) around the bucket then you received your yearly dose. I would feel bad for anyone that worked there and received continuous doses.

    2. Re:Explains the reviews by NFN_NLN · · Score: 5, Informative
  2. Alpha by JBMcB · · Score: 5, Informative

    Uranium gives off alpha radiation, which is effectively stopped by the layer of dead skin cells on your body. If you ground it up into a talcum-powder consistency and snorted it, then you'd be in trouble, but anything less than that and you're fine.

    --
    My Other Computer Is A Data General Nova III.