Los Alamos workers exposed to plutonium

LOS ALAMOS, N.M. - Two workers at Los Alamos National Laboratory were exposed to plutonium while working in a part of the lab where the radioactive substance is processed, the lab said Friday.

According to a news release from Los Alamos, the workers were taking inventory Tuesday of older cans of plutonium when an air monitor alarm sounded.

Both workers left the room, according to the lab. Neither saw defects on the cans.

In tests, both showed nasal contamination, an indication that they might have inhaled plutonium. Other results indicated skin contamination on the first employee's head, upper torso and arms, and on the second worker's head.

Following decontamination, both employees were placed on a precautionary monitoring program to determine whether plutonium entered their bodies and at what levels, the lab statement says.

Although the monitoring will take weeks or months, "clearly this was not a major contamination" said Jim Danneskiold, a spokesman for the lab.

The lab said there was no chance of public exposure because the plutonium was contained within the building.

The U.S. Energy Department will investigate, the lab said.

"We will work closely with the Department of Energy to understand exactly what happened and take steps to ensure it doesn't recur," said Steve Yarbro, leader of the lab's Nuclear Materials Technology Division.

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