Milford fire linked to rise in radiation

The Milford Flat fire is radiating more than heat from its fierce flames, nuclear authorities said Thursday.

Significant spikes in gamma radiation, possibly caused by the fire's intense heat, are registering on monitors in Milford, according to the National Nuclear Security Administration.

The monitors normally report levels of 20 microrems (millionth of a rem) of radiation per hour, but this past week, the level skyrocketed off the charts, sometimes marking as high as 140 microrems per hour. NNSA scientists think the radiation is actually naturally occurring radon being released into the atmosphere at an accelerated rate because of the massive fire, but the federal organization will be analyzing the monitor's air filters this week to find out for sure.

"Any time we see elevated radiation readings on anything, we just want to rule out the source of where it could be coming from," said NNSA Nevada Site Office spokesman Kevin Rohrer. "All of the other stations in the area are reporting normal background readings and nothing unusual. ... This really is nothing to become alarmed about, it's simply reporting what nature does on a natural, ordinary basis. Any time you have a fire you would see this type of phenomenon occur."

Assuming the radiation in the area is being caused by radon, Rohrer says the levels being released aren't dangerous to the health of firefighters or people living in the area.

Normally, average Americans receive about 360 millirems (thousandth of a rem) of radiation per year from natural and man-made sources. Being exposed to the currently detected levels of radiation from the fire is insignificant, Rohrer said.

"We've calculated that with this additional (presumed) radon being released, you would have to be standing in that smoke plume for seven hours to receive one millirem dose of radiation based on the radon particles being emitted," Rohrer said.

According to Dane Finerfrock, director of Utah's Division of Radiation Control, other dangers of the fire, such as smoke inhalation and fire damage, are far more threatening.

"People are very sensitive to the word 'radiation,' there's no doubt about that," Finerfrock said. "But considering the dangers that exist from these fires and all of the other potential health impacts, something like this in my mind is just unimportant, compared to the spectrum of things going on here."