Eight workers reported smelling suspicious odors outside the A Tank Farm in the center of the Hanford Site in Washington state on Tuesday morning, a possible indication of chemical vapors associated with radioactive waste stored in underground tanks.
One of the workers was an industrial hygienist who took immediate air samples. Evaluation of the samples completed later in the day showed contaminants at or below background levels, according to tank farm contractor Washington River Protection Solutions. Often when odors are reported, a crew has to be sent in to take samples, allowing time for any chemical vapors to disperse.
Three of the workers in the Tuesday incident reported symptoms. While details were not released, symptoms typically include feeling light-headed, coughing, headache, and a metallic taste in the mouth. Workers are concerned that breathing in chemical vapors could cause serious health issues. The three workers were sent for medical evaluations in the morning, and later in the day two more employees who had not reported symptoms also underwent precautionary medical evaluations. The remaining three workers declined evaluations. All workers were medically cleared to return to work.
The workers had not been required to wear supplied air respirators because they were outside the tank farm fence line working both inside and outside a new water and air service building. Hanford contractors have reported about seven workers receiving medical evaluations for potential vapor exposure this year, down from more than 50 in 2016. The number of potential exposures has dropped since the Hanford tank farm contractor began requiring supplied air respirators for most work inside tank farms after a stop work order by the Hanford Atomic Metal Trades Council, an umbrella group for 15 Hanford unions.
