Two Hanford Site workers received medical checks and were released to return to work after reporting an odor in the Department of Energy facility’s central area at the start of the day shift Thursday. The workers were in the 200 East Area but more than a mile from the closest waste tank farm, according to Hanford support services contractor Mission Support Alliance. One of the employees works for Mission Support Alliance, but the second worker’s employer was not immediately known Thursday.
The two workers were conducting a routine inspection of an area where nonradioactive waste is temporarily staged before disposal. They followed Hanford protocol upon detecting the odor and reported it, according to Mission Support Alliance. One also reported a metallic taste in his or her mouth. Odors and symptoms, such as a metallic taste and coughing, may be caused by chemical vapors from waste held in Hanford’s underground tanks. Industrial hygiene technicians responded to the event but made no findings, the contractor said.
Vapors from the tanks that hold 56 million gallons of chemical and radioactive waste, a byproduct of decades of plutonium production at the Washington state site, remains an ongoing concern at Hanford. The state Attorney General’s Office and two other plaintiffs have sued DOE and its tank farm contractor demanding increased protections for employees.
A dozen workers reported suspicious odors near the tank farms in January, but all declined medical evaluations.
