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Nov. 30, 2010
DHEC announces radon poster contest winners
COLUMBIA, S.C. – Three winners have been announced in a statewide poster contest held to highlight the risks posed by exposure to indoor radon, the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control reported today.
Sarah Hudson, a student at Crossroads Middle School in Irmo, has won first place in the S.C. Radon Poster Contest. Kylie King of Palmetto Christian Academy in Mt. Pleasant is the second place winner. Margaret Eberly of St. Joseph's Catholic School in Greenville won third place.
"The three winners' posters have been entered into the National Radon Poster Contest," said Aimee Morrow, DHEC's radon coordinator. "If any one of them is selected as a national winner, they'll travel along with a parent and a teacher to Washington, D.C. for an award ceremony in January."
Radon is a colorless, odorless and tasteless gas formed by the natural radioactive decay of uranium in rock, soil, and water.
"Radon decays into radioactive particles that can get trapped in your lungs when you breathe," Morrow said. "This can damage lung tissue and lead to lung cancer, but not everyone exposed to elevated levels of radon will develop lung cancer. The amount of time between exposure and the onset of the disease may be many years."
Morrow said the level of radon exposure in homes, schools, and other buildings can be determined through a simple, inexpensive test.
The winning posters can be seen on DHEC's website at: http://www.scdhec.gov/radon.
For more information on radon, call Morrow at (864) 241-1095, or e-mail her at: radon@dhec.sc.gov.
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For more information:
Aimee Morrow - (864) 241-1095
E-mail - morrowa2@dhec.sc.gov
or
Adam Myrick - (803) 898-3884
E-mail - myrickar@dhec.sc.gov
MNR0446