Each year upwards to 22,000 people die from radon-induced lung cancer.

We’ve given away our supply of free test kits BUT the NC Radon Program is making a limited supply of FREE radon test kits available.

Go to www.ncradon.org to order your free kit.

Tell them you heard about it from Alamance County Environmental Health!

As the turning of the seasons brings colder weather to North Carolina and families close windows to keep warm, it is an excellent time to make plans for radon testing in your home.

Radon is the odorless, colorless gas that is the second leading cause of lung cancer in the United States. The effects upon the families it touches can be just as devastating as lung cancer caused by smoking tobacco.

January is National Radon Action Month.

Each year upwards to 22,000 people die from radon-induced lung cancer. Roughly 54 percent of those diagnosed with early-stage lung cancer are expected to live no more than five years after diagnosis.

Alamance County Environmental Health is partnering with the NC Radon program to provide free short-term radon test kits in recognition of National Radon Action Month. A limited supply of radon test kits are being made available locally during the month of January at Environmental Health located at 209 N. Graham Hopedale Rd in Burlington

. Please call 336-570-6367 ext. 310 if you have questions.

Approximately 7,000 kits are being distributed statewide. Only one kit per home is needed to determine if your home has a high level. The North Carolina Radon Program website, www.ncradon.org, will have a list of all 83 participating organizations across North Carolina. The NC Radon Program website will also have a limited supply of kits available. Once the supply of free kits have been exhausted, the NC Radon Program website will return to providing short-term radon test kits at a reduced cost of $5.34, a kit retails at $15.00.

North Carolina Radon Program Fact Sheet:

The North Carolina Radon Program of the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services educates families and homeowners about radon gas, how to test for radon gas and how to lower the radon levels within a home. Lowering the radon levels in a home lowers the risk of lung cancer.

The North Carolina Radon Program website also contains a new mobile application. Meant to particularly help real estate brokers working in North Carolina, the mobile application (app) will assist the user in determining how many tests have been conducted within a zip code as well as the highest radon level recorded in that zip code. The user of the app will also be able to locate a certified professional to assist them in testing or fixing the radon issue in their home.

The cost of lowering radon levels in a home averages to about $1,500. The North Carolina Radon Protection Section sought help for families that might struggle to meet that expense. The Self Help Credit Union stepped up and created a loan program specifically for radon mitigation. North Carolina homeowners who meet federal poverty criteria may be eligible for forgivable loans from local programs. A link to more information is available on the NC Radon Program web page.

Lung cancer can strike anyone, even a nonsmoker. Test your home for radon and lower your family’s risk of lung cancer. For more information, visit www.ncradon.org .

BURLINGTON –Alamance County Health Department is one of a number of local health departments in the state that has begun monitoring individuals who recently arrived in the United States from West Africa. Alamance County is complying with federal guidelines to monitor all travelers from Sierra Leone, Liberia, and Guinea. The guidelines state that individuals who return from an impacted area will be screened at the airport and if no other risks than travel are identified, the individuals will then be monitored daily for fever or other symptoms by the local health department for three weeks. This type of monitoring is one component of the Ebola preparedness plan for Alamance County.

“We are currently monitoring five individuals. These travelers have no symptoms, have not had contact with an Ebola patient, and are not healthcare workers. We are monitoring them because of their recent travel from West Africa,” states Health Director Stacie Saunders. “In the event that one of these individuals develops symptoms, the Health Department and our community partners will ensure that they are taken quickly and safely to an isolation unit in a predetermined healthcare facility. Our community has been preparing diligently and we continue to do so.”

The Health Department and its local health and safety partners have met specifically to assess the travelers’ information and review plans. Emergency Management, EMS, Central Communications (911), Alamance Regional Medical Center, and law enforcement throughout the county have worked collaboratively since August to develop protocols and guidelines for Ebola preparedness. These protocols have included screening for West African travel and Ebola symptoms for EMS dispatch and at visits to the Health Department, Alamance Regional Medical Center and other community healthcare facilities.

The county continues to participate in statewide Ebola update calls with the Division of Public Health and continues to receive preparedness guidance from both state and federal health officials. Alamance County preparedness partners meet regularly to discuss preparedness and response efforts in Alamance County.

For general information about Ebola, the public may call 1-800-222-1222 and choose option 6. Additional information can be found at http://www.ncdhhs.gov/ebola/.