Radiation From Japan Detected on Planes That Landed in Chicago, Dallas

FOX Chicago News

Chicago - Fears of nuclear radiation in Japan have now hit Chicago, after a plane landing at O'Hare Airport tested for positive for radiation, but an expert in the field cautioned that there was no risk to the public from the incident.

A spokeperson for American Airlines confirmed that two planes from Tokyo tested positive for radiation Wednesday, one at O'Hare and one landing in Dallas.

The radiation at O'Hare was coming from a routine medical shipment that was bound for Mexico.

U.S. Customs said the radiation test was positive, but at no time was the radiation at unsafe levels.

The scan lasted about 15 minutes and no passengers were detained.

The airport was performing a random security check, but now all planes from Japan are being screened. American Airlines said the check at the gate is routine, and passengers might not even know they were being screened for radiation.

"It means nothing whatsoever," Heartland Institute Science Director Jay Lehr said. Lehr is a proponent of nuclear energy and an expert in the field. He said that the radiation measurements were miniscule, and several hundred times less than amounts that could potentially cause harm to people.

Lehr said that the main health risk related to the nuclear reactor problems in Japan wasn't radiation sickness, but rather stress related illnesses.

Plane from Tokyo at O’Hare Tests Positive for Radiation, Expert Says No Risk to Public: MyFoxCHICAGO.com