So the UK may have
thwarted a chemical attack in finding a cache of osmium tetroxide. That's very good news, indeed. Let's see
what the U.S. experts say.
Dave Siegrist, a bioterrorism expert at the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies in Arlington, Virginia, told ABC News: “It irritates the eyes, lungs, nose and throat. It leads to an asthma-like death, what we call a ’dry-land drowning'."
Jerry Hauer, an expert on biological and chemical terrorism at the US Department of Health and Human Services, said that the effects on sufferers can be horrendous.
"They become overwhelmed by fumes," he said describing what could have happened. "They can go blind. This is not a benign chemical. It is very nasty."
Wow. SOUNDS nasty. And we're sure the UK experts agree...
However, Professor Alastair Hay, Professor of Environmental Toxicology at Leeds University, and an expert on chemical weaponry, says that osmium tetroxide is not nearly as dangerous as these experts are suggesting.
He said the US experts were overplaying the potential effects of the chemical.
"As a chemical hazard, I would say osmium is only a minor irritant. After an explosion, it would have much the same effect as dust and smoke in irritating the lungs.
"It is unlikely you would be exposed to the kind of the concentrations you would need to choke to death."
I'd light up a cigarette to calm my nerves, but it sounds deadlier than osmium tetroxide...
