(Riverton, WY) – The Wyoming Department of Health recently invited students from across Wyoming to enter a poster and video contest aimed at highlighting radon information and encouraging testing.
Taking 2nd Place in the 9th-12th grade video contest category is Riverton High School student Andrew Bilango. Check out his video provided by the WDH below.
Additional contest winners include the following:
Poster Contest Grades 3-6:
- 1st Place: Makenzee Sands, 5th grader, Poison Spider School, Casper,
- 2nd Place: Max Valentine, 4th grader, Sunrise Elementary School, Cheyenne
Poster Contest Grades 7-9:
- 1st Place: Ivie Schaechterle, 8th grader, independent entry, Rock Springs
- 2nd Place: Chloie Black, 9th grader, Powell High School
Video Contest Grades 9-12:
- 1st Place: Cassidy Treesh, age 16, Thunder Basin High School, Gillette, KC Jackson, age 16, Thunder Basin High School, Gillette
- 3rd Place: Alexis Gallegos, age 17, Campbell County High School, Gillette, Elizabeth Cryer, age 15, Campbell County High School, Gillette, Shawna Shupick, age 17, Campbell County High School, Gillette
Most Viewed Video:
- Alaina Steveson, Newcastle High School
In addition to announcing the contest winners, The WDH wants families to consider testing their Wyoming homes for radon to find out whether a potentially dangerous health risk exists.
Radon is an invisible, odorless, tasteless and dangerous gas found in many places, including homes. Radon occurs naturally as a radioactive gas released from the element radium and is found in rocks, soil and water.
“As radium in the soil naturally degrades, it can seep up into buildings, get trapped inside and grow in intensity,” said Randi Norton-Herrington, Wyoming Cancer Program outreach and education coordinator. “All homes have radon; however, with higher levels, the risks become a health concern. Radon is recognized as the second leading cause of lung cancer.”
“Ongoing exposure to higher, more dangerous radon levels can be reduced with testing and home modifications. That’s why we offer low-cost test kits to Wyoming residents. We want them to know the risk level within their homes so they can address potential problems,” Norton-Herrington said.
An elevated level of radon is considered anything over 4 pCi/L (picocuries per liter of air) and should be fixed.
The Wyoming Cancer Program has free radon test kits available while supplies last. To obtain a radon test kit or to view winning poster and video entries, please visit www.health.wyo.gov/publichealth/prevention/cancer/radon.