Toxic fluid leads to shutdown of refuge

The discovery of a toxic material called “the dew of death” at Rocky Mountain Arsenal Wildlife Refuge has forced closure of the refuge and the cancellation of four wildlife, nature and photo programs this weekend.

Sherry James, a park ranger, told the Rocky Mountain News that about 150 people had been expected to take part.

The refuge was closed Wednesday after a blistering chemical weapon developed and produced during both world wars, called Lewsite, was found in a restricted area near the refuge. State officials said it could be a week to months before the refuge reopens while the area is examined.

Lewsite, also called lewisite, has the fragrance of geraniums. First attempts to develop it occurred during World War I, but it was not used either then or in World War II.

The chemical is meant to be used with mustard gas and can cause vomiting, pulmonary edema and other effects, eventually leading to death. It can penetrate rubber and clothing.

Workers for the Army were digging a trench around the five-acre Lime Basins site connected to the 1943 production of the deadly chemical when air monitors detected traces of it. It is an oily colorless liquid in its pure form.

“This work was in an area of the arsenal that was known for disposal of chemical agents,” Dr. Ned Calonge, Colorado chief medical officer said in a statement Thursday. “The closure of the refuge is the appropriate precautionary measure until we are certain there is no risk to human health.”

Workers, who were wearing protective clothing, were decontaminated. None showed any symptoms of coming into contact with the agent.

Jeff Edson, manager of remediation for the state health department, said his agency and the Environmental Protection Agency would review an eventual Army plan for remediation. He said finding the material was not a surprise and that no one was endangered.

Sandra Jaquith, spokeswoman for the citizens’ Site Specific Advisory Board of the Rocky Mountain Arsenal, said the refuge should be shut down whenever such work is underway.

“There are likely a lot of things out there they don’t know about,” she said, “and they don’t know where they’re located.”

The 17,000-acre site 10 miles from downtown Denver opened in 1942 and manufactured several weapons of mass destruction, including sarin, before a cleanup began in 1985.