When the Freeze Will End/Radon the Unknown Killer

WEATHER
Much of the southeast is under a Hard Freezing Warning. In the Houston area, many areas did not even get above freezing and those that did, only briefly. Even Galveston only warmed a few degrees above freezing.

A new storm system is moving into the western US. This energy will move up and over the ridge that is parked over the western US while a deep trough allows the arctic air to stay in place over the central and eastern US through the weekend. By Tuesday the ridge has shifted over the central US, allowing the central US to warm up and then it moves to the eastern US on Wednesday allowing a new trough to dig south over the Rockies and bring that area some snow.

On Saturday, the coolest spot will be over the central plains with highs in the single digits in Nebraska and Iowa and only slightly warmer over the northern plains and western Great Lakes. The warmest area will be the southwest with highs in the 70s. The Midwest, Great Lakes, Ohio Valley and northeast will have highs in the teens and 20s and there will be snow showers in these areas as well. Look for some rain in Florida.

Skies will be sunny Saturday and Sunday with lows in the upper teens and low 20s. Highs Saturday will be in the upper 30s and low 40s and Sunday's highs will be in the 50s. It will be freezing for most of the area on Monday morning but the lows will be in the upper 20s and low 30s. Temperatures will stay above freezing for the rest of the week. Rain returns mid-week.

SPANISH WORD OF THE DAY
Let's do radiation or radiación, pronounced rah-dee-ah-see-OWN. Radon is a type of radiación that is the second leading cause of lung cancer. See the AND MORE section for important information.

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AND MORE
Does anyone know if I should have covered up my sago? I took care of my hibiscus plants and my vegetable garden. But I have never covered my sago and I am noticing lots of people are doing it now. So far, it looks unchanged.

Here is something I didn't know. Radon is the 2nd leading cause of lung cancer after smoking. I got this information from an EPA email. I am set up to receive updates from them. And, I thought this information would be very helpful. To summarize, in case you don't want to read all of the following email, radon is believed to be the cause of lung cancer that kills 20,000 people in the U.S. every year. And, some of the most at risk states are: Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Delaware, West Virginia and the District of Columbia. I also know the Houston area is not an area with radon concerns. So here is the email from the EPA.

PHILADELPHIA (Jan. 7, 2010) Although testing for radon is easy and inexpensive, 80 percent of the homes in the U.S. have not been tested. Radon is a colorless, odorless, tasteless gas that EPA has reported as causing 20,000 lung cancer deaths nationwide every year.

Radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer, after cigarette smoking. January is the best time to test for radon now that doors and windows are all tightly closed. Now is the time to test and if needed, reduce your exposure to radon. That’s why EPA designated January ‘radon action month.’

High radon levels have been found throughout EPA's mid-Atlantic region, which includes Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Delaware, West Virginia and the District of Columbia. The only way to know if you and your family are at risk from radon is to test your home for radon or have it tested by a certified professional radon tester. For do-it-yourselfers, radon kits can be purchased for $25 at building supply, hardware and general merchandise stores. A basic test takes 10 minutes to set up and when complete is mailed to a lab for analysis.

If test results are above the EPA recommended action level you need to have the radon level reduced by a certified radon ‘mitigator.’ Reducing radon is not technically difficult and costs approximately $800 - $2,500.

To locate professional radon testers and certified radon ‘mitigators’ near you by look on the web at either the “National Environmental Health Association” or “National Radon Safety Board” sites. Be sure to ask to see their credentials.

Radon is a radioactive gas produced from the uranium which is in the geological formation under the soil. The amount or radon gas varies depending on the amount of uranium in the formation. The type of soil under the house, the design of the house and the life style or the family living in the house all affect the amount of radon gas that enters a home.

For more info on radon:

· EPA’s National Radon Hotline, 1-800-438-2474

· For lists of certified testers and mitigators use the web to search for the “National

· EPA’s radon website http://www.epa.gov/radon/radontest.html.Environmental Health Association” and/or “National Radon Safety Board”.

· EPA’s mid-Atlantic region, 1-800-438-2474

· The National Environmental Publications Center, 1-800-490-9198 or http://www.epa.gov/cinc. They have “Citizens Guide to Radon” and “Home Buyers and Sellers Guide”

Editor’s Note: See EPA’s website for free, publically-available graphics about radon and public Service announcements for print, television, and radio at http://www.epa.gov/radon.

Please share this information with your family (especially those in the mid-Atlantic). Stay warm everyone and have a great weekend!
Cecilia Sinclair
Wonder Weather Woman