Medical teams from the United States, France and Israel began arriving in Ukraine Tuesday in a bid to unravel the cause of an epidemic feared caused by nuclear contamination in the south of the country.
More than 400 Ukrainians, including 240 children, have succumbed to illness in the southern region of Mykolaiv since July, and local authorities believe the epidemic may be caused by fuel from a dump of defused nuclear missiles or by an excessive use of pesticides.
The victims suffer from insomnia, eye disorders and skin rashes, press reports say. So far, 63 children and 13 adults have been hospitalized and the area has been declared a disaster zone.
"We hope that the contribution of independent experts allow us to find the cause," Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Mikola Julinski said.
Equipped with several mobile laboratories, doctors and chemists, the teams from the US and Israel arrived Tuesday, local officials said. The French team was expected to arrive in the coming days.
For "one of two weeks," the teams will take soil and air readings from around the affected area, as well as examine the victims of the ailments, the defense ministry said.
Last week, Ukrainian authorities uncovered a dump of radioactive materials in an old Soviet base. The waste was giving off 20 times the natural level of radiation - KIEV (AFP)
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