Fatal Disinfectant

[Anchor Lead]

KBS has exclusively obtained a toxicology report on an Oxy Reckitt Benckiser humidifier disinfectant conducted at a leading American lab and commissioned by the British office of the company. The consumer goods firm appears to have been aware that the disinfectant could be fatal up to four years ago.

[Pkg]

A few months after the Korea Center for Disease Control and Prevention announced that a certain humidifier disinfectant caused lung damage, U.S. lab WIL Research issued a report on its test results. Thirty lab mice were divided into three groups and exposed to three levels of PHMG, a substance in the humifier cleansing agent. The necrosis of lung tissues occurred first among the mice exposed to a low PHMG concentration. Those in the medium concentration group suffered the necrosis of liver cells in addition to the lungs. And 10 mice exposed to a high concentration all died. It was also noted that necrosis of the digestive system occurred in some mice.

[Soundbite] Prof. Chung Jin-ho(College of Pharmacy, Seoul Nat'l Univ.) : "Necrosis occurred in the small intestines and stomach, which was similar to that in the liver and lungs. The tests were conducted at the levels of concentration matching those for humans."

The report had Reckitt Benckiser PLC, the name of the British headquarters of Oxy Korea, as the client who had commissioned the test. It was also found that the Oxy main office commissioned four labs in the U.S. and India to conduct similar tests. Oxy officially admitted to the loss of lives and injuries caused by its humidifier disinfectant only this May, four years after the report was issued. Apparently, even Oxy headquarters was sufficiently aware of its dangers, but didn't do anything about them.

[Soundbite] Woo Won-shik(Special Committee on Humidifier Sterilizer) : "These global investigations were not done by Oxy Korea, but by the RB headquarters in Britain."

Oxy Korea has not given any clear answers about the toxicology tests commissioned by its British head office.