Traces of dioxin found near Agent Orange plant

Low-level amounts of deadly dioxin were found in samples taken from a home, a street curb, and a chemical plant near a defunct Agent Orange manufacturing plant.

More than 30 samples from vacuum cleaner bags, ventilation systems, and street sweepings were taken Friday after it was learned that dioxin contamination at the Diamond Alkali Company ranged as high as 1,200 times the level considered hazardous. Of the 11 homes tested for dioxin, only one showed contamination at the one-part-per-billion level. Health officials told the family that an evacuation was not necessary at this time.