PUBLIC HEALTH ASSESSMENT
PUBLIC HEALTH IMPLICATIONS OF RADIATION CONTAMINATION AT
FORMER CLOCK FACTORIES LOCATED IN
BRISTOL (HARTFORD COUNTY), NEW HAVEN (NEW HAVEN COUNTY), THOMASTON (LITCHFIELD
COUNTY), AND WATERBURY (NEW HAVEN COUNTY)
CONNECTICUT
This public health assessment was developed 1) to evaluate the radiation data collected by the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection (CT DEP) at structures that once housed clock factories in four Connecticut municipalities, and 2) to determine whether a public health hazard exists at any of these sites from the contamination.
Contamination was detected at levels that may pose a health risk to current occupants at the former Waterbury Clock Factory, the former Lux Clock Factory, and the former Benrus Clock Company buildings in Waterbury; the former Sessions Clock Company in Bristol; and the former Seth Thomas Clock Company in Thomaston. However, none of the radiation levels detected pose an immediate health problem. Many areas of the Belco facility (located in one of the former Waterbury Clock Factory buildings) had removable contamination that exceeded the Radium-226 (226Ra) regulations. Additional radiation surveys are needed to establish the degree of contamination in the New Haven and Thomaston locations. In other locations that were adequately characterized as described in this public health assessment, radiation levels did not exceed background and do not pose a health risk.
The Connecticut Department of Public Health recommends that individuals be disassociated from areas with radiation at levels exceeding 15 mRem/year. Further investigations should be conducted to characterize the extent of contamination in other structures. The amount of dust on the floors and in air in contaminated structures needs to be determined in order to assess the radiologic inhalation and ingestion exposures to 226Ra. Radon sampling should be considered to further characterize these sites. The findings of this Public Health Assessment should be provided to all occupants of the surveyed structures.
The CT DPH will continue to provide environmental health education for local public health officials, the local medical community and local citizens to assist the community in assessing possible adverse health outcomes associated with exposures to toxic substances. The CT DPH will review remediation plans to ensure the continued protection of public health during all phases of site cleanup.
The conclusions and recommendations in this Public Health Assessment are based on the data and
information made available to the Connecticut Department of Public Health and the Agency for
Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. The Connecticut Department of Public Health and the
Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry will incorporate additional information if and
when it becomes available. The incorporation of additional data could change the conclusions and
recommendations listed in this document.
PURPOSE AND STATEMENT OF ISSUES
There are four towns in Connecticut that have historic data indicating clock factories were located
in these municipalities. These include: Bristol, New Haven, Thomaston, and Waterbury. On June
12, 1998, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requested (1) that the Agency for Toxic
Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) examine the radiation data available for the former clock
factories located in four towns. The purpose of this Public Health Assessment is to evaluate the
radiation data provided by the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection (CT DEP) (2),
determine whether a public health hazard exists at any of these site, and to recommend appropriate
public health actions to minimize known exposures.
Radium-226 (226Ra) has a half life of 1,600 years. It was used from the beginning of this century through the 1940's to paint number dials on clocks, watches and aircraft navigation equipment because of the paint's ability to illuminate in the dark. Earlier this year a researcher at the University of Illinois was investigating the distribution of radium dial painters throughout the country. During this investigation, the CT DEP was informed of former radium dial painting facilities at the Waterbury Clock Company. Other former radium dial painting sites have been identified outside the City of Waterbury in Bristol, New Haven, and Thomaston. They are described below.
Bristol
Two clock manufacturing facilities were located in the City of Bristol: the Ingram Clock Company
and the Sessions Clock Company.
- In 1914, the Ingram Company began making pocket watches, and in 1930, started producing wrist watches. The factory complex was torn down in the late 1960's. Since this complex was torn down, no radiation surveys have been conducted to date.
- In 1903, the Sessions Clock Company began operation and produced mantle and kitchen clocks. In 1958, the company was sold and the new company continued to produce clocks until 1968. In 1960, one of the buildings was sold to he Bristol Instrument Gears Company. In 1970, the remaining buildings were sold to Dabko Industries, a machine parts manufacturer. The following companies are housed in the Sessions Clock Company buildings: Bristol Instrument Gears, Dabko CO., NuTECH, CT Graphics, and C&R Printing. Radiation surveys were conducted in each of these companies.
New Haven
One clock manufacturing facility was located in the City of New Haven: the New Haven Clock Company.
-In 1853, the New Haven Clock Company was incorporated as a supplier of brass clock movements. This facility produced many types of clocks including pocket versions (started in 1880), and wrist watches (started in 1917). This facility produced over 40 million watches between 1880 and 1959. This complex consists of several buildings. The building occupants now include: Club International, Goodies Repairs, and St. John's Restaurant. Most of the total building space is unoccupied or abandoned. Club International is housed in the first two floors of the four story building. There is little information about the third and fourth floors of that building. Access has not been allowed for survey purposes in all of the buildings. Goodies Repairs is located in the first floor of the two story building. St. John's Restaurant is located in the first floor of the four story building. There have not been any radiation surveys conducted at the abandoned buildings.
Thomaston
One clock manufacturing facility was located in the City of Thomaston: the Seth Thomas Clock Company.
- The Seth Thomas Clock Company produced pocket watches from 1882 until 1915. During this period over four million watches were made. The facility was damaged in 1955 by flooding. The building is a four story structure that is being rented out to twenty different companies. Radiation surveys have been conducted on each floor. Sections of the basement and fourth floor were not completely characterized.
Waterbury
Three clock manufacturing facilities were located in Waterbury: the Waterbury Clock Company,
the Lux Clock Company, and the Benrus Clock Company. Radiation surveys have been conducted
in these former clock company facilities.
- From 1857 through 1944, the Waterbury Clock Company produced clocks. Inexpensive watches were produced starting in 1880. In 1919, radium dial painting was started at the Waterbury Clock Company. There are numerous reports of occupational diseases and possible radiation related deaths from these early days of operation of the Waterbury Clock Factory. This facility now houses a leather clothier, an apartment complex, and a human service center for Waterbury.
- The Lux Manufacturing Company, formerly known as the Lux Clock Company, began manufacturing in 1914. This facility now houses Anchor Advanced Products.
- The Benrus Clock Company historically produced watches and now is occupied by Bender plumbing.
Table 1. lists each town in which there were reports of radium use at clock companies. The table lists the town name, the original clock company name, the current building occupant(s), and whether the buildings have detectable levels of radiation. Three terms are used to describe the results for each location: affected, pending, and not affected. Locations defined as "affected" have detectable levels of radiation above background levels, but not necessarily at levels of health concern. The term "pending" is used to indicate locations that have not been fully characterized. Locations with no radiation levels above background are defined as "not affected".
Table 1. Former Clock Manufacturing
Facilities in Connecticut
| Town | Clock Factory Name | Current Occupant | Results |
| Bristol | Ingram Clock Company | None- Building was torn down in 1960s | not applicable |
| Sessions Clock Company | Dabko Industries NuTECH CT Graphics C & R Printing Bristol Instrument Gears |
Affected Not affected Not affected Not affected Affected |
|
| New Haven | New Haven Clock Company | Club International Goodies Repairs St. John's Restaurant Abandoned buildings |
Not affected Affected Not affected Pending |
| Thomaston | Seth Thomas Clock | Basement - Global Ball Mfg. Basement - Power Trans Basement - Quality Rolling |
Pending Pending Not affected |
| First Floor - A.S.A.P. First Floor - Cesco Brass First Floor - CD Proctor First Floor - Diane's Dance First Floor - Feel Good Fitness First Floor - J-Conn First Floor - Vereka Enterprises |
Not affected Not affected Not affected Not affected Not affected Not affected Affected |
||
| Second Floor - Gaynor Electric Second Floor - National Spring Second Floor - W.T.M. |
Affected Not affected Affected |
||
| Third Floor - Conn Outreach Third Floor - ECI Third Floor - Global Spices Third Floor - J. McGowan Third Floor - Sort of Unique Third Floor - Rob Whelan Third Floor - Power Trans |
Not affected Not affected Affected Affected Not affected Not affected Affected |
||
| Fourth Floor - Italian Club Fourth Floor - Storage Fourth Floor - Workshop Area Fourth Floor - Church |
Pending Affected Not affected Not affected |
||
| Waterbury | Waterbury Clock Company | Belco Villa Automatics Enterprise Apartments New Opportunities for Waterbury (NOW) |
Affected Affected Affected Affected |
| Lux Clock Company | First floor -Anchor Advanced Products Second floor -Anchor Advanced Products Third floor -Anchor Advanced Products Fourth floor -Anchor Advanced Products |
Affected Affected Affected Affected |
|
| Benrus Clock Company | First floor - Bender Plumbing Second floor - Bender Plumbing Third floor - Bender Plumbing Fourth floor - Bender Plumbing Fifth floor - Bender Plumbing Sixth floor - Bender Plumbing Seventh floor - Bender Plumbing |
Not affected Not affected Not affected Affected Affected Not affected Affected |
Demographics
The estimated population potentially exposed to the radium contamination is isolated to the
occupants, workers, and visitors of the former clock factories. The population estimates for the
former radium sites in each town for occupants (including children), workers, and visitors are as
follows: Bristol: 50, New Haven: 15; Thomaston: 150, and Waterbury: 300 (including about 10 children).
ATSDR Child Health Initiative
Infants and children are more sensitive to environmental exposures than adults in communities with
contaminated water, soil, air, or food, since 1) children play outside and are likely to be more exposed
to soil or surface water, 2) children are shorter and closer to dust, soil and vapors near the ground,
and 3) children have a higher metabolic rate than adults, resulting in a higher dose per body weight.
Since exposures to children may affect development and growth, the CT DPH and the ATSDR are
committed to evaluating potential exposures to children as part of the Child Health Initiative. The
children likely to be exposed to this contamination are the approximately 10 children that live in the
Enterprise Apartment Complex, and any child visitors to the NOW building. The children in the
apartment complex may have been exposed for as long as 10 years. Children visiting the NOW
building may have been exposed for a shorter period of time. However, both of these exposures do
not represent an immediate health concern.
Health Outcome Data
The results of radiation surveys indicated that isolated areas contained elevated levels of radiation,
however, no current exposures were occurring that represented an immediate public health concern.
Continuous exposures for durations of 30 to 70 years represent a possible increased risk of
developing some types of cancer. Because the number of people exposed is small, and the duration
of continuous exposure is unlikely to be 30 to 70 years, an evaluation of available health outcome data is not warranted.
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