TAMPA, Fla. — It’s been quite a month for the Tampa company StemRad. First, they sent their new radiation protection vests around the moon as part of Artemis 1, and now they have moved on to their next mission, sending this same technology to Ukraine.
StemRad CEO, Dr. Oren Milstein, says his company’s slogan is “radiation protection on earth and beyond,” and this past month, they proved it.
“From the first few days of the invasion, when the shells were falling on the nuclear reactor, I knew I had to provide our solution and then I was actually happy to be approached by the Ukrainian government,” said Milstein.
On November 27th Milstein visited war-torn Ukraine. He was accompanied by retired U.S. astronaut Scott Kelly, who knows firsthand how serious exposure to radiation can be.
“In my last space flight, I got the equivalent of 2,300 chest x-rays in the course of 340 days,” said Kelly.
Kelly had the opportunity to personally deliver a radiation belt to President Zelensky.
“For me, it was the fifth most amazing experience, or most amazing trip, inspiring trip, I’ve had in my lifetime, but that’s only because I’ve flown in space four times,” said Kelly.
“This is a donation of vital equipment that’s going to protect their firefighters from gamma radiation, the most lethal kind of radiation when it comes to dealing with a nuclear threat,” said Milstein.
So far, StemRad has donated 20 radiation belts, but they say the country needs about 180 more, so they are asking for the public’s help when it comes to donating funds.
“If Ukrainians would have had one of these vests at Chernobyl they would have saved the lives over 90 percent of their first responders,” said Kelly.
For more information on how to donate money for more radiation belts, go to stemrad.com/donate.
Kelly has also started his own charitable fund to buy ambulances and generators for Ukraine at Donorbox.org\scottkelly.
