Medley Business Providing Radiation Safety In Japan

MEDLEY (CBS4) - Emergency workers in Japan who are trying to contain the country's worst nuclear crisis since 1945 can thank a South Florida company for helping them stay safe.

Radiation Shield Technologies, based in Medley, has donated more than 200 full-body nuclear radiation protection suits to aid power plant workers and rescue teams in Japan.

"I'm a physician first and I saw really brave individuals working around a lot of radiation, wearing paper suits," said Coral Gables doctor Ronald DeMeo, the inventor of the suits.

The suits feature a material called Demron. The fabric was invented by Dr. DeMeo and is said to block radiation material and protects against infrared radiation, extreme heat, nuclear fallout, biological and chemical agents. 

"Sometimes you look at world tragedies and you say, there's nothing I can do about it, I'm just one individual. Except, I have a unique capability and I have a technology that nobody else has," said Dr. DeMeo. 

DeMeo has sold the products to military and rescue staff around the globe for several years, but first invented the fabric to protect radiologists in hospitals. 

DeMeo decided to donate the gear as soon as he saw footage from Japan of rescue workers who needed protective clothing. The suits cost around $1,700 each.

(© MMXI CBS Television Stations. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)