By ABC:
The fire station at Avalon Airport has been closed after unsafe levels of PFAS were found in the drinking water.
The union representing aviation firefighters said the firefighting chemical was also detected in the water supply at the air traffic tower south-west of Melbourne.
Airservices Australia, which operates firefighting and air traffic services at the airport, confirmed it had closed the fire station while a new water supply was set up and a deep clean was undertaken.
“Our highest priority is protecting the health and wellbeing of our teams,” a spokesperson said.
“Airservices’ 30 aviation rescue firefighters and two air traffic controllers stationed at Avalon have been offered expert health advice and free blood testing.”
United Firefighters Union aviation branch secretary Wes Garrett said his members were very concerned about the news.
“Those levels were in excess of the drinking human health recommended threshold values,” Mr Garrett said.
Mr Garrett said the union was unaware how long the chemical had been in the water.
The source of the contamination is still unknown, with Airservices Australia saying it has never used firefighting foam containing PFAS at Avalon.
But Avalon Airport said it had been used in the past.
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