"There is no danger to the community and local and state emergency preparedness officials have been advised of the incident," said BGAD Public Affairs Officer Dick Sloan.

This marks the first detection of GB nerve agent (or Sarin) at the depot in several years, he said. Mustard gas leaks occurred twice in both 2002 and 2003, and there has never been a leak of VX nerve agent, the third type of nerve agent stored at the depot.

GB nerve agent is a colorless and odorless liquid that evaporates as fast as water. It is stored inside M-55 rockets and is an inhalation hazard only, but was designed to be very deadly, Sloan said. The agent remains sealed in the igloo and has not leaked out into the atmosphere, he said.

"We have experience in cleaning this up," Sloan said. "This is not a major cause of concern. It's not a bad leaker and we've never had anyone killed at the depot. No one in the community has been affected."

The trace of agent detected Tuesday was so minute there is no way of determining an official amount.

"It's a little vapor in the atmosphere," Sloan said. "It's enough for us to be able to detect it and that much is too much."

The agent was detected by the process of a first-entry monitoring system. There are 49 igloos on the depot and 45 of them contain chemical weapons. Each of the 45 active igloos are monitored daily, and the atmosphere of each igloo is tested before workers enter. The air used in the test is then passed through a gas chromatograph that destroys the sample as it is analyzed, Sloan said.

In order to rid the igloo of the leaking agent, it will be flushed using a high-powered air filter. Once that has been done, workers will dress in protective gear and enter the igloo to make a visual inspection, Sloan said. If the leaking weapon(s) are not found right away, a much more detailed process goes into effect.

Each set of pallets will be covered, sealed-off and left for 24 hours. Then, workers will test the air in each pallet to help determine the leaking rocket.

"Once you get it narrowed down to one or two pallets, you can make more minute observations," Sloan said.

Tuesday's finding was a good test of equipment and communication and everything was executed flawlessly, said Carl Richards, director of the Madison County Chemical Stockpile Emergency Preparedness Center.

"The staff is well-trained and in a position to help the public," he said. "This is such a minute amount," he said. "We're talking about a few molecules. If it were a big event, people would need to know what zone they live in."

Richards was referring to the county zoning in relation to the Blue Grass Army Depot. Those within a six-mile radius are to take extra precaution, he said.

"If you don't know what zone you live in, we can't help you," Richards said.

If you live within six miles of the depot, a monitor and a shelter-in-place kit can be obtained by visiting the Madison County Chemical Stockpile Emergency Preparedness Center at 556 South Keeneland Drive.

Ronica Brandenburg can be reached at rbrandenburg@richmondregister.com or 623-1669, Ext. 234.