With January being National Radon Awareness Month, the New York State Health Departments said New Yorkers should make sure their homes are tested.
Dangerous radon levels (at a level above the EPA guideline) have been reported in 4,000 Hudson Valley homes.
Radon is the second-leading cause of lung cancer in the U.S., after cigarette smoking and the leading cause of lung cancer in nonsmokers. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that radon is responsible for about 21,000 lung cancer deaths a year. About 2,900 of those deaths occur in people who never smoked.
Radon Test kits are available through the New York State Department of Health's (NYSDOH) Radon Program for $11 by clicking here .
Tests of residential basements in New York found elevated radon levels in about 37 percent of homes, according to the state.
Radon occurs naturally. Outdoors, radon moves through the air, keeping levels low. But radon can reach harmful levels when it is trapped inside buildings radon cannot be seen and has no odor, the state said.
For more information on radon mitigation, click here .