Mystery of Kazakhstan sleeping sickness solved, says government | World news | The Guardian
▻http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jul/17/mystery-kazakhstan-sleeping-sickness-solved
Now the mystery has at last been solved and the cause does indeed lie in the uranium mines, said Kazakhstan’s deputy PM, Berdibek Saparbaev. After analysing the results of medical examinations of all the residents, researchers concluded that it was caused by heightened levels of carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons in the air.
“The uranium mines were closed at some point, and at times a concentration of carbon monoxide occurs there,” Saparbaev said. “The oxygen in the air is reduced accordingly, which is the real reason for the sleeping sickness in these villages.”
Evacuation of the two villages has begun, with authorities reportedly relocating 68 of 223 families so far.