Q&A

What are Novichoks?

A RANGE of nerve agents made in Soviet laboratories in the 1970s that are the most deadly ever seen. Typically liquid, they can be sprayed in aerosols or added to waxy gels, which allows them to be smeared. Investigators believe a nerve agent may have been on the Skripals’ front door.

What do they do?

NOVICHOKS can affect victims within minutes, disrupting the nervous system and disabling

muscles we need to breathe. The resulting lack of oxygen can cause brain damage, while overactivity of the brain’s nerves triggers seizures. Nerve agents ‘turn on the taps’, flooding the body with fluid so that victims foam at the mouth and stream from the eyes and nose as their lungs fill with mucus.

How are they found?

THEY can’t be identified outside a laboratory, so investigators swab surfaces and take soil and vegetation samples to establish a substance ‘fingerprint’.

How are they cleaned?

GETTING rid of these nerve agents is surprisingly simple. Bleach can do the job and water also breaks down the toxins, making the chemicals far less harmful. Official cleanups tend to use powerful chemicals similar to bleach.

Why do they take so long to disappear?

NOVICHOKS were engineered to be stable chemicals that do not evaporate or decompose quickly. They could last years and the current hot, dry weather may have helped the agents persist because of a lack of moisture in the air to neutralise them.

Why are people being advised to wash their clothes?

WATER can break down Novichoks – and adding heat speeds up that process. Detergents can cause the agents to decompose. Wet wipes can also remove nerve agents from items such as jewellery but should be kept away from the skin and disposed of quickly.