ENCINITAS, Calif. --
A major radiation scare at Scripps Memorial Hospital in Encinitas shut down parts of the hospital on Saturday.
The incident occurred at about noon when an on-duty sheriff's deputy at the hospital thought he was contaminated when he noticed his radiation meter reading at a dangerously high level.
That triggered a massive response by San Diego County HAZMAT, the Encinitas Fire Department and the San Diego County Sheriff's Department.
Several other deputies then worried that they had been contaminated.
The emergency department was shut down for and patients were re-routed for about 20 minutes while crews tested for radiation.
After further investigation, authorities determined that there was no radiation contamination.
The sheriff's department said the deputy's radiation meter was defective and gave a false reading.
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