Engineer and leading authority on nuclear and chemical safetyThe chemical engineer Sir Frederick Warner, who has died aged 100, was internationally renowned for his pioneering work in building chemical plants and improving the
health and safety conditions for workers in the chemical industry. His expertise in environmental impact, particularly of radiation, saw him lead the first international team into Chernobyl to assess the damage caused by the catastrophic reactor meltdown in 1986.Disturbed by the fact that 31 young Soviet soldiers and firefighters had died after exposure to high doses of radiation during the containment operation, he later assembled a group of 100 retired engineers and scientists – Volunteers for Ionising Radiation – who would be available to help during any future such emergencies. After receiving advice from radiobiologists, he reasoned that people who were over 65 would tolerate exposure better than those who were younger and would have fewer concerns over possible genetic effects.Warner - Ned to his friends - was born in St Pancras, north London, the son of Frederick, a policeman, and his wife, Annie. He was educated at Wanstead national school and Bancrofts school and graduated in chemistry from University College London in 1931. With no hope of finding a job in the middle of the Depression, he returned to UCL for a postgraduate diploma in chemical engineering. A committed communist, anti-war campaigner and passionate rugby player who became president of the University of London Union in 1933, he was so busy with his numerous interests that he had to take his diploma twice before he passed.He worked as a chemical engineer for various companies before founding the consulting engineers partnership Cremer and Warner in 1956 with his friend Herbert Cremer. The firm worked around the world, in the Soviet Union,
India,
Iran, Jordan and Africa, solving problems with large-scale chemical plants, air and water pollution and coal and oil gasifi ...
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