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A tiny radioactive capsule emitting dangerous radiation DISAPPEARS on a highway while being transported from a mine
- Radioactive capsule missing while being transported in WA
- Hazardous material has the potential to cause severe skin burns.
- 1,400 kilometers between the mine site and the deposit to be registered
A small radioactive capsule with the potential to cause skin burns has gone missing while being transported from a Western Australian mine.
Hazardous materials experts are searching for the 8mm by 6mm capsule that is believed to have fallen from a truck as it was traveling from the Pilbara to Perth.
Authorities are looking for the capsule that “emits a reasonable amount of radiation.”
“It’s about getting 10 X-rays in an hour,” a health spokesperson said, adding that more serious health conditions, including cancer, could result from prolonged exposure.
Radioactive capsule ‘gives off a reasonable amount of radiation’ and can cause health problems
The capsule is believed to have fallen from a truck during a 1,400 km journey, after vibrations loosened a bolt and the capsule fell out of the bolt hole.
Emergency services were notified of the missing capsule on Wednesday.
Western Australia’s health director, Andy Robertson, told an emergency press conference on Friday that his main concern is someone picking it up without disclosing the dangers.
“Our concern is that someone will pick it up, not knowing what it is,” he said.
“They may think it’s something interesting and put it away, or keep it in their room, keep it in their car, or give it to someone.”
Exposure to hazardous materials like the radioactive capsule can have serious health risks, Robertson said, and one of the long-term risks is cancer.
The capsule, just 8mm by 6mm in size, is said to have fallen from a truck during a 1,400km journey from a mine, north of Newman, to the Perth depot.
‘As a source, it emits both beta rays and gamma rays. So if you do come into contact with it or have it close to you, you could end up with skin damage, including skin burns, over a period of time.
“If you have it around you long enough, it could cause what’s known as acute radiation sickness.”
Robertson warned people not to approach or hold on to it if the capsule is found.
“Obviously, we think it’s important to warn the community that if they come across this source, they need to be very careful.”
A health alert was issued by the Department of Fire and Emergency Services on Friday afternoon, warning there was a “risk of radioactive substance in parts of the Pilbara, Midwest Gascoyne, Goldfields-Midlands and Perth metropolitan regions.”
DFES has searched areas around the mine site and transport depot, but the capsule remains unfound.
Country North Fire and Emergency Services Department Chief Superintendent David Gill said areas around the mine site and transport depot had been searched, but the capsule remains missing.
“The start and end of the haulage from the mine site north of Newman, and the haulage depot in Perth, are among some of the locations being searched for, and were recorded yesterday, but the capsule remains unfound. “, said.
‘There are challenges here. There are 1,400 kilometers between the mine site… north of Newman and Perth’.
A health alert was issued by the Department of Fire and Emergency Services on Friday afternoon, warning there was a “risk of radioactive substance in parts of the Pilbara, Midwest Gascoyne, Goldfields-Midlands and Perth metropolitan regions.”
People are urged to stay away from the object if they find it and to contact DFES immediately.