A mining company, Rio Tinto, on Sunday apologized for the loss of a highly radioactive capsule along a 1,400-kilometer road in Western Australia.
The capsule, which contains a small amount of radioactive cesium-137, is about 6 millimeters in diameter and 8 millimeters high. It was part of a device believed to have fallen from a truck while being transported between a desert mine north of the town of Newman and the city of Perth.
The device was last seen on January 10 and the truck transporting the capsule arrived at a Perth depot on January 16.
However, emergency services were notified of the missing capsule on Wednesday, and the information was not released until Friday.
Rio Tinto “Sorry for the alarm”
According to mining giant Rio Tinto Iron Ore CEO Simon Trott, the company takes the incident very seriously.
“We recognize that this is clearly a matter of great concern and we apologize for the alarm it has caused in the Western Australian community,” Trott said.
“In addition to the full support of the relevant authorities, we have launched our own investigation to understand how the capsule was lost in transit,” he added.
Trott also said the contractor was qualified to transport the device and it was confirmed by a Geiger counter that it was on board the truck before it left the mine.
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Extensive search and lack of equipment
Western Australia Ambulance Services have asked other Australian states and the federal government for assistance in locating the capsule as they lack the equipment.
The search included people scanning along roads used by the truck for radiation levels from the device, with authorities warning that the entire 1,400-kilometer route may need to be searched.
Because the pod is tiny, people have been warned it may have unknowingly become lodged in the tires of their car.
The cesium-137 ceramic source commonly used in radiation detectors emits dangerous levels of radiation equivalent to receiving 10 x-rays in one hour. It can cause skin burns and prolonged exposure can cause cancer.
dh/dj (AP, dpa, Portal)