A reward of around 1400 euros was offered for information on the whereabouts of the container weighing around 25 kilos.
In Thailand, a container with highly radioactive contents disappeared without a trace. The steel cylinder with the dangerous cesium-137 came from a steam power plant in Prachin Buri province, in the east of the country. He has likely been missing since the end of February, but operators only alerted police last Friday, the Bangkok Post newspaper reported on Thursday, citing authorities.
The radioisotope is used in industrial measuring devices, among other things. A reward of 50,000 Thai baht (about 1,400 euros) was offered for information on the whereabouts of the 25-kilogram container, said the head of the provincial public health services, Surin Suebsueng. “If you find anything that looks like the cesium-137 cylinder, report it to the authorities. Stay away and don’t try to open it,” Suebsueng said.
A special team was set up to monitor possible cases of illness caused by the radioactive substance. However, no such case has been discovered so far.
Theft or transport accident?
While authorities initially pursued a possible theft, it is now said that the cylinder may have been lost in transit to another location. Among other things, a search was made for the container at scrap dealers in the region.
In late January, a radioactive capsule fell off a truck in Western Australia while being transported from a mine to a warehouse. Experts and emergency services searched feverishly for days for the cocoon, which also contained cesium-137. Eventually, the small capsule was found on the side of the road in the hinterland. Nobody is hurt.
(APA/dpa)