Australia’s Perth – In Western Australia, along a 1400- Kilometer (870-mile) stretch, a mining company apologized for losing a highly radioactive capsule while police searched various sections of the road for the tiny dangerous object.
The equipment, which included the capsule, is thought to have fallen from a truck on January 10 as it was being carried between a mine site in the desert and Perth.
On January 16, the truck carrying the capsule arrived at a depot near Perth. The lost capsule was reported to emergency service on January 25.
Due to a shortage of equipment, Western Australia emergency services have requested assistance from other Australian states and the federal government on locating the capsule. People have been advised that the capsule. which is 8 millimetres by 6 millimeters (0.31 inches by 0.24 inches), may have unintentionally been caught in their car tyres.
The ceramic source for caesium 137, which is frequently used in radiation metres, releases hazardous level of radiation, which are comparable to receiving 10 X-rays in an hour. Burns to the skin could result, and long term exposure could lead to cancer.
Simon Trott, the cheif executive of mining behemoth Rio Tinto Iron Ore, said on sunday that the business was taking the event very seriously and that it was sorry for worrying the people.
We regret the panic it has generated in the western Australian community and acknowledge that this is obviously quite concerning, “Trott said. We have initiated our own inquiry to investigate how the capsule was lost in transportation, in addition to properly supporting the pertinent authorities.”
The 1,400 – kilometer (870-mile) route may need to search, according to the authorities, who have been checking for radiation levels from the device along the trcuk’s travel routes.
Two days after being contracted by Rio Tinto, Western Australia’s Department of fire and Emergency services formally declared the capsule missing on Friday.
Trott said that the contractor was verified to transport the device and that a Geiger counter has verified its presence on the vehicle before leaving the site.
Police concluded that the occurrence was an accident, and no charges are expected to be brought .
