It had been lost by mining giant Rio Tinto. The minister’s announcement: found on the side of the road after almost a week of searches along a 1,400 km stretch of motorway
After nearly a week of searching along a 1,400 km stretch of highway, the radioactive capsule
lost in Western Australia, probably fallen from a lorry, between Perth and Newman, by mining giant Rio Tinto.
This was announced by Services Minister Stephen Dawson at a press conference. “When considering the scope of the search area, locating this object was a monumental challenge. research teams have literally found the needle in the haystackDawson noted.
The tiny silver capsule (measuring just 6 by 8 millimeters) is now being examined by the military and will be taken to a secure facility in the city of Perth today.
The capsule is a component of a «density meter», commonly used in the mining industry to precisely measure the density of a mineral in the material extracted from a mine; it belonged to the Rio Tinto mine of Gudai-Darri, about 1,400 kilometers north-east of Perth, where the iron is extracted. The meter was last seen intact on January 12; the missing component was noted on the 25th.
According to officials it is the capsule, which apparently fell from a truck and then landed on the side of the road, is unlikely to have contaminated the area, although it is considered “capable of causing serious damage to health” because it contains caesium-137, which emits radiation equal to 10 X-rays per hour. People had been told to stay at least five meters away from the capsule in case they spotted it.
February 1, 2023 (change February 1, 2023 | 12:40)
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