MELBOURNE, Jan 31 (Reuters) – Australia’s nuclear safety agency said on Tuesday it had joined the search for a small radioactive capsule that went missing somewhere in the outback, using specialized on-board and hand-held detection equipment. dispatched a team.
Authorities are now conducting a week-long search for a capsule believed to have fallen from a truck that traveled 1,400 kilometers (870 miles) in Western Australia. This loss resulted in a radiation alert being issued for much of the vast province.
The capsules, which are part of the gauge used to measure the density of iron ore feedstock, were commissioned by Rio Tinto Ltd (RIO.AX) to be transported by specialized contractors. Rio apologized on Monday for the losses that have occurred elsewhere in the past two weeks.
The Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Authority said it was working with the Western Australian government to locate the capsule. He added that the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Agency had also dispatched radiation service experts and detection and imaging equipment.
Trucks traveled from Rio’s Gudaydari mines north of Newman, a small town in the remote Kimberley region, to storage facilities outside Perth, a distance longer than the length of Britain.
On Tuesday, state emergency officials issued a new warning to drivers along Australia’s longest highway to be careful when approaching search parties as vehicles equipped with radiation detectors traveled at slow speeds. issued.
“To travel the original route, an estimated 1400km, it would take the crew about five days to travel north and south along the Great Northern Highway,” Fire Emergency Services Incident Controller Daryl Ray said in a statement late Monday. said in
Gauge was recovered from the mine site on 12 January. When it was unpacked for inspection on January 25th, the gauge was in pieces, one of the four mounting bolts was missing, and the gauge screws were missing.
Officials believe vibrations from the truck caused screws and bolts to loosen, causing the capsule to fall out of its packaging and through the cracks in the truck.
A silver capsule, 6 mm in diameter and 8 mm long, contains cesium-137 that emits radiation equivalent to 10 X-rays per hour.
People have been told to stay at least 5 meters (16.5 feet) away because exposure can cause radiation burns and radiation sickness, but driving by a capsule is like getting an x-ray. As such, the risk is considered relatively low.
Reported by Melanie Burton of Melbourne. Edited by Muralikumar Anantharaman and Edwina Gibbs
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