>The 8mm by 6mm unit, smaller than a penny, is believed to have fallen off the back of a truck while being transported 870 miles from a mine to a depot in the city of Perth.
>The unit was lost after a screw became loose inside a large lead-lined gauge and it fell through a hole. The small silver cylinder contains caesium-137, a highly radioactive isotope which experts say cannot be weaponised.
>The unit emits the equivalent of 10 X-rays in an hour and members of the public should stay at least 16ft away from it, state authorities said.
>Contact could result in skin damage, burns and radiation sickness, including effects on the immune system. Long-term exposure could also cause cancer.
>The Western Australia government waited two days to inform the public on Friday.
marketrent says
Excerpt:
>The 8mm by 6mm unit, smaller than a penny, is believed to have fallen off the back of a truck while being transported 870 miles from a mine to a depot in the city of Perth.
>The unit was lost after a screw became loose inside a large lead-lined gauge and it fell through a hole. The small silver cylinder contains caesium-137, a highly radioactive isotope which experts say cannot be weaponised.
>The unit emits the equivalent of 10 X-rays in an hour and members of the public should stay at least 16ft away from it, state authorities said.
>Contact could result in skin damage, burns and radiation sickness, including effects on the immune system. Long-term exposure could also cause cancer.
>The Western Australia government waited two days to inform the public on Friday.
29 Jan. 2023, Sky News (Comcast)