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Emergency officials in Western Australia warned on Saturday that a small radioactive capsule was on the loose as an intensive search was underway along a long stretch of highway for what was essentially a toxic needle in a haystack.
The Department of Fire and Emergency Services in Western Australia, a largely rural state that makes up the western third of the country, issued a hazardous materials alert on Saturday evening, warning that the radioactive capsule was lost while being transported from a mine near the town of Newman to a suburb near Perth, the state’s most populous city.
The capsule, which is less than a third of an inch long, went missing somewhere along the more than 800-mile stretch of road between Newman and Perth, the department said. It contains cesium-137, a radioactive material used in mining equipment, one of the main industries in resource-rich Western Australia.
Despite its size, the capsule is dangerous, the department warned. “Exposure to this substance may cause radiation burns or radiation sickness,” it said, warning people not to touch or move it if they come across it. Anyone who sees the capsule should stay at least five meters (16 feet) away from it and report it, the department said.
Authorities did not close the road, National Highway 95, because of the test, although the emergency department’s incident map showed the entire stretch of road marked in red with a radioactive warning symbol.
Workers involved in the search used radiation detectors to try to find the capsule, said Daryl Ray, acting chief of the emergency department. “We are not trying to find the small capsule by sight,” he said. “Hopefully the radiation equipment will lead us to it.” The equipment can detect radiation within a 65-foot radius, he said, adding that they are waiting for more specialized equipment to improve the search.
The capsule may have been missing for several weeks. He left the mine on January 12 and was believed to have arrived on January 16, but his disappearance was discovered on Wednesday when he was missing from the package in which he was transported, with the gauge inside “broken” with screws and a bolt missing, said the the department. Authorities said they believe the capsule fell from the back of a truck, according to the Associated Press.
Specialists are focusing on “strategic sites” along the route the truck took, Ray said, noting they have focused on densely populated areas near Perth.
Cesium-137, the radioactive material inside the capsule, is used, among other things, to detect the flow of fluid through pipes and determine the thickness of materials such as sheet metal, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Exposure to the material can cause an increased risk of cancer, radiation burns, acute radiation sickness and potential death, according to the CDC.
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