Lost radioactive capsule found in WA outback

A tiny radioactive* capsule lost somewhere on a 1000km stretch of road in Western Australia has been found.

The capsule – which could fit onto a 10 cent piece – fell off a truck and was lost while being transported from a mine near the Pilbara mining town of Newman to Perth in mid-January.

Its disappearance went unnoticed until later in the month.

The radioactive capsule was considered extremely dangerous and led mining giant Rio Tinto to warn people to stay clear and publicly apologise for the unprecedented* public health risk.

Although just 8mm x 6mm in size, the capsule contained enough Caesium-137* to cause acute radiation* sickness.

Vehicles carrying radiation detection equipment scoured* the 1000km stretch of the Great Northern Highway looking for the capsule for a week.

And against all odds the capsule was found in the outback 50km south of Newman.

WA Emergency Services Minister Stephen Dawson announced at a press conference on February 1 that the capsule had been found by members of the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology organisation and the state fire services.

“I do want to emphasises this is an extraordinary result,” he said.

“The search crews have quite literally found a needle in a haystack.”

The capsule was part of a gauge* used for measuring the density* of iron ore*. It was part of a package picked up on January 12 from Rio Tinto’s Gudai-Darri iron ore mine and delivered to the Perth suburb of Malaga on January 16.

But the package was not opened until January 25 when the gauge was found “broken apart” with the radioactive capsule missing. State police were informed the same day.

It was ultimately found a few hours drive from the mine.

A team, including members of the Australian military, identified the recovered capsule before loading it into a lead-lined container to shield people from radiation.

It was then transported to a “secure location” and then on to Perth.

“The site has been surveyed and cleared of any residual* radiological* contamination*,” state emergency services said.

Rio Tinto welcomed the capsule’s recovery and repeated an earlier apology over the “extremely rare” incident.

“I’d like to apologise to the wider community of Western Australia for the concern it has generated,” Rio Tinto iron ore chief executive Simon Trott said.

According to the mining company, the capsule was being transported by a certified* contractor* when it was lost.

Authorities believe the container it was in collapsed because of vibrations during transportation before it apparently fell through a hole left by a missing bolt.

An investigation into the incident has been launched and penalties are being considered.

GLOSSARY

• radioactive: having or producing powerful and dangerous energy that comes from the breaking up of atoms
• unprecedented: never done or known before
• Caesium-137: a soft silvery-gold metal that is radioactive
• radiation: energy released in the form of waves or particles. It can be very dangerous at high levels
• scoured: searched very carefully
• gauge: an instrument that measures and gives a visual display of the amount, level or contents of something
• density: the amount of something in a particular area
• iron ore: rocks and minerals from which metallic iron can be extracted
• residual: left over, remaining
• radiological: to do with radiation
• contamination: the process of making something dirty or poisonous
• certified: having the right qualifications
• contractor: a working who has a contract, or agreement, to do a particular job for someone else

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QUICK QUIZ

1. What is the name of the town near the mine where the capsule was being transported from?
2. How long was the stretch of road that was searched for the capsule?
3. WA Emergency Services Minister Stephen Dawson said finding the capsule was like finding what?
4. What was the capsule part of?
5. How did the capsule fall off the truck?

LISTEN TO THIS STORY

CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
1. Dangerous mistake
This radioactive capsule could have caused potentially life-threatening effects if it had ended up in the wrong hands or with someone who didn’t realise how dangerous it was.

What do you think the consequence should be for the company that lost this capsule?

How can they and other companies ensure it doesn’t happen again?

Time: allow 20 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, Science, Personal and social, Critical and creative thinking

2. Extension
How do you think they managed to find this tiny capsule, not much bigger than the size of a Tic Tac? Was it luck or expertise?

Time: allow 10 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English, Critical and creative thinking

VCOP ACTIVITY
Wow word recycle
There are plenty of wow words (ambitious pieces of vocabulary) being used in the article. Some are in the glossary, but there might be extra ones from the article that you think are exceptional as well.

Identify all the words in the article that you think are not common words, and particularly good choices for the writer to have chosen.

Select three words you have highlighted to recycle into your own sentences.

If any of the words you identified are not in the glossary, write up your own glossary for them.