Truck Carrying Nuclear Waste Stolen in Mexico, IAEA Says AFP (12/04/2013) The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said Wednesday that a truck that was transporting potentially dangerous radioactive material from a hospital in Tijuana to a radioactive waste storage center was stolen near Mexico City on Dec. 2. At the time the truck was stolen, the [cobalt-60 teletherapy] source was properly shielded, the IAEA said. However, the source could be extremely dangerous to a person if removed from the shielding, or if it was damaged. Mexicos CNSNS nuclear security authority is conducting a search for the stolen source. Though the material cannot be used to create a conventional nuclear weapon, the IAEA said that it could theoretically be used in a radiological dispersal device (RDD), more frequently known as a dirty bomb. Experts have previously expressed concerns about the dangers posed by having such material in the control of hospitals, factories and university campuses around the world, often with insufficient security. The Arms Control Association and the Partnership for Global Security said in a report released in July that while progress has been made in the effort to reduce the threat from the potential theft of radioactive material, there is still significant work to be done.
Posted on: Wed, 04 Dec 2013 22:25:07 +0000
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