Radioactive capsule FOUND in Oz outback in ‘needle in the haystack’ miracle after deadly rice-sized object goes missing
A "TINY but potentially deadly" radioactive capsule has been recovered in the Australian outback in what emergency services have described as an "extraordinary" find.
The loss of the minuscule capsule the size of a grain of rice sparked an unprecedented public safety warning covering a 1,400km area of Western Australia.
It was reportedly found on Wednesday about 50km south of the town of Newman.
Western Australia's Emergency Services Minister Stephen Dawson told a press conference: "I do want to emphasise this is an extraordinary result.
"The search crews have quite literally found the needle in the haystack."
An urgent public warning was issued last week after the tiny capsule of caesium-137 was reported missing on January 25.
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It reportedly fell off a truck while it was being transported from a Rio Tinto mine to the city of Perth.
The highly radioactive material just 6mm by 8mm and used for mining equipment vanished at some point between January 11 and January 16.
Authorities spent several days searching the highway in a desperate effort to find the capsule.
An Australian Defence Force aircraft was also dispatched to try and recover it.
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It was believed to have fallen out of the truck through a gap left by a bolt holt after the bolt became dislodged when a container collapsed as a result of vibrations during the trip.
Experts warned that it can lead to dangerously high doses of radiation if not properly handled.
In an extraordinary press conference on Friday, Western Australians were told that the deadly material could be anywhere between Perth and the Pilbara, a total distance of some 1,400km.
Members of the public were urged not to pick the capsule up or face the risk of serious burns, and stay at least five metres away from it at all times.
Drivers on the Great Northern Highway on which the capsule was lost were also told to check their tyre treads in case it had become lodged in them.
The state's Chief Health Officer Andy Robertson said the capsule was lost while it was being transported between a mine site north of Newman and the Perth suburb of Malaga.
It was recovered by a team from the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation working with the Department of Fire and Emergency Services.
An urgent inquiry is now being launched into how such a bizarre and potentially lethal accident could have happened.
Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has this morning called for higher fines to be levied for mishandling radioactive materials.
Currently, the fine is $1,000 Australian, or around £574.
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Speaking on Wednesday, Mr Albanese said: "It [the capsule] shouldn't have been lost, that's the first thing."
Describing the current fine amount, he added: "That figure is ridiculously low, but I suspect that is because people didn't think such an item would be lost."
