Police asked to investigate case of ‘inactive iridium’
THE OFFICE of Atoms for Peace (OAP) has asked police to investigate who left a metal case containing inactive iridium-192 inside a building in Bangkok’s Chatuchak district.
“Such abandonment is against our regulations,” OAP deputy secretary general Kittisak Chinudomsub said yesterday. He said any holder of a permit to own radioactive substances would be punished – by having their permit revoked – for doing that.
“But if the investigation finds that the person who abandoned |the case owned it without a permit, he will be liable to legal punishments of up to one year in jail and/or a fine |of up to Bt10,000,” Kittisak said.
He said the metal case itself, even without the radioactive substance inside, was worth hundreds of thousands of baht. It was unusual that the owner would not want the case, he thought, because it could be used to keep other radioactive substances.
When the case was found inside the building, which was about to undergo renovation on Thursday, fear spread among people nearby because it was labelled with a radioactive warning sticker. But it was confirmed shortly after by the OAP that there had been no leak of radiation.
OAP secretary general Dr Atchara Wongsaengchan reiterated yesterday that the public could be assured that no leak had occurred.
