Dangerous orphaned radiation sources continue to be a problem, highlighted by the Goiânia accident in Brazil 20 years ago.
It was the worst ever accident with a radiation source – 4 died within a month (including a child) and 250 were contaminated. The powdered cesium source glowed and some of the victims put it on their skin when the source was opened. Below – the source, one of the victims Leide da Neves Ferreira and the four lead-lined graves.
The incident lead to a revision of how safety standards, particularly the replacement of caesium chloride in a powered form in most sources. The main change was the care of sources though their lifetime. War and upheaval in the Soviet Union, Yugoslavia, Africa, Korea, Vietnam and Iraq have orphaned many sources. Perhaps the greatest fears today are of the material being used in “dirty bombs“.
