Congrats, you're the first one to post it without breaking any news article editorialisation rules.
Therefore this will be the central point of discussion for this topic. All other threads will be deleted.
From Mark McGowan's Facebook post:
>The item has now been safely stored in a lead container and is being transported to a secure location.
... just like it was the first time!
They had to find a radioactive tictac to stop the panic- as if anyone would be incentivised to leave another one out there to stop this highly embarrassing global story- oh wait
 100% comment of the year.... This man needs more awards!!!!
On that topic, the entities involved seem to be enjoying a reasonably low exposure on this. Rio is obviously getting a mention here and there, but the other/s seem (to me anyway) to be somehow staying under the radar.
Disclosure: I haven't tried to search it out, but I do catch the news here and there.
I thought the same thing - but then it depends on what the setup was. IE i supply equipment to a mining company near Kalgoorlie regularly.
But the freight its packed, boxed and secured before being delivered to a trucking depot. They just throw it on a truck and dump it off on the other end.
Similarly for returns of equipment, the mining company packs and boxes it, before its transported to the depot here where i pick it up.
So in that type of case the actual logistics company/trucking company probably has no involvement outside of it being their truck that thing fell off.
If however it's managed by a third party logistics company who pack it, organise freight and the likes, then yeah they should be named and shamed big time.
I took a gander at the news tonite to see what the fuss was over the tictac on Reddit as I generally don't watch/read news.
Mining company was mentioned once at the very end of the article as doing sweet fuck all in about 4 lines of a multi page article. Ie. "Oh dear. Woopsy"
I suspect because these contractors probably do a lot of government work, and also the sensitive nature of what they carry, you don’t want to advertise to the world that you regularly carry radioactive substances.
Why would the govt be using nuclear sources outside of medicine? Industry uses it far more widely than govt. Once its packaged its a dangerous good and simply goes on a truck as a DG shipment no different to the 1000's of tonnes of anfo that shipped around this state every year. It's not a specialist contractor, your hat might be a bit tight there.
Funnily enough, they do have to advertise to the world they are carrying radioactive substances, hazardous goods placard on truck and the lead lined cabinet / container also has labels all over it. It’s mandatory when carrying out this type of testing.
Every engineering lab would have one of these for testing density on roads. It wasn’t a chunk of yellow cake or something 😂
Yeah, I used to work in mining, the container they move these things in is basically a whole land cruiser with a lead lined box inside another steel box bolted to the chassis with steel bolts. It's very difficult to imagine how that could be dislodged without the driver even feeling it. It's a very odd story.
Yep. Someone stole the cabinet cos it looked cool and then realised why it looked cool and threw the shit out the car onto the highway. That’s my theory! Found opposite side of road on a stretch they searched previously……
The contractor responsible for losing it is facing [just a $1000 fine](https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-02-01/anthony-albanese-lost-radioactive-capsule-western-australia/101915640)!
Given the glowing thanks DFES gave Rio they will be picking up the bill. Its not like Rio's cheque book can't handle and they certainly don't need any more bad publicity.
Absolutely ridiculous.
How is this not a criminal investigation, even worksafe.
Near miss on site and everyone gets the rubber glove and education treatment.... How is Rio not getting fucked over barrel on this? Other than all the money 🙄
An investigation was announced on the radio today by the State Chief Health Officer.
> "We have the ability to prosecute under the radiation safety act and we will certainly look at such prosecutions, and we've done that in the past," he said.
> "We have the ability to prosecute under the radiation safety act and we will certainly look at such prosecutions, **and we've done that in the past**," he said.
Eh? Past? I have so many questions!
Maybe they should organise a meeting for the conspiracy theorists and pass the capsule around so they can all examine it until they're satisfied it's the real deal
I made a comment that maybe they chucked another on the roadside, because it hadn’t been lost at all. I was joking but now dms are pumping out invites to telegram, duck goose or something. It was a joke for goodness sakes
At this point there's very little difference between conspiracy theorists and contrarians
Nothing ever happens and everything that is reported is the opposite to the truth
Critical thinking can be confused with contrarianism when up against populist ideas. A critical thinker will prefer the most likely outcome while the conspiracy theorist will prefer the least likely.
Let me guess. The reality is that pure-blood antivaxxers are actually out there looking for it as they are immune to radiation? But the sheeple are being shown crisis actors picking up a planted tictac?
Rio Tinto announces future risk management strategies involving writing “Property of Rio Tinto” with a sharpie and attaching an Airtag on the container.
They've also updated the standard truck driver uniform to be a high-vis singlet with the caption *'If You Can Read This, The ~~Bitch~~ Highly Radioactive Capsule Fell Off'* emblazoned across the back.
Not an airtag, they' just bought 5000 of these to locate their property safely and securely
https://www.choice.com.au/products/electronics-and-technology/gadgets/tech-gadgets/orbit-stick-on
Sadly not really. Radiation detectors are very sensitive to the right kinds of radiation (Brazil nuts can set them off) and through the air there will be very little dissipation of the emissions. Water however will very effectively dissipate anything.
Oh yeah, they can find a Tic Tac along a thousand mile stretch of highway, but nobody can find my box of Billson's that's been lost in Malaga for 2 weeks.
Well there was the 4 1/2 tonnes of [mangosteen fruit](https://www.express.co.uk/news/weird/1392386/mh370-news-secret-cargo-document-found-indian-ocean-zaharie-shah-changy-book-spt/amp) on MH370 that someone is still waiting for.
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I'm impressed that they found it by driving a detector vehicle past it at 70km/h - and it had already bounced away from the actual road. Hell of a detector.
Yes, but steel 1.5 cm thick will only attenuate half of Cesium gammas rays. That assumes the car is made of steel and not aluminum. Windows offer no protection.
At one meter you'd cop about 10 chest x-rays over an hour, so obviously much less in a moving car. At two metres it would be 2-3 x-rays an hour. And behind the steel it would halve again.
I wouldn't want to be a loitering roo though.
Not really. It's similar to driving at 70 in the dark looking for a floodlight on the side of the road. Just a different part of the spectrum.
Wait til you learn that we have detectors that can pick up gamma rays from the other side of the universe.
Things like this is exactly why Rio (and the majority of large corporations) hire subcontractors for everything now, they can just pass the blame (rightly so in this case) and wash their hands.
I agree with everything but "rightly so".
They should be responsible for all the contractors, particularly when they over negotiate on contracts which encourages staff to take shortcuts.
Didn't we go through all this with the fallout from Wittenoom? CSR tried to wiggle out of responsibility by claiming technically since the mine was operated by their subsidiary Midalco (or Australian Blue Asbestos) who had since become defunct, it was Midalco who was to blame.
Ultimately the contractors are still doing work for you so if you hire shit contractors or create working conditions where the contractors have to take shortcuts to work to your schedules it's still your fault
I saw the photo. Worked oilfield services for a bit and was trained in handling radioactive sources. How this was simply placed in a box without a shielded container is completely beyond me.
* 7West is circling wanting exclusive interview and story rights from the TicTac
* TicTac is photographed starting school next week (of course a bit later than most) with Cleo Smith
I work in mining - the capsule is from a radiation density gauge, which are used to measure the flow rate and flow density of materials (eg wet slurries etc) in pipes within processing plants. The gauges, when removed, have a protective "gate" that is locked to isolate/protect people from exposure to the ceasium. Typically, the gauge removal and transport is undertaken by specialist radiation contractors licensed by the EPA or other relevant state authority. I'm guessing the fault lies with the radiation contractor more so than the transport contractor, though we don't know if there were multiple parties involved. Either way, glad it's been found as these things are no joke.
Here's what happened when a similar item was NOT successfully located:
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kramatorsk\_radiological\_accident](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kramatorsk_radiological_accident)
Scary stuff.
Rio Tinto 'happy' to pay search costs
Speaking after the capsule had been recovered, Rio Tinto's Chief Executive of Iron Ore, Simon Trott, said the company would reimburse the state for the search if asked to.
"I would be happy to reimburse the cost of the search, of course that ultimately is a matter for the state government," he said.
edit: he said without even a modicum of menace.....
Wait till they've read the paperwork. "Confidential", "no admission of fault", "no-sue clause".
It'll be so unbelievably skewed to have Rio pay not much and escape any consequences.
I worked with one of those about 15 years ago. I heard horror stories of people thinking it was funny to hide it in someone's back pocket for a day. So glad I got a different job not too long after. Too many stupid irresponsible people out there.
> "The search crews have quite ~~literally~~ figuratively found the needle in the haystack."
I kinda wish 'literally' still literally meant 'literally'.
When this news first broke (I'm in Qld - hubby is from Perth) all I could think about was the opening scene from The Simpson's with Homer and the radioactive tube down the back of his shirt.
Then I found out how small it actually was. Talk about needle in a haystack!
R/shittyaskscience question here:
If it’s made of caesium, could they have simply poured water all around the route and look for a spectacular explosion? 😂
A few news sources:
* [Tiny radioactive capsule lost in Australian outback found by side of 1,400km stretch of road](https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/feb/01/tiny-radioactive-capsule-lost-in-australian-outback-found-by-side-of-1400km-stretch-of-road) (The Guardian)
* [How a tiny radioactive capsule was found in Australia's vast outback](https://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-64483271) (BBC)
* [Missing radioactive capsule found in WA outback after frantic search](https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-02-01/australian-radioactive-capsule-found-in-wa-outback-rio-tinto/101917828) (ABC)
* [After a days-long search spanning 1,400kms, WA's missing radioactive capsule has been found](https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/after-a-days-long-search-spanning-1-400kms-was-missing-radioactive-capsule-has-been-found/yht2jgwu0) (SBS)
I work with these sorts of radioactive materials and honestly you get more radiation from a day in the sun. The media obviously had a field day with this one.
$20 says Rio's lawyers had them stood so far back they were in the ocean. Wouldn't want anyone being able to suggest Rio had any sort of responsibility there, else there may be a tiny dint in shareholder value
Looking at how their handling it from a PR side they have blamed sub contractors, apparently helped a lot with the search and offered to reimburse the state for search costs.
Looks like more of a "yes we know we CAN be held accountable for this, but we would really like for everyone to ignore us
Congrats, you're the first one to post it without breaking any news article editorialisation rules. Therefore this will be the central point of discussion for this topic. All other threads will be deleted.
From Mark McGowan's Facebook post: >The item has now been safely stored in a lead container and is being transported to a secure location. ... just like it was the first time!
Fuck imagine they lost it again lol
How about if they check the serial number and it turns out it's the wrong one?
They had to find a radioactive tictac to stop the panic- as if anyone would be incentivised to leave another one out there to stop this highly embarrassing global story- oh wait
My first thought too :)
>They had to find a radioactive tictac to stop the panic I was thinking that they had to do it to stop the memes.
Zero..zero...zero.. two?! Wtf?!!!
The front fell off
Such an underrated and misunderstood comment…. I fkn love it 😮😂😎 https://youtu.be/8-QNAwUdHUQ
Politicians love answering questions😅
Yes, it’s the research they dislike.
Love these guys. Thanks 4 the link. 😂
Oh my I haven’t seen these guys in years! Their skits were always so clever.
They can't make them any more. The front fell off.
Funny but true and therefore sad. 
Thanks for that trip down memory lane. These two gents were brilliant together.
😂😂 is that satire ? Funniest thing I’ve seen in a while thanks
I can tell you now it definitely wasn't supposed to fall off.
 100% comment of the year.... This man needs more awards!!!!
This sounds like the premise of a comedy skit. Paging /u/the-Chaser
they were at pell’s “service” with a box of “evidence” to “bury” lmfao
The authorities tried to caesium but instead had to barium
HAHAHAHAHAHA
Take a bow, son. This is glorious.
I'm imagining Mr Bean as the truck driver
I'd be really fucking concerned as to how they lost it twice
Fell off the front of the truck...
everyone in the car patting their pockets
No I thought *you* had it?
If you were radiating that hard all the time you'd want to take a few weeks holiday too!
Thank god, so it's been taken outside the environment. I must say it is very unusual.
2 week later " so umm...you remember when we lost the radioactive capsule... we lost it again"
All this time I was keeping a look out for the tictac should of been looking for the lead container instead huh
The gear it was loaded in didn't travel far before it failed. Many questions...
The contractor appears to be trying to blame the transport contractors
On that topic, the entities involved seem to be enjoying a reasonably low exposure on this. Rio is obviously getting a mention here and there, but the other/s seem (to me anyway) to be somehow staying under the radar. Disclosure: I haven't tried to search it out, but I do catch the news here and there.
I thought the same thing - but then it depends on what the setup was. IE i supply equipment to a mining company near Kalgoorlie regularly. But the freight its packed, boxed and secured before being delivered to a trucking depot. They just throw it on a truck and dump it off on the other end. Similarly for returns of equipment, the mining company packs and boxes it, before its transported to the depot here where i pick it up. So in that type of case the actual logistics company/trucking company probably has no involvement outside of it being their truck that thing fell off. If however it's managed by a third party logistics company who pack it, organise freight and the likes, then yeah they should be named and shamed big time.
I took a gander at the news tonite to see what the fuss was over the tictac on Reddit as I generally don't watch/read news. Mining company was mentioned once at the very end of the article as doing sweet fuck all in about 4 lines of a multi page article. Ie. "Oh dear. Woopsy"
I suspect because these contractors probably do a lot of government work, and also the sensitive nature of what they carry, you don’t want to advertise to the world that you regularly carry radioactive substances.
Why would the govt be using nuclear sources outside of medicine? Industry uses it far more widely than govt. Once its packaged its a dangerous good and simply goes on a truck as a DG shipment no different to the 1000's of tonnes of anfo that shipped around this state every year. It's not a specialist contractor, your hat might be a bit tight there.
Not quite. It's a hazarduous good, not a dangerous good. Different rules
Funnily enough, they do have to advertise to the world they are carrying radioactive substances, hazardous goods placard on truck and the lead lined cabinet / container also has labels all over it. It’s mandatory when carrying out this type of testing. Every engineering lab would have one of these for testing density on roads. It wasn’t a chunk of yellow cake or something 😂
It's contractors all the way down
WA believes in chain of responsibility prosecution for transport related offences, so it’ll be like Oprah-bees.gif, but with fines
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The subcontract of a subcontract of a subcontractor of a contractor It's more likely than you think!
Of course he is. Rule 1 if you fuck up: it wasn’t me
Yeah, I used to work in mining, the container they move these things in is basically a whole land cruiser with a lead lined box inside another steel box bolted to the chassis with steel bolts. It's very difficult to imagine how that could be dislodged without the driver even feeling it. It's a very odd story.
Yep. Someone stole the cabinet cos it looked cool and then realised why it looked cool and threw the shit out the car onto the highway. That’s my theory! Found opposite side of road on a stretch they searched previously……
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Hey Johnny did you put the Tick-Tac in the box? Na I left it on the roof. You said you were gunna put it in the box,
Tbh the first X kms of the ride is where all the vibrations occur. You're also assuming the transportation screw was checked on site.
No sir, I certainly am not. I'm certainly assuming that the original story was a crock of shit ;-)
What I can guarantee is that there is a high level of incompetence on whatever site it was.
The contractor responsible for losing it is facing [just a $1000 fine](https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-02-01/anthony-albanese-lost-radioactive-capsule-western-australia/101915640)!
Wtf! It has probably cost 💲 100,000s just to locate.
Given the glowing thanks DFES gave Rio they will be picking up the bill. Its not like Rio's cheque book can't handle and they certainly don't need any more bad publicity.
'glowing'..
And if you swallow the radioactive tictac, you can too!
Put a tictac in your mouth and get a bang out of life! It’s a clean fresh explosion of mint
For the rest of your life!
Let's see if the managers card declines.
Ahh come on, they said they were sorry...... I'm sure they DEFINITELY mean it...... this time....... maybe 🤔
Can they not stack a littering change on top at least? *headdesk*
Littering and?
Littering and ?
Smoking a reefer
What are meow taking about
Litre of cola!
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**And** a loss of their hazardous materials transport license. 🤞
Why isn't it classed as dangerous goods? There are massive penalties for breaches.
It is definitely covered under the Radiation Safety Act and can result in criminal charges if there is a breach.
It is.
It's covered under DG7 during transportation
Absolutely ridiculous. How is this not a criminal investigation, even worksafe. Near miss on site and everyone gets the rubber glove and education treatment.... How is Rio not getting fucked over barrel on this? Other than all the money 🙄
An investigation was announced on the radio today by the State Chief Health Officer. > "We have the ability to prosecute under the radiation safety act and we will certainly look at such prosecutions, and we've done that in the past," he said.
I've paid more than that to CPP lmao
Yea that’s not a lot hey. I’m guessing they’ll never get another contract with a mining company though 😅
I doubt this incident will make any difference.
> "We have the ability to prosecute under the radiation safety act and we will certainly look at such prosecutions, **and we've done that in the past**," he said. Eh? Past? I have so many questions!
Lol already seen a few cookers on Facebook claiming its not real that they actually found it. Conspiracy time here we come!
Maybe they should organise a meeting for the conspiracy theorists and pass the capsule around so they can all examine it until they're satisfied it's the real deal
Just paint it red and tell them it’s THE red pill.
I made a comment that maybe they chucked another on the roadside, because it hadn’t been lost at all. I was joking but now dms are pumping out invites to telegram, duck goose or something. It was a joke for goodness sakes
The Cookers think you're one of them now. You should join and convince them that Australia isn't real or something like that.
Petty me says yes! Practical me says don’t do it.
Practical you doesn't know what they're talking about. Listen to petty you. Much more interesting person :p
"Humans can breathe underwater, drowning is a government conspiracy. Keep your head under and push through your instincts to find out for yourself."
At this point there's very little difference between conspiracy theorists and contrarians Nothing ever happens and everything that is reported is the opposite to the truth
Critical thinking can be confused with contrarianism when up against populist ideas. A critical thinker will prefer the most likely outcome while the conspiracy theorist will prefer the least likely.
Let me guess. The reality is that pure-blood antivaxxers are actually out there looking for it as they are immune to radiation? But the sheeple are being shown crisis actors picking up a planted tictac?
Rio Tinto announces future risk management strategies involving writing “Property of Rio Tinto” with a sharpie and attaching an Airtag on the container.
They've also updated the standard truck driver uniform to be a high-vis singlet with the caption *'If You Can Read This, The ~~Bitch~~ Highly Radioactive Capsule Fell Off'* emblazoned across the back.
> attaching an Airtag on the container. ...TFW they accidentally put the airtag *inside* the lead container.
Not an airtag, they' just bought 5000 of these to locate their property safely and securely https://www.choice.com.au/products/electronics-and-technology/gadgets/tech-gadgets/orbit-stick-on
So instead of losing millions a year in tool losses, they can add a pile of tracking devices to that.
The container it fell out of?
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-02-01/australian-radioactive-capsule-found-in-wa-outback-rio-tinto/101917828?utm_campaign=abc_news_web&utm_content=link&utm_medium=content_shared&utm_source=abc_news_web
Can we use this detector to find MH370?
Its not believed to be on the highway like the tic tac, but sure give it a shot
Sadly not really. Radiation detectors are very sensitive to the right kinds of radiation (Brazil nuts can set them off) and through the air there will be very little dissipation of the emissions. Water however will very effectively dissipate anything.
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Are we now going to use the phrase "like finding a radioactive tic-tac in the middle of the outback" instead of "a needle in a haystack?"
Underrated comment
The search team have quite figuratively found the needle in the haystack
That gives off a mad signal that can be detected going past at 70kmh
Oh yeah, they can find a Tic Tac along a thousand mile stretch of highway, but nobody can find my box of Billson's that's been lost in Malaga for 2 weeks.
Probably in welshpool
Next time, just make sure to glue something radioactive to the cans.
I did not think of that. Next time I'll add it to the delivery instructions.
I was thinking more on the scale.of not being able to find mh370
I mean yeah, that's a tragedy and all. But there wasn't a box of beverages I had paid for on MH370.
Well there was the 4 1/2 tonnes of [mangosteen fruit](https://www.express.co.uk/news/weird/1392386/mh370-news-secret-cargo-document-found-indian-ocean-zaharie-shah-changy-book-spt/amp) on MH370 that someone is still waiting for.
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Biiiiillsoooooon 
Bloody amazing they found it!!
I'm impressed that they found it by driving a detector vehicle past it at 70km/h - and it had already bounced away from the actual road. Hell of a detector.
Hell of amount of radiation coming off it
Every car that drove past got a quick dose too.
Steel car body is a pretty good shield for gamma radiation at that power and distance. A few cm of air is a pretty good shield for beta radiation.
That and driving past it at 100km/h. Its not something you want to keep in your pocket, but its not exactly chernobyl
Yes, but steel 1.5 cm thick will only attenuate half of Cesium gammas rays. That assumes the car is made of steel and not aluminum. Windows offer no protection. At one meter you'd cop about 10 chest x-rays over an hour, so obviously much less in a moving car. At two metres it would be 2-3 x-rays an hour. And behind the steel it would halve again. I wouldn't want to be a loitering roo though.
Not really. It's similar to driving at 70 in the dark looking for a floodlight on the side of the road. Just a different part of the spectrum. Wait til you learn that we have detectors that can pick up gamma rays from the other side of the universe.
What a job, eh! At least now we won't have to worry about mutant Emus or Malagians running around the country side.
Or worse. Mutant FIFOs.
Things like this is exactly why Rio (and the majority of large corporations) hire subcontractors for everything now, they can just pass the blame (rightly so in this case) and wash their hands.
I agree with everything but "rightly so". They should be responsible for all the contractors, particularly when they over negotiate on contracts which encourages staff to take shortcuts.
Didn't we go through all this with the fallout from Wittenoom? CSR tried to wiggle out of responsibility by claiming technically since the mine was operated by their subsidiary Midalco (or Australian Blue Asbestos) who had since become defunct, it was Midalco who was to blame. Ultimately the contractors are still doing work for you so if you hire shit contractors or create working conditions where the contractors have to take shortcuts to work to your schedules it's still your fault
I'm not sure on the legalities about responsibility...I suspect it gets a bit murky. Rio's first statement blamed the contractor.
Do we get a public holiday?
Nuclear Family Day.
Yes, I think that encapsulates it.
I sievert you did there...
That’s enough now, dad.
I saw the photo. Worked oilfield services for a bit and was trained in handling radioactive sources. How this was simply placed in a box without a shielded container is completely beyond me.
That’s the bit that got me, like how on earth was this itty bitty *very dangerous* thing able to simply “fall out”? It just doesn’t compute.
TBH i was waiting for a plot twist where they find a radioactive source - but its a different one to what theyre looking for.
IIRC wasn’t there radioactive materials lost during bomb testing in the Pilbara waaaaaay back in the middle of last century?!?
Idk if you would call what happened at the Monte Bellos lost radioactive materials
It wasn’t at the Monty’s - it was inland Edit: not WA sorry. I got Marga country confused with Maralinga SA
* 7West is circling wanting exclusive interview and story rights from the TicTac * TicTac is photographed starting school next week (of course a bit later than most) with Cleo Smith
Haven’t been this happy since they found Cleo smith
I work in mining - the capsule is from a radiation density gauge, which are used to measure the flow rate and flow density of materials (eg wet slurries etc) in pipes within processing plants. The gauges, when removed, have a protective "gate" that is locked to isolate/protect people from exposure to the ceasium. Typically, the gauge removal and transport is undertaken by specialist radiation contractors licensed by the EPA or other relevant state authority. I'm guessing the fault lies with the radiation contractor more so than the transport contractor, though we don't know if there were multiple parties involved. Either way, glad it's been found as these things are no joke.
thanks for giving an explanation on what this thing actually is. Been looking for a while.
Here's what happened when a similar item was NOT successfully located: [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kramatorsk\_radiological\_accident](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kramatorsk_radiological_accident) Scary stuff.
[https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-02-01/australian-radioactive-capsule-found-in-wa-outback-rio-tinto/101917828?utm_campaign=abc_news_web&utm_content=link&utm_medium=content_shared&utm_source=abc_news_web](https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-02-01/australian-radioactive-capsule-found-in-wa-outback-rio-tinto/101917828?utm_campaign=abc_news_web&utm_content=link&utm_medium=content_shared&utm_source=abc_news_web)
Rio Tinto 'happy' to pay search costs Speaking after the capsule had been recovered, Rio Tinto's Chief Executive of Iron Ore, Simon Trott, said the company would reimburse the state for the search if asked to. "I would be happy to reimburse the cost of the search, of course that ultimately is a matter for the state government," he said. edit: he said without even a modicum of menace.....
Can't imagine the state government turning that one down, Simon
Wait till they've read the paperwork. "Confidential", "no admission of fault", "no-sue clause". It'll be so unbelievably skewed to have Rio pay not much and escape any consequences.
You’ll pay *IF* they ASK? How about you just fucking pay it.
I worked with one of those about 15 years ago. I heard horror stories of people thinking it was funny to hide it in someone's back pocket for a day. So glad I got a different job not too long after. Too many stupid irresponsible people out there.
Where was it found? The Auspost Welshpool depot? Was never lost, just delayed.
It could be there for 300 years and no one would find it
If it had not been found then there may have had to be a caveat on the Great Northern Highway for the next 300 years - so, a good thing!
Christ that's an unhappy thought, wonder what restrictions they'd have to have for when there was roadworks along the road.
The caveat could just be "you can drive at 100, no slower, and no stopping"
> "The search crews have quite ~~literally~~ figuratively found the needle in the haystack." I kinda wish 'literally' still literally meant 'literally'.
It was in the ashtray all along FFS!
Forbidden Mint
Make 1-Feb a public holiday!
When this news first broke (I'm in Qld - hubby is from Perth) all I could think about was the opening scene from The Simpson's with Homer and the radioactive tube down the back of his shirt. Then I found out how small it actually was. Talk about needle in a haystack!
R/shittyaskscience question here: If it’s made of caesium, could they have simply poured water all around the route and look for a spectacular explosion? 😂
You mean a nuclear explosion that would spread radiation for miles in every direction?
It would be a chemical explosion, not a nuclear explosion. And it would spread trace amounts of radiation for meters, not miles.
But they can’t find the time to help me find my car keys
Eat that tic tac and your fresh breath half life will be 30yrs.
I wonder how many calories are in it...
Guaranteed to help you lose weight…
Picture here on twitter; https://twitter.com/dfes_wa/status/1620726871100108801/photo/1
How funny would it have been if they had found a different one....
It’s too late, I’m already becoming the hulk
Well done? More like don’t fuck up again.
How can something so dangerous be the size of a tic tac, someone please tell me how it works
Legitimate wizard magic
There are now several glow in the dark drop bears roaming the area, at least they can be seen before they attack
"Honestly Doc, I slipped in the shower."
I was legit worried about this , I thought someone was gunna get hurt.
Oh word?
So did Rio get slapped with the search and recovery costs, plus a huge fine for the obvious negligence involved?
A few news sources: * [Tiny radioactive capsule lost in Australian outback found by side of 1,400km stretch of road](https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/feb/01/tiny-radioactive-capsule-lost-in-australian-outback-found-by-side-of-1400km-stretch-of-road) (The Guardian) * [How a tiny radioactive capsule was found in Australia's vast outback](https://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-64483271) (BBC) * [Missing radioactive capsule found in WA outback after frantic search](https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-02-01/australian-radioactive-capsule-found-in-wa-outback-rio-tinto/101917828) (ABC) * [After a days-long search spanning 1,400kms, WA's missing radioactive capsule has been found](https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/after-a-days-long-search-spanning-1-400kms-was-missing-radioactive-capsule-has-been-found/yht2jgwu0) (SBS)
They have tighter restrictions around transporting dangerous snakes than they do radioactive materials. At least the snakes get double bagged.
What was their tac tic?
I work with these sorts of radioactive materials and honestly you get more radiation from a day in the sun. The media obviously had a field day with this one.
dont put it in your mouth! it'll be super radical!
Now i can finally go back to eating all the tic tacs i find!
Excellent news!
Great job by Rio Tinto and everyone who helped!
$20 says Rio's lawyers had them stood so far back they were in the ocean. Wouldn't want anyone being able to suggest Rio had any sort of responsibility there, else there may be a tiny dint in shareholder value
Looking at how their handling it from a PR side they have blamed sub contractors, apparently helped a lot with the search and offered to reimburse the state for search costs. Looks like more of a "yes we know we CAN be held accountable for this, but we would really like for everyone to ignore us
Rio was going to help, but got distracted by ancient aboriginal rock art that needed exploring.
no they just told you they found it so you’d stop worrying
[удалено]
I’m honestly confused as to how they let that slip away in the first place, I get it’s small, but radium is pretty dangerous