Robotics will help remove radioactive material from Cape Town scrapyard

Robotics will be used on Wednesday to remove a canister of radioactive material that triggered an emergency response at a scrapyard in Cape Town.

City authorities received a distress call just before noon on Tuesday from the scrapyard in Beaconvale, after staff offloading a tipper truck discovered the canister labelled as hazardous radioactive material.

Traffic police were dispatched to secure the scene, with a fire and rescue hazmat team.

“Upon arrival, our fire and rescue technicians followed protocols for dealing with radioactive materials. Using remote-controlled sensor technology we were able to get closer and assess the potential risk,” said safety and security MMC JP Smith.  

“Our fears were confirmed with the suspicious container emitting high levels of Gamma rays, evidence of decaying radioactive waste in the container. The SAPS bomb squad was also brought to the scene. With our firefighters prepared for any sort of nuclear disaster, they used a variety of equipment to safeguard the scene and identify the radioactive material.”  

It was found to be iridium 192 (a component commonly used in gauges for industrial radiography to detect flaws in metal components) which is believed to become harmless after 150 days but still requires correct methods of disposal.  

“The protective lead casing of the fuel rods has been confirmed as breached and is emitting high levels of radiation,” said Smith.

The scene was secured and the waste is set to be safely removed on Wednesday. An investigation is under way to determine the origin of the material, using the serial number on the container.

Emergency services teams found the fuel had released a significant amount of radiation.

Chief fire officer Clinton Manuel expressed his appreciation for the hazmat technicians’ response to the emergency.

TimesLIVE