A Radioactive Cylinder Has Gone Missing in Thailand and Authorities Are Scrambling to Find It

Authorities in Thailand are frantically searching for a missing radioactive cylinder, which was reported missing on Friday. 

After days of investigation, Thai police in Prachin Buri province, central Thailand, have yielded little progress in tracking down the hazardous tube, which contains an unspecified amount of Caesium-137 radioactive material.

The steel tube, measuring five inches in diameter and 12 inches long, and weighing about 25 kilograms, is believed to have gone missing from a power plant in the province on Feb. 23. However, its disappearance was only reported to the police on Friday after staff at the plant noticed its absence during routine checks.

Police told CNN that “it is unclear if the item was stolen and sold to a recycling shop or misplaced elsewhere,” while security camera footage provided “limited views” of the machine. 

Meanwhile, Prachin Buri governor Narong Nakornjinda said that initial investigations found that the cylinder went missing while being transported.

On Tuesday, local authorities searched 26 scrap metal shops in the area, but failed to find the cylinder. Little progress was made on Wednesday as well, Narong said. He announced on Wednesday that the province was now on a Level 2 danger alert, with the provincial government now required to take charge of the search operation. 

"We are asking people in the area to help find it," he told AFP. "The radioactive material was in a closed and protected condition, but if someone opens it and is exposed to the substance, it could cause a rash and burns."

Thailand’s Office of Atoms for Peace says exposure to radioactive Caesium-137 will not result in immediate effects, though it may result in a higher risk of cancer in the long run. At the same time, they have said exposure could lead to burns on the skin, rashes that look like water scald marks, and nausea, the office added. 

Authorities have also checked hospital records in the past month looking for medical cases that are suspected to have been caused by exposure to the radioactive material, said Surin Suebsueng, the chief provincial public health officer. He added that a surveillance system has been set up to detect signs of sickness that may be linked to such exposure. No cases have been found as of Thursday. 

Meanwhile, emergency medical teams throughout the province have been preparing to provide urgent care if needed.

Kittiphan Chitpentham, a representative of the National Power Supply Public, said that a reward of 50,000 baht ($1,450) is being offered to anyone who has information that can help with retrieving the missing cylinder. 

The National Power Supply Public Company, which owns 10 power plants in the province, including the one with the missing cylinder, said that it might have fallen from a wall mount sitting 18 meters high. Radiation tests at the plant show that the object has been removed from the premises, AFP reported.

Nine people were hospitalized in 2000 after opening radioactive canisters that were illegally discarded at a junkyard in suburban Bangkok. They experienced radiation sickness and suffered blisters, skin burns, and hair loss. 

In January, a tiny Caesium-137 radioactive capsule went missing in Australia, believed to have fallen off a radiation gauge while in transit. It was located along a highway in Australia’s vast outback almost a week later, with authorities saying they had “quite literally found the needle in the haystack.”

Permsuk Sutchaphiwat, the secretary of the Office of Atoms for Peace, urged the public to be careful when handling the object if found.

"If someone breaks the cylinder, when you are directly exposed to it, you could be exposed to a high risk of cancer and serious illness, so please don't break the cylinder," Permsuk said.

Follow Koh Ewe on Twitter and Instagram.