A radioactive scare swept through Suvarnabhumi Airport yesterday. But after a few hours it was confirmed that no iridium192 had leaked from a container in the airport's BFS Cargo Zone C as initially reported.
No one was injured, and no flights were disrupted.
"One of the containers was dented but no leakage took place," Suvarnabhumi Airport director Nirun Thiranartsin said.
When Bangkok Flight Service (BFS) officials sounded an alert about the dented container, experts from the Office of Atoms for Peace were quickly summoned to inspect the scene.
"We have detected no leakage," said Rachata Suttisiri, one of the experts.
All seven BFS officials at the scene were sent to a hos¬pital. Tests showed that they were not exposed to any radioactive substance.
Iridium192 (Ir192) is used in industrial gauges that inspect welding seams and in medicine to treat certain cancers. Exposure to Ir192 can increase the risk for cancer because of its highenergy gamma radiation. External exposure to Ir192 can cause burns, acute radi¬ation sickness and even death.
