[ RadSafe ] Press Release: 220 Radioactive Sources Removed From Georgia S...

[JGinniver at aol.com]

>From recent investigations into the properties of Co-60 sources It would  
appear that these sources were pieces of neutron activated metal.  Does  anyone 
have a feel for how easy it is to vaporise these in an  explosion?  If they 
can't be vaporised there is little risk of an  inhalation hazard from a "dirty 
bomb" containing these sources.  Instead  there would be shards of metal that 
would be easy to identify and remove.   The real risk of injury to the public 
would have been from explosion  I  would have thought that the greatest risk 
from terrorists obtaining these  sources would be if they could expose them for a 
prolonged period of time in a  public area without anyone knowing.  But given 
that their loss would have  been noted, the chance of exposing them for an 
extended period would have been  small as they would have been easy to detect 
using airborne or ground based  systems.
 
While I do think that it appropriate to dispose of redundant sources to a  
suitable facility and in a timely fashion, I don't think that these types of  
sources are the greatest risk for dirty bombs, and it isn't helpful to suggest  
that they are.
 
Any thoughts?
 
Julian