Indonesia - rad. material stolen

[P van Rooyen <rooyen@aib-vincotte.nl>]

I found the following two press releases. 
Does anyone else have more details?
Hopefully this story will not end up like the cases Bangkok and Eqypt........ 


========================================================http://www.timesofin
dia.com/251000/25worl30.htm

Wednesday  25 October 2000 

Radioactive materials stolen from Indonesian plant 
JAKARTA, Indonesia: Potentially dangerous radioactive material has been
stolen from a factory warehouse in Java, Indonesia's Nuclear Energy Control
Board said Tuesday. 
Six lead boxes containing 21 radioactive sources belonging to P T Krakatau
Steel were reported missing last Friday, the board said in a statement. 
The factory is located near the coastal town of Cilegon, West Java, some
150 km northwest of Jakarta. 
"The material was stolen. The wire fence surrounding the warehouse had been
cut," said an official who refused to give his name. 
Police are still investigating the theft, he said. 
The official emphasised that the material were potentially dangerous and
urged anyone who found them to hand them over to the authorities. 
"Our biggest fear is that the boxes may be melted down for scrap metal," he
said. 
Java is one of the most densely populated islands in the world, with more
than 60 million inhabitants. 
P T Krakatau uses radioactive materials in its quality control process as
they are able to withstand the high temperatures needed for smelting. (AP)

=======================================================
http://news.24.com/News24/World/Asia/0,1113,2-10-20_930457,00.html

24/10/2000 12:07 - (SA)

Thieves steal radioactive material
Jakarta - Thieves got away with a shipment of 21 units of radioactive
material from a container warehouse near the Indonesian capital, the
Nuclear Energy Control Board (Bapeten) said on Tuesday. 
The units, consisting of Cobalt-60 and Americum-241, were in a container
stored at a warehouse of steel maker PT Krakatau Steel in Cilegon, West Java. 
Their disappearance was discovered on Friday last week, Bapeten said in a
press release obtained here on Tuesday. 
The container in which the radioactive units were stored was clearly marked
with the radioactive symbol and written warnings, the board said. 
The missing radioactive materials were in lead tubes, each of which had a
diameter of about 1cm and a length of some 20cm. 
Bapeten alerted the public, particularly recyclers - buyers, gatherers and
processors - that they should not handle the tubes and should immediately
report any sighting of the containers. 
The material has a radioactive level of some 2 000 times the normal
acceptable level of exposure for humans. Bapeten said. 
A company inspector for PT Krakatau Steel was quoted by the Media Indonesia
daily as saying that the thieves might have been attracted to the lead used
to protect the radioactive material. 
Police were to post public notices warning the community about the danger
of handling the stolen containers. - Sapa-AFP

========================================================

Paul van Rooijen
Manager HSE
AIB-Vinçotte Nederland BV
Postbus 6869
4802 HW Breda
The Netherlands

tel	++31 (0) 76 579 11 54
fax	++31 (0) 76 587 47 60 
e-mail	rooyen@aib-vincotte.nl


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