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8th October 2013 • Volume 20, Issue 38 • Leader House, North Street, Swords, Co. Dublin. • Tel: 8•400•200 • info@northcountyleader.ie
BEWARE The recent robbery of seven radioactive lightning preventers from a Swords warehouse is potentially one of the most serious incidents to have taken place in the North County in many years. The robbery of the deadly material took place at Rainey’s Steeplejacks, at the junction of North Street and Balheary Road in Swords. They have the appearance of aluminium or stainless steel, but are of no scrap value. Gardaí say these are highly dangerous and should not be touched or approached. The photographs above are of the missing lightning preventers and the red box they were stored. The County Leader is advising parents all over the North County to be extra vigilant and to warn their children about the dangers of coming in contact with this material. Because the haul has no value as scrap, which is most likely the motivation for the robbery, the chances are that it has been dumped. This is where children, in particular, are vulnerable. Halloween is fast approaching, and if it’s dumped in a river or in ditches, you can be sure that children will find it. The RPII has said “if handled they will cause radioactive contamination to the person’s hands and clothing with the possibly of internal radioactive contamination. Close proximity to them, even if they’re in the box, will result in a person exceeding the annual radiation dose limit in a matter of hours. The likely damage that can be inflicted on anyone, especially children, who finds these lightning preventers, is a terrifying prospect, not to speak of the environmental havoc that would ensue. Local councillors, Darragh Butler (FF) and Tom Kelleher (Lab) were horrified at the danger posed by the stolen material. A shocked Kelleher, who is principal of Rolestown NS said, “I urge all school principals, no matter where they are in the North County to alert schoolchildren about this robbery and to advise them of the dangers posed. This is a most serious situation,” he said.
Butler said, “I’m shocked at the lapse in security that allowed this to happen, especially when it is well known such scrap metal gangs are operating in the county. That such dangerous material could be stolen so easily is staggering and Government agencies must immediately get involved to investigate this breach and track down the material. I would encourage all land owners to watch out for this and walkers etc. Let’s hope it’s not kids playing in fields, down the valley or in one of our parks that find these,” he said. The Radiological Protection Institute of Ireland (RPII) confirmed that the robbery poses a very real health risk to our citizens, if they are unfortunate to come in contact with this material. The fact that there is no scrap value attached to the lightning preventers, heightens the risk that they may have been dumped.
By Patrick Finnegan @TheCountyLeader
The County Leader, in investigating this deadly robbery, is shocked at the lacklustre, almost casual response from local agencies, which are entrusted with the wellbeing of our citizens. We are also shocked to find out that the public were only alerted on Wednesday last, a full four days after the incident. Why were the public not alerted sooner? With an incident as serious as this, why were the public not informed. Residents will wonder why the HSE, the County Council, the Gardai and the liquidator appear not to have a cohesive plan, where they pool their resources to ensure the public’s health is not at risk. Dr Tony Ryan, Director of Regulation at RPII confirmed that they had instigated their Emergency Plan to ensure that the public are safe. “We were informed about the robbery on Monday by the liquidator, who was aware of the hazardous material on the premises. The public alert went out on Tuesday and all local
SAM COMES TO SWORDS
authorities in the country were notified about the incident. We have contacted landfill sites and waste metal dealers to alert them and we are liaising with the Gardai. There was a security system in place, which clearly failed,” he said. The County Council, when asked what plans they had in place, especially their emergency plan, responded that, “this is entirely a matter for An Garda Siochana. and that a Major Emergency is a situation that is beyond the ability of one of the Principal Response Agencies (i.e. Local Authority, An Garda Siochana or HSE) to deal with. This is not such a situation.” Continued on page 10
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