Australia transport bureau says beach debris not from MH370

A relative of a passenger aboard Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 leaves a briefing given by Malaysian representatives at Lido Hotel in Beijing April 21, 2014. REUTERS/Jason Lee

MELBOURNE (Reuters) - Debris picked up on a beach in Western Australia this week is unlikely to have come from the Malaysian Airlines jet that vanished nearly seven weeks ago, Australia's transport bureau said on Thursday.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) has assessed the material that washed up on the coast 10 km (six miles) east of the town of Augusta, near the south-western tip of Australia, the bureau's spokesman said.