The highly radioactive pendant triggered alarms during routine customs screening at Zhoushuizi International Airport. - Photo: China Daily/ANN
DALIAN, (China): A passenger recently arriving at Zhoushuizi International Airport in Dalian, Liaoning province, was found carrying a highly radioactive pendant that triggered alarms during routine customs screening, according to Dalian Customs.
The pendant, described by the traveller as a “talisman” from a friend, registered 168.6 microsieverts (µSv) per hour, 1,686 times above normal background radiation levels.
The International Atomic Energy Agency’s limit for public exposure to ionising radiation is 1 millisievert (mSv) per year, apart from what a person normally receives from natural background radiation.
Further analysis identified the radioactive substance as thorium-232, a material classified by the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer as a Group 1 carcinogen for its ability to cause cancer in humans.
Dalian Customs seized the item and reminds travellers to verify the composition of international purchases to avoid health risks and financial loss.
Radioactive items exceeding safety standards will be confiscated and handed over to specialised agencies or returned to their place of origin. - China Daily/ANN
