Radioactive substance may be battery: Governor

SAKARYA

AA Photo

A substance that caused panic in the northwestern province of Sakarya after a local boy displayed an allergic reaction might have been caused by a battery rather than a radioactive material, the province’s governor has said.

“Eyüp B. is under treatment. Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) arrived at the scene at which the incident occurred. The necessary measures were taken, including the evacuation of the people who were living in the region. A team from the Atomic Energy Committee in Ankara conducted measurements. There was no evidence of a radioactive substance as a result of the investigation. The alarm was lifted following the incident. The substance was probably a battery. The boy might have had an allergic reaction to the substance,” Gov. Hüseyin Avni Coş said in a statement.

Meanwhile, 17 of the 18 people who were taken to hospital with possible symptoms of radioactivity have been released.

The discovery of the substance had stirred panic in Sakarya on Oct. 20. 

The 16-year-old child, identified only as Eyüp B., was hospitalized after playing with a metal object he found in a construction site in the Arifiye district.

Eyüp B. brought the metal object home but soon started suffering from nausea. He was taken to hospital, where doctors vaccinated him against the illness. Bruises and wounds, however, started to appear on his body afterwards, resulting in him being taken and Eyüp B. was taken to the hospital again.