Truck Transporting Radioactive Material Stolen in Mexico

A truck carrying dangerous radioactive material was stolen over the weekend in San Juan del Rio, Mexico.

A bright yellow container with radioactive iridium-192 inside was in the truck when it was stolen early Saturday morning, according to a statement from the National Coordination of Civil Protection, a Mexican government agency.

If released from its container, the radioactive material could cause “permanent or grave wounds” to a person who handles it even briefly, in a matter of minutes or hours, NBC reports.

The Mexican states of Guanajuato, Hidalgo, Queretaro, San Luis Potosi and Michoacanave have gone on alert since the radioactive material’s disappearance.

[NBC]