Sydney 'should be prepared for attack on nuclear plant'

Source: AAP|Published: Friday November 2, 1:18 PM

Every household in Sydney should be issued with potassium iodide tablets in case the Lucas Heights nuclear reactor becomes the target of a terrorist attack, NSW Senate candidate Helen Caldicott said today.

The call by Dr Caldicott comes in the wake of yesterday's declaration by the Taliban that Australia was now a target of a holy war because of its alliance with the United States.

Dr Caldicott said the government needed to protect Australians in light of the threat, especially those living around the southern Sydney nuclear reactor.

``The Australian Government should take responsibility for Lucas Heights and every household in Sydney should have been issued with potassium iodide tablets,'' she told AAP.

The paediatrician and activist is a candidate for the anti-nuclear Our Common Future Party.

She said an attack on the reactor would be disastrous for Sydney.

``If there was an attack on Lucas Heights, the predominate radioactive material escaping would be radioactive iodine, which is taken up avidly by children's thyroids, but also adult thyroids,'' she said.

Taking potassium iodide up to 16 hours after exposure can block the uptake of radioactive iodine.

It would need to be taken for two weeks after contamination, Dr Caldicott said.

There was an unknown quantity of potassium iodide stockpiled at Lucas Heights but it was reserved for emergency workers in the event of an accident, she said.

http://www.smh.com.au/breaking/2001/11/02/FFXPD1VTITC.html

-- Martin Thompson (mthom1927@aol.com), November 02, 2001

Answers

So the Taliban have threatened even Australia with Holy War. If that doesn't tell us that the Taliban and bin Landen's boys are all one and the same, I don't know what does.

-- RogerT (rogerT@c-zone.net), November 02, 2001.