Report: Earthquake nearly caused nuclear catastrophe in Chile

Report: Earthquake nearly caused nuclear catastrophe in Chile

rawstory.com

The world may have narrowly averted a serious nuclear accident in February when US scientists managed to get a deposit of enriched uranium out of Chile in the midst of a massive earthquake, MSNBC's Rachel Maddow told viewers Tuesday night.

Maddow reported on revelations in a Time magazine article that US officials were secretly engaged in removing from the country 40 pounds of enriched uranium -- the material needed for nuclear weapons and nuclear power generation -- when the 8.8-magnitude quake struck.

The earthquake occurred barely 12 hours after US and Chilean scientists had secured

(visit the link for the full news article)

Why was the United States secretly removing uranium out of Chille before the earthquake happened? I wonder how often things like this, involving nuclear isotopes, occur. I was under the impression that all nuclear material was closely regulated by the IAEA. I find it terrifying that 40 lbs. of uranium was just swinging around somewhere.

rawstory.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

reply to post by devildogUSMC

It would be a secret so no baddies would know about it.
It would help to read the original article

For the past 14 years, U.S. teams like the one in Chile have been engaged in a race against terrorists to gain control of the global supply of HEU — the compound from which a nuclear bomb can be most easily fabricated.

www.time.com...

reply to post by Phage


Thank you, that did help. I was also wondering what would have happened if those two U.S. ships were destroyed in an accident. Would it be reported as an accident or as something to get support from the people for another war of some sort?

I covered thiis story a few days ago.

www.abovetopsecret.com...