Forest fire reaches Cesium-137 waste storage site in Goiás

A forest fire struck the Telma Ortegal State Park in Abadia de Goiás, located in the Goiânia metropolitan area. The park serves as the storage site for radioactive waste from the 1987 Cesium-137 radiological accident.

According to the State Secretariat for Environment and Sustainable Development (Semad), the flames began in the external area of the conservation unit and bypassed protection barriers to reach vegetation inside the park, including the area where the Cesium-137 waste is buried. However, Semad stated that the fire did not pose a risk to the radioactive material, as the containment structures used to store the waste were not affected.

Separately, Brazil is facing diverse weather patterns. An orange alert for low air humidity, potentially dropping to 12%, covers areas from southern Pará through Tocantins, Mato Grosso, and Goiás to northern Mato Grosso do Sul, increasing the risk of forest fires. Meanwhile, Mato Grosso do Sul is under a yellow alert for potential storms, and various regions across the North, Northeast, Southeast, and South are experiencing a mix of heavy rain, thunderstorms, and high temperatures.