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TIL 4 people died (including a child) and over 200 were seriously injured after two men stole a caesium-137 radiotherapy device from an abandoned hospital and sold it for scrap, hoping to make money. (en.wikipedia.org)

submitted 11 months ago by bermuda@beehaw.org to c/todayilearned@lemmy.ml

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[–] Templa@beehaw.org 5 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago) (1 children)

The intention wasn't to feel morally superior. I am from Brazil and I know these people didn't know better. They scavenged for scraps to live, most likely didn't go to high school. Just wish people were more empathetic, but I imagine that most of the user base here is quite privileged and don't know how poor and uninformed people can be in 3rd world countries.

[–] mateomaui@reddthat.com 3 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

Again, there’s uninformed, and there’s thinking the medical device you stole from the hospital could contain gunpowder. For me that crosses a line from simply not knowing any better to just not logically thinking something through at all. Common sense should tell you gunpowder isn’t at the hospital, unless you’re cauterizing wounds on the battlefield.

And I’m sure many people involved or who were exposed during this asked similar “how did this ever happen” questions at the time.