Oil workers exposed to radiation in Sudan’s West Kordofan

About 70 workers of a Chinese oil company working in West Kordofan were exposed to radiation during the weekend of 6-9 June. The company immediately transferred 21 of the workers, 13 Sudanese, six Chinese, and two Pakistanis, to Khartoum for medical tests, El Taghyeer newspaper reported on Friday. The workers were directly exposed to radiation at the oil field of Beleila in West Kordofan for a period of three days last week. An engineer reportedly left a radio-active device used in oil exploration inside a workshop without properly securing it at its underground location located 200km from the workers.One of the workers explained to El Taghyeer that the device remained at the workshop frequented by workers and engineers without any protection between Friday and Monday evening. It was discovered as missing after some machines stopped working as a result of the radiation. On Sunday, the Sudan State Minister at the Ministry of Oil, Hatim Abulgasim Mukhtar, commented to the press in Khartoum by saying that high security and safety procedures are practiced in the Sudanese oil facilities. “Errors like that which took place at the Beleila oilfield last week are common throughout the world, despite the precautionary measures”.Today (Monday) the State Minister said in a press conference that the number of workers exposed to radiation was 28. Some of them are foreigners. “They have all been transferred in a private aircraft to Khartoum to undergo medical tests”, Mukhtar said. File photo: Sudanese oil workers at Heglig oil field (Sudan Tribune)