WESTERN BUREAU — Citing the radioactive nature of their two stolen Troxler nuclear gauges, Bosung Engineering Limited yesterday appealed to the thieves to return the machines.

“It gives off some radiation,” Bosung’s local coordinator, Winston Stair, told the Observer yesterday afternoon.

Radiation can inhibit human cell reproduction, particularly if the body is exposed to high doses. And in instances where the body is able to reproduce cells, the reproduced cells may be cancerous.

Against this background, Bosung has urged the thieves and/or anyone with information that could lead to the recovery of the machines to contact the nearest police station or Bosung’s Hanover office.

“I would say that they hand them over to the police or that they could call Bosung in Lucea at 956-3635 or 956-3695 and somebody from Bosung will come and get them,” Stair said.

And he warned that at the time of the theft one of the two machines were malfunctioning, which means that whatever density readings it gives will be inaccurate.

“We bought, I think, five (machines) and gave the consultants (Stanley Consultants) three. We were using one of the consultants’ machines for some reason or other and something went wrong. We had to use some part of it to fix another… At the present time it would not give you the exact reading or the correct reading (for the density of the road),” the Bosung coordinator said.

The nuclear gauges are yellow in colour at their base and bear the serial numbers, 27892 and 29018 respectively.

They cost an estimated US$4,000 each and were stolen from Bosung’s laboratory in Hanover between February 1 and April 22.