Surabaya, E. Java. Authorities at Tanjung Perak Port in Surabaya have dismissed claims that the terminal was shut down after cloves contaminated with the radioactive isotope Cesium-137 were returned from the United States. Terminal Petikemas Surabaya, the container terminal operator, said port operations are running normally and cargo handling remains uninterrupted.

The contaminated cloves were unloaded at the Surabaya container terminal, but officials stressed this process did not involve any suspension of services. The operation was conducted under the supervision of Indonesia’s Nuclear Energy Regulatory Agency, or Bapeten, which confirmed that the handling of the container was carried out safely and in line with radiation safety protocols.

The radioactive cargo was also not stored inside the terminal. Instead, the containers were immediately transported out of the port area using a direct truck-to-truck process, officials said. This procedure follows standard protocols for hazardous cargo categories such as IMO Class 1 (explosives) and Class 7 (radioactive materials).

“There is no port closure here. The returned container was taken out directly by truck. It is not stored inside the terminal because the cargo falls under hazardous material standards,” said Ardiansyah, spokesperson for Terminal Petikemas Surabaya, on Tuesday.

The clarification follows a contamination case that surfaced in the United States. The US Food and Drug Administration last month reported traces of Cesium-137 in cloves exported by Natural Java Spice, triggering an import block on products from the company. The incident came only weeks after US authorities rejected shipments of frozen shrimp from Indonesia over similar findings.

Cs-137 is a radioactive isotope typically linked to nuclear activities. It emits ionizing radiation that can damage tissue and increase cancer risk when inhaled or ingested. The isotope has a half-life of roughly 30 years, allowing it to remain in the environment for decades.

Environment Minister Hanif Faisol Nurofiq said on Oct. 17 the government had completed a month-long decontamination process in the Cikande industrial zone in Banten, where the contamination originated, lifting all radiation seals in the area. Authorities say the Cs-137 was traced to metal waste imported by a local firm operating inside the zone.

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