Federal Judge Rejects Pension Bid Tied to 1987 Goiânia Cesium-137 Disaster

Overview

• A federal judge denied a retired military policeman’s request for a lifetime pension and moral damages linked to the Goiânia radiation accident, citing a lack of technical evidence.
• The decision notes he missed the court-ordered medical exam that could verify exposure, so the case lacked proof to connect his illnesses to the 1987 event.
• He said he helped secure contaminated sites in 1987 and later guarded the Abadia de Goiás waste area without protective gear, but the court found no medical link in the file.
• A new Netflix miniseries has renewed attention as survivors say they were not consulted and push for long-stalled pension updates, while more than a thousand people still receive health checks at CARA.
• Brazil continues to store about 6,000 tons of radioactive debris at a CNEN site in Abadia de Goiás, where experts monitor the waste because cesium-137 can remain hazardous for centuries.