Police in Australia have warned members of the public to stay away from a massive, mysterious metal object that washed up on a beach over the weekend. The baffling arrival of the giant cylinder in Green Head, Western Australia, was reported to authorities on Sunday. Police initially said they didn’t believe it had come from a commercial aircraft but were treating it as hazardous. On Monday, authorities said a chemical analysis had determined “the object is safe and there is no current risk to the community” but asked people to continue keeping their distance “to ensure the preservation of potential evidence and facilitate further expert examination.” Police had immediately rejected a theory it may have been part of the missing MH370 plane which vanished on a flight between Malaysia and China in 2014. The Australian Space Agency confirmed it is making its own enquiries as to the object’s provenance and reiterated advice for people to avoid touching or attempting to move it.
