Illegal Lasers Stopped At Customs

Lasers far too powerful to be allowed by Icelandic law were recently stopped by customs.

Vísir reports that 120 laser pointers from Thailand were seized by customs officials. According to regulations set down by the Icelandic Radiation Safety Authority (GR), laser pointers may not be stronger than 1mW, but the lasers in question exceeded those levels. How powerful the lasers were was not disclosed, but they were all disposed of.

This is not the first time customs authorities have had to deal with the importing of illegal lasers. Last December, officials stopped a shipment of laser pointers which were as powerful as 90mW, which authorities considered potentially lethal.

In 2011, aircrew aboard a plane in Akureyri had their flight disrupted by two boys on the ground who had aimed a laser pointer at the airplane windows. This prompted the Ministry of Welfare to give GR the authority to regulate the strength and importing of laser pointers.