Dirty bombs, as I understood them, were not a mass effect weapon. Typically the radioactive material would be mated with a high explosive much like the grapes go with a claymore. Detonate and it spreads the dust. Radioactivity from the blast would not kill people, especially not in the short-term. But it WOULD irradiate the area indefinitely, cause mass hysteria and migration, and require extensive and expensive clean up and removal. So pop one of these firecrackers in NYC and you'd have a big bill on your hands.
I don't believe it was a dirty bomb, but there was a case in point in Brazil or some south american country in memorable history. They pretty much scooped up a whole portion of a town, dumped it in cargo containers, and stacked them all up somewhere out of the way.
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