ENS 42648
ENS Event | |
|---|---|
14:00 Jun 16, 2006 | |
| Title | |
| Event Description | The State provided the following information via email:
Radiation Control received a call at 9:15 am from [name deleted] the Radiation Safety Officer (RSO) for QC Testing Laboratories, Inc., 10810 Northwest Freeway, Houston, TX, 77092, License # L04750-003, reporting that a technician was at a jobsite in the Houston suburb of Brookshire, when the technician noticed that the chain and lock bracing a moisture density gauge was cut, and the gauge and its case were subsequently stolen around 9:00 am, 6/16/06. The Gauge Information is as follows: Manufacturer - Troxler; Model 3430; Serial # 367007. Source information: Cs-137, 8 millicuries, Serial # 751-796; Am-241Be, 40 millicuries, Serial # 78-1538. The last leak test was performed April 26, 2006. Local police were immediately notified, who in turn have contacted local FBI. The licensee will fax a copy of the police report to Radiation Control as soon as available. Radiation Control was contacted at 10:00 am by the Chief of Police, Brookshire, to confirm the licensee had contacted the agency and to received additional information on the stolen equipment. An email with the device information and a copy of this report was sent to the police chief [email address deleted]. Radiation Control is continuing to investigate & will transmit any updated information as soon as it is received. Texas Incident # I -8347.
The State provided the following information via email: At 1145 hrs. CST, the TX state Agency was notified by [name Deleted], the Program Director for Alabama that a Troxler moisture density gauge was being sold on E-Bay. Their staff had been surveying the site in hopes of finding a recently stolen gauge in Alabama and the seller was identified as [name Deleted]. At 1230 hrs. TX staffs were dispatched to the pawn shop, where initially, the representative failed to cooperate and show the inspectors the device or even reveal the storage location in a local warehouse. As an Impoundment Order was being drafted and local law enforcement authorities were being notified, the [name Deleted] employee consented to having the device delivered to the shop for identification and confiscation if it contained radioactive material. The device and associated paperwork were transported back to Austin for investigation as to who the owner is and what incident is associated with the recovered gauge. [At 1500 CST], the gauge was found by serial #, to belong QC Laboratories, Inc., L04750, TX Incident #I-8347/TX-042648. The RSO has been contacted and agreed to make arrangements with DSHS/Radiation Control for pickup; pick up details to be determined during discussion between both parties on 11/16/06. Notified R4DO (Johnson), NMSS EO (Camper), ILTAB (via email) and Mexico (via fax). THIS MATERIAL EVENT CONTAINS A "LESS THAN CAT 3" LEVEL OF RADIOACTIVE MATERIAL Sources that are "Less than IAEA Category 3 sources," are either sources that are very unlikely to cause permanent injury to individuals or contain a very small amount of radioactive material that would not cause any permanent injury. Some of these sources, such as moisture density gauges or thickness gauges that are Category 4, the amount of unshielded radioactive material, if not safely managed or securely protected, could possibly - although it is unlikely - temporarily injure someone who handled it or were otherwise in contact with it, or who were close to it for a period of many weeks. |
| Where | |
|---|---|
| Qc Lab Inc Brookshire, Texas (NRC Region 4) | |
| License number: | L04750-003 |
| Organization: | Texas Department Of Health |
| Reporting | |
| Agreement State | |
| Time - Person (Reporting Time:+-2.68 h-0.112 days <br />-0.016 weeks <br />-0.00367 months <br />) | |
| Opened: | Latischa Hanson 11:19 Jun 16, 2006 |
| NRC Officer: | Mark Abramovitz |
| Last Updated: | Nov 15, 2006 |
| 42648 - NRC Website | |
Qc Lab Inc with Agreement State | |
WEEKMONTHYEARENS 426482006-06-16T14:00:00016 June 2006 14:00:00
[Table view]Agreement State Agreement State Report - Stolen Nuclear Gauge 2006-06-16T14:00:00 | |