The State provided the following information via email:
The Licensee reported this event in June and filed a report in a letter that was misfiled causing a delay in this notification.
A gauge user in the employ of the licensee was using a Troxler model 3440 moisture density gauge serial number 31185 at a temporary jobsite in Issaquah. The employee placed the gauge in an area staked to exclude construction traffic. The employee left the gauge unattended to retrieve an item from the user's vehicle. While away from the gauge, a pickup backed towards the gauge in the staked area. Workers in the area attempted to get the driver's attention and stop the pickup but failed. The pickup struck the gauge and caught the handle under the hitch of the truck, breaking the stationary rod and bending the source rod. The source appeared to have remained in its shielded position. The gauge was dislodged from the pickup by moving the pickup forward. The gauge user cleared personnel within a 50 foot area around the gauge and contacted the RSO. The RSO went to the jobsite with a survey meter and performed surveys. Survey readings indicated the source had remained in its shielded position. The damaged gauge rods were secured with cloth tape. The gauge was place in the transport box and returned to its licensed storage location. A leak test was taken at that time and the results returned were normal.
The gauge user's employment with the licensee was terminated for violating the licensee's Operating and Emergency Procedures by leaving the gauge unattended at the jobsite.
The licensee currently reports they are still in possession of the damaged gauge and presently storing it in that condition. The licensee is working with a carrier to get it shipped properly to Troxler in North Carolina.
Notification Reporting Criteria: WAC 246-221-250 Notification of Incidents.
Isotope and Activity involved: 8 mCi of Cesium 137, and 40 mCi of Americium 241 Beryllium.
Overexposures? (number of workers/members of the public; dose estimate; body part receiving dose; consequence): None known.
Lost, Stolen or Damaged? (mfg., model, serial number): Damaged Troxler, model 3440, Serial Number 31185.
Disposition/recovery: The damaged gauge was placed in the manufactures transport, stored at the licensed storage location and held for pick up and repair or disposal by the manufacturer.
Leak test? Results of the leak test taken at time of the incident were normal.
Washington Event #WA-07-059