ENS 44395
ENS Event | |
|---|---|
09:00 Aug 8, 2008 | |
| Title | Agreement State - Stolen Moisture Density Gauge |
| Event Description | At 0828, the Agency [state] received a call from the Radiation Safety Officer (RSO) for GME Engineering Consulting Incorporated, stating that Troxler model # 3411 moisture/density (M/D) gauge containing a Cesium (Cs) - 137 source and an Americium (Am) - 241 source had been stolen out of one of their trucks parked at their facility. The technician had returned from a job at about 4:00 AM and went into the office to make copies of some of his documents. When he returned to the truck, he found the lock used to secure the M/D gauge in the truck bed had been cut, and the M/D gauge and transport case were both missing. The cable used in association with the lock to secure the gauge was also damaged. The technician reported the event to his RSO, who notified the Agency. Local Law Enforcement has been informed of the event. The RSO stated that he would supply additional information on the event to the Agency via e-mail.
The Agency received the following update information. The gauge serial # is 9389 containing one 8.3 millicurie Cs-137 source serial # 40-6732, and one 40.0 millicurie Am-241 source serial # 47-5906. The police arrived at the office at about 9:30 AM and obtained fingerprints from the technician's truck and opened a case file. The Dallas police case number is 245096V. Texas Incident Report # I-8532
The following was provided by the state via e-mail: The Agency was contacted on 10/28/08 by an individual stating that a moisture/density gauge was for sale on the web site Ebay. The individual stated that he notified the individual selling the gauge that he needed a license to do so. The individual selling the gauge stated that he had bought it at a pawn shop and that it would have to be OK if the pawn shop sold it. An Agency investigator looked the item up on Ebay and found a serial number and service contractor's name. This gauge had been reported stolen in the State of Texas in August, 2008. The service contractor was contacted and provided the name of the licensee who owned the gauge. The Radiation Safety Officer for the licensee confirmed that based on the serial number of the gauge it was one of his. A fax was sent to Ebay requesting assistance in locating the seller. The seller became concerned about the legal ramifications of possessing the gauge and returned it to the pawn shop. The licensee was informed that the gauge had been returned to the pawn shop. The licensee informed the Agency of this. The Agency arranged for an inspector to meet an individual from the licensee to retrieve the gauge. The gauge was turned over to the licensee by the pawn shop owner. The gauge appears to be undamaged. The licensee will send the gauge to the manufacturer for inspection and leak test. Notified R4DO (Spitzberg), FSME (Einberg), ILTAB (via e-mail), 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 | |
|---|---|
| Gme Consulting Services Dallas, Texas (NRC Region 4) | |
| License number: | L-05128 |
| Organization: | Texas Department Of Health |
| Reporting | |
| Agreement State | |
| Time - Person (Reporting Time:+0.77 h0.0321 days <br />0.00458 weeks <br />0.00105 months <br />) | |
| Opened: | Art Tucker 09:46 Aug 8, 2008 |
| NRC Officer: | Bill Huffman |
| Last Updated: | Oct 28, 2008 |
| 44395 - NRC Website | |
Gme Consulting Services with Agreement State | |
WEEKMONTHYEARENS 443952008-08-08T09:00:0008 August 2008 09:00:00
[Table view]Agreement State Agreement State - Stolen Moisture Density Gauge 2008-08-08T09:00:00 | |