ENS Event | |
|---|---|
14:00 Jul 9, 2009 | |
| Title | Loss of Control of Radioactive Density Gauge |
| Event Description | The licensee reported that they were informed by a scrap material yard that a load of material from their facility set off a radiation detector. The scrap yard Radiation Safety Officer (RSO) discovered that a piece of pipe had a density gauge still mounted on it. The scrap yard RSO obtained the proper permits and appropriately packaged the gauge and returned it to the licensee RSO. The source did not appear to be damaged and the leak test performed by the licensee RSO indicated no leakage. Through employee and contractor interviews, the licensee does not believe there were any personnel overexposures.
The Cs-137 source is a 7062 BP Kay-Ray that had an original source strength of 100 mCi. The estimated age of the source is 20 years so the current strength is in the 60-70 mCi range. The licensee has the source shielded and in secure storage awaiting shipment to the manufacturer (now Thermo-Electron) for proper disposal. The licensee has been in contact with NRC Region 1 (Miller) over this incident. 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 | |
|---|---|
| Elk Run Coal Company Sylvester, West Virginia (NRC Region 1) | |
| License number: | GL-700083 |
| Organization: | Elk Run Coal Company |
| Reporting | |
| 10 CFR 20.2201(a)(1)(i) | |
| Time - Person (Reporting Time:+30.05 h1.252 days <br />0.179 weeks <br />0.0412 months <br />) | |
| Opened: | William Newsome 20:03 Jul 10, 2009 |
| NRC Officer: | Howie Crouch |
| Last Updated: | Jul 10, 2009 |
| 45194 - NRC Website | |
Elk Run Coal Company with 10 CFR 20.2201(a)(1)(i) | |
WEEKMONTHYEARENS 451942009-07-09T14:00:0009 July 2009 14:00:00
[Table view]10 CFR 20.2201(a)(1)(i) Loss of Control of Radioactive Density Gauge 2009-07-09T14:00:00 | |