At approximately 1400
CDT on 10/3/09, a Terracon Consultants Ford Ranger pickup truck was
stolen from the Powell Replacement Elementary School construction site in Chicago, IL. In the bed of the truck was a
Troxler Model 3430
Moisture Density Gauge. These
gauges typically contain two (2) radioactive sources; 8 millicuries
Cs-137 and 40 millicuries Am-241:Be. The Chicago Police Department was informed of the theft and subsequently located the abandoned vehicle approximately two (2) miles away from the construction site at about 2300
CDT on 10/3. The vehicle had been ransacked and both the storage container and
gauge were missing.
The Illinois Emergency Management Agency informed the Illinois State Police (ISP) Statewide Terrorism and Intelligence Center (STIC) and will followup with additional details as they become available.
- * * UPDATE FROM PAUL EASTVOLD TO JOE O'HARA AT 0934 ON 10/05/09 * * *
The serial number of the missing Troxler Model 3430 Moisture Density Gauge is S/N 32686. The state also confirmed the quantities of material in the gauge.
Notified R3DO(Daley), FSME(Villamar), and ILTAB via e-mail.
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. For additional information go to
http://www-pub.iaea.org/MTCD/publications/PDF/Pub1227_web.pdf