The following information was received from the
Kansas Department of Health and Environment via facsimile:
On July 27, 2006, Honeywell reported by phone that an internal review showed that a static eliminator device shipped 12/18/03, activity 10 mCi, was missing. As of the report date, the activity of this device would have been 84 microCi (138 day half-life). This would give a gamma exposure of 172 microR/h at 30 cm (11 microR/h at 1 m).
A search for the device was done, but the device was not found. The root cause was a loss of accountability in that the device was issued to an entire production team or line versus an individual bench within the production line.
Corrective action included issuing of the devices through the Health, Safety, and Environment (HSE) department rather than a tool crib. Also the devices will only be issued to an individual to improve personal accountability.
The manufacturer was notified. This event is considered closed.
Note: This item was determined during the State of Kansas IMPEP [Integrated Material Performance Evaluation] inspection conducted the week of June 14, 2010, that this event was reportable under 10CFR20.2201(a)(1)(ii) - Reporting within 30 days after the occurrence of any lost, stolen or missing material in excess of 10 times the appendix C quantities.
Kansas Item Number: KS060014
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