On October 17, 2013 ICE-RAM [Inspections Compliance and Enforcement - Radioactive Materials Branch] received a letter dated October 14, 2013, from the
RSO at NMG Geotechnical, Inc. (NMG), reporting that, on October 9, 2013, one of their
moisture density gauge (
CPN MC-1DRP, S/N M60408283, 10 mCi
Cs-137, 50 mCi Am:Be-241) was discovered to be lost or
stolen at an apartment complex at 1601 W. MacArthur Blvd., Santa Ana, CA, after the
gauge operator was on a lunch break. The
gauge was placed in the vehicle after using the
gauge at the apartment complex just prior to starting lunch. The
gauge operator discovered that the
gauge and transport box were missing from the rear of the Jeep Cherokee SUV. There were no indications that the vehicle was broke into, making it most likely that the
gauge and case were left in the vehicle while it was unlocked and the
gauge case was not secured to the frame of the vehicle. The operator contacted the
RSO and then filed a report with the Santa Ana Police and notified the Irvine Police afterwards.
On October 17, 2013, an ICE RAM-South inspector contacted the RSO to confirm the information in the letter. The inspector inquired if the operator had searched the complex for the gauge prior to reporting the gauge stolen and the RSO confirmed that they had. The RSO also noted that the operator returned to the complex later to give the apartment management fliers to distribute to residents. The gauge has not been recovered to date. This RSO was informed that they will be cited for loss of control of the gauge and failure to immediately report the loss of the gauge as required. The investigation will continue to determine if any other items of non-compliance are identified.
California 5010 Number: 101713
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