Press Release-IV-16-010, NRC Schedules Regulatory Conference to Discuss Apparent Violations at International Isotopes

Press Release-IV-16-010: NRC Schedules Regulatory Conference to Discuss Apparent Violations at International Isotopes

ML16104A110
Person / Time
Issue date:	04/13/2016
From:	Office of Public Affairs Region IV
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Category:Press Release
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Press Release-IV-16-010
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No: IV-16-010 April 13, 2016 CONTACT: Victor Dricks 817-200-1128 NRC Schedules Regulatory Conference to Discuss Apparent Violations at International Isotopes The Nuclear Regulatory Commission will meet with officials from International Isotopes, Inc.

on May 3, to discuss four apparent violations identified by NRC inspectors related to an incident in which a worker at the companys facility in Idaho Falls, Idaho, received an unplanned radiation exposure.

The meeting at the NRCs Region IV office at 1600 East Lamar Blvd., Arlington, Texas, is open to public observation and will begin at 8 a.m. CDT. NRC officials will be available to answer questions from the public after the business portion of the conference. A telephone bridge will be available for the meeting by calling 1-888-603-7036 and entering passcode 14892.

A worker was preparing to transfer a Cobalt-60 source from a storage cask to a therapy device on August 20, 2015, when he received an unplanned exposure. Although the radiation dose to the worker exceeded NRC limits, he is not expected to suffer any adverse health consequences. The NRC dispatched an inspector to the site the following day to monitor the licensees response to the event and follow-up actions.

The purpose of this pre-decisional enforcement conference is to discuss four apparent violations identified by the NRC: (1) failure to control the radiation dose to a worker within NRC regulatory limits; (2) failure to have adequate procedures in place that assured a safety evaluation was completed for a proposed use of radioactive material and approved by the radiation safety committee prior to its use; (3) failure to obtain prior NRC approval for activities that had not been documented, reviewed, and approved by the companys radiation safety committee; and (4) failure to stop work as required by procedure when a workers electronic dosimeter alarmed. The apparent violations are discussed in an inspection report.

No decision on the final safety significance of the violations or any additional NRC actions will be made at the meeting. That decision will be announced at a later time.