ML20235F316
| ML20235F316 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Issue date: | 02/14/1989 |
| From: | Pang J, Pate R, Skov D, Thomas R NRC OFFICE OF INSPECTION & ENFORCEMENT (IE REGION V) |
| To: | |
| Shared Package | |
| ML20235F267 | List: |
| References | |
| REF-QA-99990005-890214 99990005-88-06, 99990005-88-6, NUDOCS 8902220502 | |
| Download: ML20235F316 (6) | |
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ji, U. S.l NUCLEAR-REGULATORY COMMISSI0'N REGION'V R'eport No. 88-06 Docket No. 99990005- .-
.-Licensee: , ITO-EN (USA) Inc.
~125 Puuhale Road .
Honolulu,LHawaii 96819 Facility Name: ITO-EN'(USA) Inc.
/ Inspection at: Honolulu, Hawaii Inspection Conducted: December 5,1 1988 through January 13, 1989' -
Inspectors: %4# , ;2./2. Si D. D. Skov, Radiation hecialist Date Ligned .
T. G.hp '
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-J. F. Pang, Gsdiation Specialist Date1 Signed Approved:
R. D. Thomas, Chief e n -
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hs Date/Si{;ned Nuc1 r Materials- fe s ction- ,
d2/ G a2 / 1 K. J. P~ ate, Chi 6f, Nuclear M5terials Safety Date . S,igiled -
and Safeguards Summary: <
Inspection of December 5, 1988-January 13, 1989 (Report No. 99990005/88-06)
Areas Inspected: )
This announced special safety inspection war conducted to examine the circumstances associated with the reported loss of a Filtec level gauge containing a 100 millicurie americium-241 sealed source. The areas examined
~ included: a chronology of events surrounding gauge acquisition and loss',
- notification and report of the lost gauge; and efforts by the-licensee and NRC to recover the gauge.
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Results:
'Two violations were identified during the inspection as follows:
A. The Filtec gauge containing 100 millicuries of americium-241 was abandoned when the device was accidentally disposed as scrap material and transported to a local scrapyard on approximately April 18, 1988. (Item 4).
8902220502 890214 !
REG 5 QA999 EEC**w* -
99990005 PDC
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B. The loss of the Filtec gauge was not reported immediately by telephone to the NRC, and a written report was not submitted'within 30 days, after the general licensee first learned of the loss of the gauge on August 8, 1988. (Item 5).
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.y DETAILS
- 1. ~ Persons Contacted
- Leonard Shimoko, General Manager / Director, ITO-EN (USA) Inc. l Ron Hagar, Acting Plant Manager, ITO-EN (USA) Inc.
- Charles T. White, Purchasing Inventory Manager', ITO-EN (USA) Inc.
Fred L. Calhoun,_ President, Industrial Dynamics Co. , Ltd.
Thomas M. Anamizu, Chief, Noise and Radiation Branch, Hawaii Department of Health Russell S. Takata, Environmental Health Specialist, Noise and Radiation Branch, Hawaii Department of Health
- Daryn Yamada, Environmental Health Specialist, Noise and Radiation Branch, Hawaii Department of Health "
Charles Meikle, Melt Shop Superintendent, Hawaiian Western Steel Ltd.
- Persons present at exit conference.
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- 2. B$kground
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.c i In a letter dated November 11, 1988, C. White, ITO-EN (USA) Inc.,-
informed T. Anamizu, Hawaii Department of Health, that a fill level gauge
.( Filtec Model FT-12) containing 100 millicuries of americium-241,'in a
. sealed source, had been lost by ITO-EN. The NRC Region V Office was then notified of the lost source by the State of Hawaii by letter' received on . ,
i November 28, 1988.
During a telephone conversation with C. White on November 30, 1988, the Region V Office learned that the gauge containing the source had;been
. accidentally removed from ITO-EN's production facility and hauled away.as scrap in late' April-early May, 1988. C. White stated that ITO-EN employees'had searched local scrapyards to recover the lost gauge and source but were unsuccessful. On January 3,.1989, the Region V Office received a report from ITO-EN for compliance with 10 CFR 20.402 which #
described the events and circumstances involving the lost gauge and source. The Filtec FT-12 gauge had been used by ITO-EN-under the general license provisions of 10 CFR 31.5. j
- 3. Purpose of Inspection This special inspection was conducted to evaluate the circumstances I I
surrounding the lost source incident, and to determine if the lost source could still be recovered through a search of scrapyards or other facilities that might have taken possession of the equipment. The inspection also examined certain activities conducted by ITO-EN for compliance with the general license provisions of 10 CFR 31.5.
- 4. Description of Lost Generally Licensed Source Incident In April,1985, Aloha Juice Company acquired the Filtec FT-12 gauge (S/N 102260) without a radioactive source from Seven Up Bottling Co.,
Carpenteria, California. The gauge was then installed in a juice
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l production line at 125 Puuhale Road, Honolulu, Hawaii for measuring liquid fill levels in soft drink cans. However, after finding the gauge to be inoperative, Aloha Juice ordered a new 100 millicurie americium-241 sealed source (S/N 4167) from the manufacturer of the gauge, Industrial Dynamics Company (IDC), Ltd., Torrance, California. F. Calhoun, President, IDC, informed the inspector that the source package shipped by IDC was received by Mike Shimoko, Aloha Juice, on April 23, 1985. The americium-241 source was apparently installed in the Filtec gauge sometime around May, 1985 by an independent contractor in Hawaii.
In August, 1987, ITO-EN (USA) Inc., a Japanese owned company, purchased all facilities and equipment, including the Filtec gauge from Aloha Juice. However,-the organizational structure and most of-the management personnel from Aloha Juice, including C. White and L. Shimoko, were retained by ITO-EN.
On April 18, 1988, the juice manufacturing line was dismantled in preparation for major renovation of the production facility. During this period, the Filtec gauge was taken off line and partially disassembled.
ITO-EN had planned to reinstall the gauge in the production line following plant renovation. However, the Filtec gauge containing the sealed source, along with other equipment removed from the juice line, was hauled away a short time later to one of several scrapyards on the island of Oahu.
Licensee representatives were unable to explain exactly how the gauge could have been scrapped but stated that the loss may have been caused by the gauge being stored with other equipment designated "to be scrapped".
Other possible reasons given by ITO-EN were that the gauge was not marked for retention, or that the radioactive material warning sign on the gauge may have been " painted over" and therefore not properly displayed.
ITO-EN representatives stated that before the gauge was lost, they were unaware of their possession of the americium-241 source.
ITO-EN employees also could not remember which strapyard had been utilized in the disposal of the gauge. L. Shimoko commented that no business records were made or retained by the licensee describing the transfer since the scrap material was not sold but only given away.
However, C. White and L. Shimoko thought that the gauge either had been taken by ITO-EN personnel to the Flynn Learner Scrapyard at 1120 Sand Island Road, Honolulu, Hawaii, or had been hauled away by H. Tanaka Trucking Service to their scrapyards on Sand Island or at Campbell Industrial Park near Barber's Point, Oahu.
10 CFR 31.5(c)(6) requires that gauging devices containing byproduct material authorized under a general license not be abandoned by licensees possessing such gauges. The abandonment of the Filtec gauge containing the americium-241 source by ITO-EN, in such a manner as to permit its removal and disposal as scrap material, was identified as a violation.
One violation was identified. I
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- 5. Notification and Report of Lost Source On August 8, 1988, ITO-EN first became aware that the Filtec gauge may have been lost when L. Shimoko and the sales representative for IDC, Dennis Ballere, asked to see the gauge. When informed (apparently by Mr.
Ballere) that the gauge contained a radioactive source, the licensee began searching for the missing gauge. The loss of the gauge was confirmed on August 19, 1988 during a telephone conversation between D.
Ballere and L. Shimoko. The search by the licensee continued until October 26, 1988, when R. Hagar reported to ITO-EN management that he was unable to locate the gauge at any of the scrap locations.
IDC advised L. Shimoko in a letter dated October 18, 1988, and also advised C. White by phone on November 2, 1988, to notify the NRC that the Filtec gauge had been lost. However, the licensee delayed reporting the gauge as missing to any government agency until November 14, 1988 when the State of Hawaii, Department of Health, Noise and Radiation Branch, was informed by letter from C. White of the lost gauge. The ITO-EN report of the lost source was, in turn, forwarded by T. Anamizu, State of Hawaii, to the NRC by letter received on November 28, 1988.
L. Shimoko and C. White claimed that they were unaware of the NRC requirements applicable to the possession of a generally licensed source.
However, the Inspector reviewed documents filed by ITO-EN and other information supplied by F. Calhoun, IDC, which strongly indicated that IDC had informed the licensee of the NRC requirements as early as May, 1985. The specific information mailed by IDC to ITO-EN included: a Filtec Model FT-12 instruction manual; IDC letter dated April 26, 1985 addressed to Mike Shimoko, Aloha Juice, describing the specific americium-241 source shipped to ITO-EN; NRC regulatory requirements from 10 CFR 20.402, 20.402, and 31.5 regarding generally licensed sources and reporting of lost or stolen sources; and the address and telephone number of the NRC, Washington, D.C. C. White stated that the mailed information packet containing the above documents may not have been opened upon its receipt by ITO-EN. L. Shimoko addec that he was never informed by his brother, M. Shimoko, of the NRC requirements applicable to the possession and use of generally licensed material.
10 CFR 20.402(a)(1) requires general licenseec to immediately notify the NRC by telephone after a loss of licensed material has occurred. 10 CFR 20.402 also requires generai licensees to make a report in writing to -the NRC within 30 days after learning of the loss of licensed material.
However, the licensee never notified the NRC by telephone of the lost Filtec gauge after first learning of its disappearance on August 8, 1988.
In addition, ITO-EN did not submit a written report of the lost gauge to the NRC until December 21, 1988, a period exceeding four months. The failure by ITO-EN to immediately notify the NRC, and to submit a written report of the lost material within the required 30 days, was identified as a violation.
One violation was identified.
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- 6. NRC Efforts to Recover the Lost Filtec Gauge On December 5, 1988, the NRC Inspector (J.F. Pang) met with C. White and learned that ITO-EN was still unable to locate the Filtec gauge. On
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December 5 and 7, 1988, the Inspector, accompanied by U. Yamada and R. Takada, State of Hawaii, tisited the following scrapyards on the island of Oahu, Hawaii in the hope of finding the missing gauge:
Honolulu Recycling, Okuda Metal, Inc., C and M Recycling, Han's Metal, Depot Metal, and Flynn Learner. However, the NRC's efforts to recover.
'the Filtec gauge vere unsuccessful. All scrapyard dealers visited told ,
C the Inspector that scrap metal received is sold as quickly as possible, .
and that any such scrap received in April, 1988 would have been sent to Japan several months ago. "
A second NRC attempt to recover the lost gauge was made during the NRC inspection on December 12, 1988. The Inspector (D. Skov), accompanied by.
C. White, ITO-EN, and by D. Yamada, State of Hawaii, searched in vain.for the missing gauge at the Tanaka Hauling Yard, Campbell Industrial Park, Oahu. A visit was also made to the Hawaiian Western Steel Ltd. (HWS) plant at Campbell Industrial Park, where scrap metal is routinely accepted from various scrapyards, melted down in furnaces, and made into steel rebar for use at building construction sites in Hawaii. C. Meikle, HWS Melt Shop Superintendent, stated that any scrap metal received by !
Western Steel in April,1988 would have been melted down into rebar long ago.
- 7. Exit Briefing The Inspector met with the licensee representatives denoted in Item 1 of this report at the conclusion of the inspection on December 12, 1988.
The inspector discussed his concecns regarding the lost source incident, including the failure by the licensee to properly secure the Filtec gauge to prevent its unauthorized disposal as scrap material. L. Shimoko emphasized that he was not aware of the NRC regulatory requirements regarding the americium-241 source prior to its loss.
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