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| Start date | Reporting criterion | Title | Event description | System | LER | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ENS 54490 | 22 January 2020 06:00:00 | Agreement State | Agreement State Report - Missing Self Luminous Signs Containing Tritium | The following was received via phone notification from the State of Nebraska Department of Radiological Health (NDRH): On January 22, 2020, the NDRH received notification in the mail that during the annual survey, the Gateway Mall identified that 2 self luminous signs were missing and 7 signs that were removed during construction were unaccounted for. These signs contained tritium (H3), originally in the amount of 11.5 Curies each. NDRH is going to follow-up on this event.
It was identified that eight of the tritium signs contained 11.5 Curies each and one of the signs contained 20 Curies. The Gateway Mall will follow up with the construction company to verify whether the signs have been properly disposed of as well as double checking with the maintenance shop to see if the report of the missing signs had been made in error. Notified R4DO (Silvia), ILTAB (email), and NMSS Events (email).
Gateway Mall General Manager was able to contact the construction company. It was determined that the signs had been removed from service by the construction company and stored at Gateway Mall. Signs reported missing in the maintenance shop were located as well. All nine signs have been located and accounted for. Notified R4DO (Silvia), ILTAB (email), and NMSS Events (email). 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 | ||
| ENS 54500 | 29 January 2020 06:00:00 | Agreement State | Agreement State Report - Lost Tritium Exit Signs | This is a summary of information received from the state of Nebraska via a phone call: On 1/29/2020, the licensee notified Nebraska that they are currently unable to locate 31 tritium exit signs. The tritium exit signs have all been replaced by LED signs, but management has been unable to locate the disposal records and are considering the signs lost at this time. 29 of the signs contain approximately 9.21 Ci of tritium each and 2 of the signs contain approximately 7.09 Ci of tritium each. Nebraska incident number: NE200002 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 | ||
| ENS 54622 | 5 March 2020 05:00:00 | Agreement State | Agreement State Report - Stuck Open Shutter on Density Gauge | The following is a synopsis of information provided by the Nebraska, Department of Health & Human Services, via phone notification: Licensee reported to the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services on March, 24, 2020, that during their 6 month check of the shutter functionality on March 5, 2020, the shutter on a density gauge would not close all the way. The density gauge is an Ohmart/Vega Corporation model SH-F2 density gauge with a Cs-137 500 milliCurie source. The serial number for the gauge is 9103GK. The gauge is installed in a process system and provides no threat to personnel. The licensee has contacted the gauge manufacturer for repair. Nebraska report number NE20004 | ||
| ENS 54793 | 20 April 2019 05:00:00 | Agreement State | Agreement State Report - Lost Tritium Exit Sign | The following was received from the state of Nebraska via email and phone: Approximately April 2019, a tritium exit sign was thrown away with construction debris while a contractor was cleaning up to remodel from catastrophic flooding in Pender, Nebraska. The sign was discovered missing when inventory was taken 7/17/2020. Device Name: RADIOLUMINESCENT SIGN Manufacturer: Best Lighting Model Number: SLTURW10 Serial Number: 165713 Radionuclide: H-3 Activity: 7.03 Ci (260.11 GBq) Nebraska Incident Report No.: NE200005 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 | ||
| ENS 54878 | 31 May 2012 05:00:00 | Agreement State | EN Revision Imported Date : 10/2/2020 AGREEMENT STATE REPORT - LOST TRITIUM EXIT SIGNS This is information received from the state of Nebraska via email: In conducting a search for records for NRC Event #54500, it was determined that Home Depot #3210 was remodeled at the same time as Home Depot #3208 in Grand Island, NE and all (16) tritium exit signs were exchanged for LED in May 2012. Disposal records are unavailable due to Staybright Electric, the contractor in charge of replacement and disposal, going out of business. Home Depot was unable to produce disposal records but it is their belief that the signs were disposed of properly as Staybright conducted tritium exit sign removals for other Home Depots in the region prior to their closing for which records of disposal were obtained, demonstrating knowledge of proper procedure. The State of Nebraska also checked with Tritiumdisposal.com and SRBT in attempt to locate records as the outlets of disposal for Staybright, but no records were found. Home Depot currently has a plan in place that was submitted to the NRC in July of 2009 for facility management to reiterate tritium exit sign management requirements to existing vendors to ensure signs are managed within NRC requirements. As part of ongoing tritium exit sign servicing it is very reasonable to believe that Staybright transferred and disposed of tritium exit sign inventory properly. Home Depot continues to proactively address and replace (as appropriate) its remaining tritium exit sign inventories through the use of professional, third party vendors and continues to responsibly manage its existing inventories at current stores throughout the United States. A Home Depot corporate representative will track all purchases and returned signs to ensure accurate inventory and disposal. All Tritium Exit Signs have been replaced with LED. Home Depot will no longer install tritium exit signs within newly constructed locations. Nebraska Item Number: NE200006
This is information received from the state of Nebraska via email: While the Home Depots were remodeled at similar times, it was found that the tritium exit signs at Store 3210 in Scottsbluff were kept in service until the end of their useful life. Records were recovered showing all signs being disposed of by Curie Environmental Services in Albuquerque, NM on 9/20/2019. Notified R4DO (Silva), NMSS Events (email), and ILTAB (email). 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 | |||
| ENS 54896 | 9 September 2020 21:29:00 | Agreement State | Agreement State Report - Water Loss from Source Storage Pool | The following is a synopsis of the report received from the State of Nebraska Division of Radioactive Materials via phone: The licensee reported that while they were responding to a product jam alarm they discovered some water on the floor by the source storage pool. In reviewing the control system operation log, the operators found the system had responded to a low water level by opening the make-up water valve. This is a normal system occurrence due to evaporation from the pool. The make-up valve did not close upon reaching the normal water level, so level in the pool continued to rise. Level reached the high water alarm point which is at the top of the pool. The drain valve opened at the high water alarm point causing level to drop, but some water had already overflowed from the pool onto the surrounding floor. Level continued to lower and upon reaching the low level setpoint the system correctly responded by closing the drain valve and reopening the make-up valve. The level control system then responded correctly and the make-up valve closed when water level returned to normal. The irradiator facility has replaced the level switches and updated the preventative maintenance frequency for the valves and switches to prevent a repeat of this event. The source was never uncovered. No release or personnel exposure occurred. |