ENS 53773
ENS Event | |
|---|---|
05:00 Nov 29, 2018 | |
| Title | Agreement State Report - Theft and Recovery of Moisture Density Gauge |
| Event Description | The following was received from the Maryland Department of the Environment via phone:
On November 29, 2018, at approximately 2230 EST, an unidentified citizen contacted the Prince William, VA police department stating they observed a suspicious person throw a yellow box out of their vehicle and then exit the commuter parking lot at 12745 Minnieville Road, Woodbridge, VA 22192. The response was coordinated by the Virginia Emergency Response Center and Hazardous Materials Office. The responding officer located the yellow case having a radiation warning label affixed and his PRD [Personal Radiation Detector] [indicated that] a radiation source [was] present. The Virginia Department of Fire and Rescue, Virginia Department of Transportation, Virginia Department of Emergency Management, Virginia State Police, and the FBI responded. Spectral analysis identified Cs-137 with readings of approximately 1.5 mR/hr on contact with the case; typical for a Troxler gauge. The outside lock on the case was cut; a Troxler 3430 gauge with shipping papers were present. The trigger lock was in place. The Virginia Department of Health (VDH) did not have the facilities or capability to take possession of the gauge. The gauge was secured in the Hazardous Materials officer's (HMO) vehicle until other arrangements could be made. On November 30, 2018, at approximately 0930 EST, VDH contacted the lead Prince William County HMO and was told that there was information contained in the shipping container with the gauge that identified the owner. VDH received that information at approximately 1000 EST and determined the owner of the gauge to be a Maryland licensee [Kim Engineering]. At approximately 1020 EST, the Director of the Virginia Radioactive Materials Program contacted the Maryland Radiological Health Program (RHP) concerning a recovery of a Troxler gauge at a Virginia Department of Transportation park-and-ride. The device was identified as a model 3430, S/N 67880 having an 8 mCi Cs-137 source (5/14/2013), S/N 77-12674, and a [40mCi] Am-241/Be source, S/N 78-8664. The device was last leak tested on 6/22/2018. An official of the Maryland RHP volunteered to drive to Prince William County, VA to retrieve the gauge. Arrangements were [made with] the Maryland official to meet with the Prince William County HMO. At approximately 1315 EST, the State of Maryland official contacted the VDH to confirm transfer of possession of the Troxler gauge to transport it back to Maryland. The Maryland official informed VDH that the licensee notified RHP that someone had stolen a Troxler gauge from the licensee. Maryland agreed to notify the US NRC Operations Center of this incident. Maryland has scheduled a reactive inspection of the licensee to determine the root cause of the loss or theft.
The following is a summary of the additional information was provided by the Maryland Department of the Environment via email: The activity for the Am/Be source, Serial Number: 78-8664, was tested on 6/22/2018 and was less than 185 Bq (0.005 microCuries). Notified R1DO (Lally), ILTAB (Allston - via email), NMSS_events (via 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 |
| Where | |
|---|---|
| Kim Engineering Beltsville, Maryland (NRC Region 1) | |
| License number: | MD-31-275-01 |
| Organization: | Maryland Dept Of The Environment |
| Reporting | |
| Agreement State | |
| Time - Person (Reporting Time:+130.88 h5.453 days <br />0.779 weeks <br />0.179 months <br />) | |
| Opened: | Alan Goldey 15:53 Dec 4, 2018 |
| NRC Officer: | Joanna Bridge |
| Last Updated: | Dec 6, 2018 |
| 53773 - NRC Website | |
Kim Engineering with Agreement State | |
WEEKMONTHYEARENS 537732018-11-29T05:00:00029 November 2018 05:00:00
[Table view]Agreement State Agreement State Report - Theft and Recovery of Moisture Density Gauge 2018-11-29T05:00:00 | |