ENS 41854
ENS Event | |
|---|---|
05:00 Jul 18, 2005 | |
| Title | |
| Event Description | The State provided the following information via facsimile:
Description of Event: A dredging company using GL devices in Alabama illegally, removed and shipped a device containing a 200 milliCuries cesium 137 source to Ronan Engineering Company in Kentucky for repair. The shutter was not locked in the closed position. The owner had painted over the marking and labeling on the source holder so that they were illegible. The dredging company has hired a consultant to reconstruct the incident and try to determine any possible exposures received. Additional information will be submitted after the investigation is completed. The following, additional information was obtained from the State via telephone: Dredging Company: Inland Dredging, Co. based in Dyersberg, TN, doing work in the vicinity of Jackson, AL The gauge is currently at Ronan Engineering Co., Florence, KY Event date is unknown, but the State was notified on the evening of 7/18/05.
The State provided the following information via facsimile: The general licensee stated that they had closed the shutter and placed a bolt through the mechanism to lock it closed. [The general licensee] then removed the device and prepared it for delivery to Ronan Engineering Company via truck. [The general licensee] contends that the shutter handle was broken during shipping. [The general licensee] further states that they had removed the paint from the identification placard on the source head. When [the general licensee] prepared the unit, they stated they bolted the source head to the detector head. This resulted in minimal access to the beam port. Ronan performed a survey of the device, and found maximum exposure readings of 1.5 mrem/hour at 1 meter. During shipping, the device went through five transport terminals, and appears to have been transferred to different trucks in each terminal. An Alabama licensee authorized to service industrial gauges has been contracted to investigate the incident. This company is traveling to Ronan to obtain further information, and has set up interviews with personnel at the transport terminals. Notified the R1DO (Gray) and NMSS EO (Moore). |
| Where | |
|---|---|
| Inland Dredging Jackson, Alabama (NRC Region 1) | |
| Organization: | Alabama Radiation Control |
| Reporting | |
| Agreement State | |
| Time - Person (Reporting Time:+29.07 h1.211 days <br />0.173 weeks <br />0.0398 months <br />) | |
| Opened: | David Walter 10:04 Jul 19, 2005 |
| NRC Officer: | Mike Ripley |
| Last Updated: | Aug 5, 2005 |
| 41854 - NRC Website | |
Inland Dredging with Agreement State | |
WEEKMONTHYEARENS 418542005-07-18T05:00:00018 July 2005 05:00:00
[Table view]Agreement State Alabama Agreement State Report - Improper Use and Shipment of Nuclear Gauge 2005-07-18T05:00:00 | |