ENS 57611
ENS Event | |
|---|---|
05:00 Mar 17, 2025 | |
| Title | Damaged Sealed Source |
| Event Description | The following information was received from the Illinois Emergency Management Agency (the Agency) via email:
The Agency was contacted on March 17, 2025, by Alton Steel Inc., to advise of an incident earlier that day in which molten steel overflowed and damaged a 2.3 millicurie Berthold P-2608-100 Co-60 sealed source. Agency staff performed a reactive inspection the same day and determined the damage was limited to the source's pinned-on threaded connector (i.e., not the `active' portion of the source containing the Co-60 wire). Workers appropriately implemented updated emergency procedures, stopped production, isolated the impacted source/mold and notified the radiation safety officer. Extensive Agency surveys and a review of actions taken indicate there were no exposures or site contamination as a result of this incident. Both pieces of the source were recovered and placed into secure storage. Shielding was adequate to keep unrestricted areas below 2 mrem per hour. Surveys of the casting mold, the lid, the casting floor, produced billets, and casting remnants evidenced no contamination. The broken piece of the source evidenced no activity, consistent with expectations after a review of the engineering drawings of the source. Due to fouling of the source, the serial number could not be immediately read. A qualified service provider will be contacted to perform leak tests and obtain the source serial number. Notably, the licensee has had three similar incidents in which sealed sources were damaged as a result of casting overflows. The root cause is an inherent design issue with the continuous casting molds where severe overflows can penetrate a lubrication circuit and flow directly down the dip tube holding the sealed source. As a result of previous enforcement action, the licensee has completed engineering and prototyping of an improved design which will protect the sealed sources. Agency staff have asked for an expedited timeline and will seek appropriate enforcement action for implementation. Agency action on the license, enabling these changes, will be issued March 18, 2025. Previously identified concerns of personnel exposure and site contamination have been addressed through updated training and new procedures. Illinois Incident Number: IL250011 |
| Where | |
|---|---|
| Alton Steel Alton, Illinois (NRC Region 3) | |
| License number: | IL-01738-01 |
| Organization: | Illinois Emergency Mgmt. Agency |
| Reporting | |
| Agreement State | |
| Time - Person (Reporting Time:+12.2 h0.508 days <br />0.0726 weeks <br />0.0167 months <br />) | |
| Opened: | Gary Forsee 17:12 Mar 17, 2025 |
| NRC Officer: | Sam Colvard |
| Last Updated: | Mar 17, 2025 |
| 57611 - NRC Website | |
Alton Steel with Agreement State | |
WEEKMONTHYEARENS 576112025-03-17T05:00:00017 March 2025 05:00:00
[Table view]Agreement State Damaged Sealed Source ENS 574572024-12-05T06:00:0005 December 2024 06:00:00 Agreement State Stuck Sources ENS 570162024-03-07T06:00:0007 March 2024 06:00:00 Agreement State Damaged Gauges 2025-03-17T05:00:00 | |