| U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
Operations Center Event Reports For
02/20/2006 - 02/21/2006 ** EVENT NUMBERS ** |
 | Other Nuclear Material | Event Number: 42294 | Rep Org: SOLAR TESTING LABORATORY, INC.
Licensee: SOLAR TESTING LABORATORY, INC.
Region: 1
City: PITTSBURGH State: PA
County:
License #: 34-16119-04
Agreement: N
Docket:
NRC Notified By: MARK MURPHY
HQ OPS Officer: STEVE SANDIN | Notification Date: 01/30/2006
Notification Time: 09:39 [ET]
Event Date: 01/28/2006
Event Time: [EST]
Last Update Date: 02/20/2006 | Emergency Class: NON EMERGENCY
10 CFR Section:
20.2201(a)(1)(i) - LOST/STOLEN LNM>1000X
| Person (Organization):
GLENN MEYER (R1)
CHRISTINE LIPA (R3)
GREG MORELL (NMSS)
TAS (via email) ()
| Event Text TROXLER MOISTURE DENSITY GAUGE STOLEN
Sometime between Friday night (1/27/06) and early Saturday morning (1/28/06), the authorized gauge user's vehicle was stolen from a residential location in Sharpsburg, PA. The vehicle's trunk contained a locked and secured Troxler Model 3440 S/N 18315 (8 mCi Cs-137 and 40 mCi Am-241/Be). The local Sharpsburg Police Department was informed of the theft (report #060309). The licensee is evaluating whether a reward will be offered.
* * * UPDATE FROM MURPHY TO HUFFMAN AT 2120 EST ON 2/20/06 * * *
The Pittsburgh Police Department notified the licensee that the stolen vehicle had been recovered and placed in a police impoundment lot 1930 EST on 2/20/06. A representative for the licensee was dispatched to recover the vehicle and found the gauge still in the trunk undisturbed. Visual checkout of the gauge was normal. The licensee will perform a leak test on the source in the morning.
R1DO (Trapp), R3DO (Riemer) and NMSS EO (Brach) notified.
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. |
| General Information or Other | Event Number: 42338 | Rep Org: MISSISSIPPI DIV OF RAD HEALTH
Licensee: NEWCOMB ENGINEERING
Region: 1
City: CORINTH State: MS
County:
License #: MS-967-01
Agreement: Y
Docket:
NRC Notified By: B.J.SMITH
HQ OPS Officer: BILL HUFFMAN | Notification Date: 02/15/2006
Notification Time: 12:17 [ET]
Event Date: 02/14/2006
Event Time: [CST]
Last Update Date: 02/15/2006 | Emergency Class: NON EMERGENCY
10 CFR Section:
AGREEMENT STATE
| Person (Organization):
PAUL KROHN (R1)
GREG MORELL (NMSS)
| Event Text AGREEMENT STATE REPORT - DAMAGED TROXLER GAUGE
The State provided the following information via email:
"Received notification on 2-14-06 from Newcomb Engineering Company that their Troxler Model 3430 moisture/density gauge [8 millicuries Cesium-137 and 40 millicuries Americium-241:Be] was run over by a bulldozer at a job site. The company RSO stated that the device was smashed in the dirt and they were not getting any abnormal survey readings. He stated that the technician was performing soil densities at the job site facing away from the bulldozer driver. The bulldozer driver was going forward and did not see the technician. The bulldozer driver hit the technician also but he was not injured. The source was not in the shielded position. By his description of the device, DRH [Mississippi Division of Radiological Health] responded to the job site that was approximately 230 miles away with a shielded container. The RSO stated that they would secure the area around the gauge until DRH arrived.
"DRH responded to job site. On arrival, it was apparent that Cs-137 source rod was not shielded. Inspector performed leak tests on sources and did not detect any removable contamination. Gauge was in many pieces. Cesium-137 source rod was placed in shielded container. The base plate of the gauge, that contained the Americium-241:Be source was put in a box and placed in the inspectors toolbox. All other parts of the gauge were put in the box also. Gauge was returned to DRH office for storage until disposal could be arranged.
"Highest reading was 300 mR/hr at 6" from end of source rod. 2 mR/hr at 1 meter from gauge. After putting gauge in shield, highest reading was 0.5 mR/hr at the surface of the top of the shielded container. Surveys [of the area where it was run over] were conducted after the gauge was secured . No readings above background were detected.
"Newcomb Engineering was told that they would have to submit a written report to DRH describing the incident. DRH is going to store the gauge until Newcomb Engineering can arrange disposal."
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. |
| General Information or Other | Event Number: 42341 | Rep Org: TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH
Licensee: TEXAS INSTRUMENTS
Region: 4
City: DALLAS State: TX
County:
License #: G1800
Agreement: Y
Docket:
NRC Notified By: RUBEN CORTEZ
HQ OPS Officer: BILL HUFFMAN | Notification Date: 02/15/2006
Notification Time: 18:04 [ET]
Event Date: 02/13/2006
Event Time: [CST]
Last Update Date: 02/15/2006 | Emergency Class: NON EMERGENCY
10 CFR Section:
AGREEMENT STATE
| Person (Organization):
DAVID GRAVES (R4)
E. WILLIAM BRACH (NMSS)
| Event Text AGREEMENT STATE - LOSS OF CONTROL OF POLONIUM SOURCE
The State of Texas reported that a static eliminator with 20 millicurie Polonium-210 source (based on a January 2005 assay) was inadvertently shipped to Taiwan without radioactive material controls or the knowledge of the RSO for the licensee. The RSO received a Po-210 source for renewal of the source in a static eliminator and discovered that the eliminator was missing. The licensee determined that the static eliminator with the depleted Po-210 source had been shipped to Taiwan without consideration of the Po-210 source in the eliminator. There is currently no indication that the source is lost - but it is no longer under the licensee's control. Investigation into this event is ongoing.
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. |
| Power Reactor | Event Number: 42348 | Facility: LASALLE
Region: 3 State: IL
Unit: [1] [ ] [ ]
RX Type: [1] GE-5,[2] GE-5
NRC Notified By: DAN COVEYOU
HQ OPS Officer: MARK ABRAMOVITZ | Notification Date: 02/20/2006
Notification Time: 02:14 [ET]
Event Date: 02/20/2006
Event Time: 00:23 [CST]
Last Update Date: 02/20/2006 | Emergency Class: SITE AREA EMERGENCY
10 CFR Section:
50.72(a) (1) (i) - EMERGENCY DECLARED
50.72(b)(2)(iv)(B) - RPS ACTUATION - CRITICAL
50.72(b)(3)(iv)(A) - VALID SPECIF SYS ACTUATION
50.72(b)(3)(ii)(B) - UNANALYZED CONDITION
| Person (Organization):
JULIO LARA (R3)
PETER WILSON (IRD)
JAMES LYONS (NRR)
JIM CALDWELL (R3)
TOM BLOUNT (IRD)
MEL LEACH (IRD)
HOLLY HARRINGTON (PAO)
WILLIAM KANE (NRR)
ANGELA COGGINS ()
WILLIAM ORDERS ()
|
| Unit | SCRAM Code | RX CRIT | Initial PWR | Initial RX Mode | Current PWR | Current RX Mode | | 1 | A/R | Y | 6 | Power Operation | 0 | Hot Shutdown | Event Text SITE AREA EMERGENCY - REACTOR SCRAM
"While shutting down Unit 1 IAW LGP-2-1 with the main turbine off line the plant experienced a turbine control system (EHC) malfunction. This resulted in opening all main turbine bypass valves and subsequent reactor low pressure condition. The low pressure condition resulted in a closure of all main steam isolation valves (MSIV's) and automatic reactor scram. Three rods failed to indicate fully inserted on the scram. Plant emergency operating procedures were entered. All ECCS and plant systems operated as expected. All control rods are fully inserted and the ATWS emergency operating procedure has been exited."
The main turbine had been taken off line prior to this event and shutdown was being conducted with heat removal on the bypass valves. Pressure control is currently by using the steam line drains with the Safety Relief Valves in manual. Level is being maintained using normal feedwater. The electrical grid is stable though the plant is not yet on backfeed. Diesel generators are operable.
The licensee will notify the NRC Resident Inspector.
The NRC entered Monitoring Mode at 0243.
Notified R4DO (Graves), DHS (SWO), FEMA (J Kanupp), DOE (S. Morrone), EPA(NRC) (Nowak), USDA (Amanda), HHS (Kleiman).
* * * UPDATE AT 0402 ON 2/20/2006 * * *
In addition to the initial notification, La Salle is reporting a group 1 isolation in accordance with 10CFR50.72(b)(3)(iv)(a).
* * * UPDATE AT 0435 ON 2/20/2006 * * *
The site exited the Site Area Emergency and entered the recovery phase.
* * * UPDATE AT 05:59 ON 2/20/2006 * * *
"At the time of the scram @ 0023 hours rod 38-43 showed position 24 and rods 26-15 and 34-47 showed unknown. Based on more than one rod out condition, it is unanalyzed until shutdown margin can be verified."
* * * UPDATE AT 0655 ON 2/20/2006 * * *
NRC exited Monitoring Mode.
Notified IRD (Wilson), NRR EO (J. Lyons), R3DO (Lara), R4DO (Graves), NRR (Dyer), DHS (SWO), FEMA (Eerwin), DOE (Joe Stambaugh), NRC (does not take updates), USDA (Jim Brzostek), HHS (SOC) (Lt Hrynyshen). | |