Event Notification Report for November 25, 2019

TEMPORARY PROCESS RADIATION MONITORING SAMPLE CART NON FUNCTIONAL

"At 1245 PST, on November 23, 2019, the Turbine Building Process Radiation Monitoring Sample Rack (TEA-SR-26) was declared non-functional and taken out of service to perform planned preventive maintenance per procedure. The temporary sample cart was placed in service as an alternate method per plant procedures.

"At 0854 PST, on November 25, 2019, it was discovered that the temporary sample cart had a broken belt. At that time neither the Turbine Building Process Radiation Monitoring Sample Rack nor the temporary sample cart could be returned to service.

"At 1300 PST, on November 25, 2019, the temporary sample cart was returned to service following repairs. This restored the required compensatory measures for TEA-SR-26.

"This event is being reported as a major loss of assessment capability in accordance with 10 CFR 50.72(b)(3)(xiii).

"There was no impact to the health and safety of the public or plant personnel."

The NRC Resident Inspector has been notified.

* * * UPDATE ON 11/27/2019 AT 0655 EST FROM SEAN KEEHN TO BRIAN LIN * * *

"At 2057 PST, on November 26, 2019, it was discovered that the temporary sample cart had lost power and was not in service. At this time, neither TEA-SR-26 nor the temporary sample cart were in service, this was a subsequent failure of the temporary sample cart, and at the time the station had been unsuccessful at restoring a reliable alternate sampling method following the failure that occurred at 0854 PST, on November 25, 2019.

"At 2350 PST, on November 26, 2019, the temporary sample cart was returned to service following repairs. This restored the required compensatory measures for TEA-SR-26.

"The NRC Resident Inspector will be notified."

Notified the R4DO (Pick) via email.

LOST AND FOUND NUCLEAR DENSITY GAUGE

At approximately 1500 EST, on 11/25/2019, a technician departed a job site when they realized that they left the tailgate opened and the density gauge was no longer in the back of the truck. The technician turned around to look for the gauge, however, the gauge could not be found. The licensee searched for the gauge for approximately 4 hours and then contacted local law enforcement. The gauge was reported by local law enforcement to have been picked up at approximately 1630 EST.

The licensee went to the police department to examine the gauge and it was reported not to be leaking.

The gauge information is a Humboldt model 5001C, Serial Number 2301 containing 10 milliCuries of Cs-137 and 40 milliCuries of Am-241.

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

AGREEMENT STATE REPORT - FIXED GAUGE SHUTTER FAILED TO CLOSE DURING SEMI-ANNUAL TESTING

The following report was received from the Virginia Department of Health via email:

"On November 25, 2019 a licensee reported that the shutter of a fixed gauge used to measure the level of material inside a process vessel might have failed to close during the semi-annual radiological testing. The gauge is a Ronan Engineering, Model SA1-F37, serial number M7407, containing 40 mCi of Cs-137. The shutter arm is actuating, but the radiation reading at approximately 3 inches below the source remained the same (0.8 mR/hr) when the shutter was opened and closed. The source is located approximately 10 feet from the ground level and is only accessible by a stepladder. There are no routine activities that bring employees in close proximity to the source. There was no public exposure or environmental release from this event. The licensee has contacted the manufacturer for further investigation.

"The Virginia Office of Radiological Health will review the licensee's written report and determine additional actions to be taken."

Event Report ID No.: VA-19-006

* * * RETRACTION ON 12/2/19 AT 1255 EST FROM ASFAW FENTA TO KERBY SCALES * * *

The following was received from the Virginia Department of Health via email:

"Please retract the incident report that was submitted on November 26, 2019.

"The licensee was advised by Ronan Engineering to take measurements directly from the detector side by closing and opening the shutter instead of taking a reading at approximately 3 inches below the source. On November 27, 2019, the licensee retested the shutter by measuring directly to the detector side and found 0.4 mR/hr when the shutter was opened and 0.2 mR/hr when the shutter was closed. The licensee reported to the agency that the gauge was working properly. There was no problem on the gauge; rather, it was an error on the measurement technique."