AW: incident in Spain

["Franz Schoenhofer" <franz.schoenhofer@CHELLO.AT>]

A technical comment: The exposure limit for radiation workers is 20 mSv (2

rem) per year. In some countries there is a limit of 50 mSv due to

exceptional reasons in one year, but the total exposure over five years must

in any case not exceed 100 mSv.



A philosophical comment: We read and hear so often about the "dangers" of

nuclear power stations even during normal drift, where the population might

be exposed to a few microSv per year, but the mass media - at least in my

country - never tell us about accidents with an exposure of this range. Any

explanation???



Franz





    -----Ursprüngliche Nachricht-----

    Von: owner-radsafe@list.vanderbilt.edu

[mailto:owner-radsafe@list.vanderbilt.edu]Im Auftrag von Franta, Jaroslav

    Gesendet: Dienstag, 04. Mai 2004 16:12

    An: Radsafe (E-mail)

    Betreff: incident in Spain





    NUCLEAR NEWS FLASHES - Friday, April 30, 2004

    INTERNATIONAL:

    --TWO SPANISH RADIOGRAPHERS WERE OVEREXPOSED APRIL 28 by a

733-gigabecquerel

    (19.79-curie) iridium-192 source that had moved from the safe position

    inside its sheath, Spain's Nuclear Safety Council said. The incident

    happened during X-ray inspection of pipe welds at a fossil-fired power

plant

    near Cordoba, with a gammagraphy device of the firm Technical

Operations.

    Preliminary investigation showed that several operational procedures

were

    violated, including the absence of dosimeters and radiation monitors.

The

    radiographers were estimated to have received doses of 158 milliSievert

    (15.8 rem) and 79 mSv (7.9 rem), respectively. The NRC occupational

exposure

    limit is 5 rem per year, but the European countries have been lowering

that limit.