[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]
Harold McCluskey & Hanford Accident
The accident referred to occurred on August 30, 1976 at the Hanford 242-Z
americium recovery facility. The accident was a chemical explosion (NOT a
nuclear criticality) of a cation exchange column loaded with Am-241. The
explosion blew out the windows of the glovebox in which it was located. Mr.
McCluskey was a chemical operator working through the glove ports at the time of
the explosion. His face was peppered with Am-241 contaminated glass and metal
fragments, as well as nitric acid. The nitric acid is what caused the vision
problems. He was extensively chelated with DTPA for about 5 years following the
accident. His death at age 75 (in 1987) resulted from cardiorespiratory
failure.
The best scientific summaries of his case can be found in the open literature -
see the October 1983 issue of Health Physics, which was dedicated (both
literally and by entire content) to him. The most recent publications of post
mortem results and dosimetry can be found in several papers in the September
1995 issue of Health Physics. In that issue, he is not identified by name, but
the references make his identity obvious. Dick Toohey and Ron Kathren reported
the following dose estimates in a summary paper in that issue:
Bone: 18 Gy
Bone surface: 520 Gy
Liver: 8 Gy
Lung: 1.6 Gy
There was no identified carcinogenesis in the post mortem analyses.
A couple of popular literature references by McCluskey himself can be found in
the following:
Readers' Digest, April 1981, pp 110-114
Guideposts, October 1981, pp 14-19
Mac was an ardent supporter of nuclear power and technology up to his death. He
bore no ill will to the industry and eagerly supported the many studies on him
in the interest of helping anyone to whom such unfortunate circumstances might
occur. Those of us who were privileged to know him, knew him to be a true
gentleman.
Gene CArbaugh
eh_carbaugh@pnl.gov