RE: Stolen camera holds lethal radiation inside - Update

["Jean-Francois, Stephane" <stephane_jeanfrancois@merck.com>]

Hope the guy doesn't know how to connect and crank the camera to expose the
source. On some devices, this can be a real pain to do, even for experienced
radiographs...I still wonder why the keys were not with the operator...

some thoughts...from a canadian qualified operator of gammagraphy...

Stephane Jean-Francois , P. Eng., CHP
Spécialiste en radioprotection/Radiation Safety Specialist
Gestion des Risques/Risk Management
Merck Frosst Canada & Co.
Tel: (514) 428.8695
Fax: (514) 428.4917
e-mail: stephane_jeanfrancois@merck.com
 

-----Original Message-----
From: Steve Cima [mailto:cima@bellsouth.net]
Sent: Thursday, March 18, 1999 2:04 PM
To: Multiple recipients of list
Subject: Re: Stolen camera holds lethal radiation inside - Update


The NRC notice on this can be found at http://www.nrc.gov/NRR/DAILY/der.htm

In part it reads:

THE FLORIDA BUREAU OF RADIATION CONTROL REPORTED A STOLEN RADIOGRAPHY
CAMERA.  THE CAMERA (AEA TECHNOLOGY MODEL 66B) IS THE PROPERTY OF NDT &
INSPECTIONS OF PEMBROKE PINES, FL.  IT CONTAINS 88.3 CURIES OF IRIDIUM-192.
IT WAS  STOLEN FROM A TRAILER AT THE RADIOGRAPHER'S HOUSE IN PEMBROKE PINES,
FL  BETWEEN 0400 AND 0440 ON 03/17/99.  THE SOURCE SERIAL NUMBER IS C9062.
THE   INDIVIDUALS THAT STOLE THE DEVICE ALSO HAVE THE KEYS FOR THE CAMERA.

Steve Cima
cima@bellosuth.net

Sandy Perle wrote:

> I found this in the Ft. Lauderdale Sun Sentinel, today's paper..
>
> Stolen camera holds lethal radiation inside
>
> By VANESSA BAUZA Staff Writer PEMBROKE PINES --
>
> A stolen, dime-sized dose of radiation that could kill if it becomes
> exposed is sending police, FBI agents and health officials on a
> hunt to prevent anyone from getting hurt. The rare gamma camera
> containing the potentially lethal radiation was stolen during a 4
> a.m. burglary heist on Wednesday when an employee of a local
> industrial radiography company was taking a shower at his home.
> While the cargo trailer containing the camera was parked in the
> driveway, a thief cut two locks on the trailer, stealing only the
> gamma camera and the key to open and operate it, police said.
> The lead-lined camera contains a six 6-inch steel vial with the
> highly radioactive substance, iridium. The iridium is not dangerous
> if kept inside the camera. If the case is opened and the iridium
> removed, someone standing a foot away would be exposed to more
> radiation within an hour than they would normally receive in a
> lifetime, said Jerry Eakins, environmental manager with the
> Department of Health Bureau of Radiation Control. Depending on
> the exposure, symptoms could include severe burns, diarrhea,
> vomiting and nausea. The longer the exposure and the closer the
> iridium, the more severe the symptoms. The camera, one of only
> about 100 in the state, produces a type of X-ray that shows stress
> fractures in pipes and airplanes. It belongs to NDT and Inspections
> Inc., a Pembroke Pines-based company licensed to operate the
> camera. The employee, who had finished work for the day, and
> three coworkers had stopped at his home in the 8400 block of NW
> Northwest 15th Ct. Court, in the Sunswept community. While he
> was showering, police said the thieves broke into the trailer parked
> in the driveway and stole the camera, which is about the size of a
> briefcase and weighs more than 30 pounds. A yellow radiation
> symbol is posted on its side. Police on Wednesday were
> investigating the possibility that someone may have followed the
> trailer to the home to steal the camera. But they said the thieves
> may not have known what they took. David Ortigoza, president of
> NDT and Inspections Inc., agreed. "They probably don't know
> what's in their hands," he said. While police were eager to recover
> the $18,000 camera, their main concern was the health risk it
> posed if opened. "If the iridium inside the device is exposed, it can
> be fatal. Our concern is that the person who took it doesn't get
> injured," Lt. Joe Yetto said. "If it's a kid, it could be dangerous."
> NDT and Inspections Inc. is certified by the Department of Health
> to use the gamma camera. The department requires proper
> storage, training and regular inspections for the license. Statewide,
> about 30 companies are licensed to use the gamma camera, and
> each company has two to three devices, Eakins said. Officials in
> the Department of Health said they had no memory of a gamma
> camera theft in the past 10 years. But about a dozen similar
> devices that test soil moisture density and use much lower levels
> of radiation are stolen every year in the state and sold in Latin
> America, said Eakins said. NDT and Inspections Inc. has offered a
> $5,000 reward for information leading to the gamma camera. Police
> urged anyone who has the camera not to open it. Anyone with
> information on this case is asked to call 911, the Broward County
> Health Department at 954-467-4823 or the Office of Radiation
> Control at 407-297-2095.
>
> Sandy Perle
> E-Mail: sandyfl@earthlink.net
> Personal Website: http://www.geocities.com/capecanaveral/1205
>
> "The object of opening the mind, as of opening
> the mouth, is to close it again on something solid"
>               - G. K. Chesterton -
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