In a lead foundry, a foundryman extracted lead by heating from a shielding heads of a radiotherapeutic unit. Before the lead extraction he dismantled the heads not knowing that inside one of them was a radioactive source left. Than he carried out a tube with the source. The tube with the source was left in the room. The following day (10th January) morning, the foundryman continued the work preparing for the lead extraction (for about 2 hours). At 10:30 a radiation worker of the heads owner (firm UJP Praha a.s.) arrived for performing radiation supervision and he equipped the foundryman with a personnel dosimeter. The supervising person performed also dose rate monitoring but he did not “believe” his “old” device that indicated high dose rate. The lead extraction proceeded since 10:30 to 15:30. When the day after (11th January) another survey meter indicated dose rates up to 8 mSv/h the work was stopped. The event was reported to the State Office for Nuclear Safety (SUJB). SUJB inspectors monitored the room, found a Co-60 source, estimated its activity to 100 GBq and took appropriate protective measures. The 12th January an authorized firm, ISOTREND s.r.o., took the source over for its identification and thereafter determined the source activity to 102 GBq. As a consequence of the event, the foundryman (not a radiation worker) was irradiated and his personnel whole body effective dose was estimated to 50 – 80 mSv and the extremity dose (to hands) to 0.1 – 10 Sv. As a precaution, a medical examination including blood test was undertaken. The foundryman has no symptoms of deterministic health effects. Two others foundry workers were supposed to receive insignificant dose.
Location: lead foundry TRIANGL s.r.o. at Hrob Event date: Mon, 09-01-2012
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