The Air Force has accepted a NRC notice of violation because of the incident and has taken “very strong corrective action” to avoid a reoccurrence, said Wright-Patterson spokesman Daryl Mayer in a statement Monday.
“This is a very serious matter, however as noted by the NRC, Wright-Patt has had no prior violations, showed no evidence of malicious intent and did not pose a safety risk to the public,” Mayer said in the statement. “We are fully confident our very strong corrective measures will ensure complete compliance in the future.”
The NRC was contacted in October 2011 that a “small amount” of sealed americium-241 was lost from a locked storage container. Air Force staff checked to ensure the container was locked, but did not do a visual check to verify the material remained inside from November 2004 until it was discovered missing in September 2011, the NRC said.
The sealed material was attached to a wand to mark areas captured in images by a medical gamma camera. The cameras are used to help make a medical diagnosis in a patient.
The Air Force received a notice of violation for failure to conduct semiannual inventory of a sealed medical source and failure to properly secure the source, the NRC said.
“There is no reason to believe that malicious intent was involved and (the material) does not pose a significant safety risk to the public,” the agency said.
The NRC classified the violation at a “Security Level III.” A Security Level I is considered the most serious breach, and a Level V the least. The Air Force acknowledged the violation in a March 5 letter, according to the NRC.
The 88th Medical Group, which operates the medical center, “instituted a series of very strong corrective actions,” according to Mayer.
The NRC said the changes included searches of medical center storage areas; reviews of inventory documents; and interviews with former radiation safety officers to find the missing material, the agency.
The Air Force pledged to keep a photographic record of radioactive sources; improve record keeping; and conduct annual safety training for nuclear medicine staff, the NRC said.
The federal oversight agency said it took into consideration when it weighed the fine amount that Wright-Patterson Medical Center had no prior violations and “took prompt and effective corrective actions.”
The Dayton Daily News left messages with NRC officials for additional information.