Officials in the Philadelphia region are searching for a portable nuclear gauge that contains radioactive material.
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The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection reported a portable nuclear gauge containing sealed sources of radioactive material that belongs to KAKS and Company LLC of Harleysville, Montgomery County went missing from Philadelphia.
“Anyone who finds the gauge should not handle it directly, but rather maintain distance, limit time of proximity, and immediately contact local authorities or the DEP’s Southeast Regional Office at 484-250-5900. A trained individual will recover the gauge,” officials said in a statement.
The gauge was secured in a vehicle in Philadelphia when the vehicle was stolen. The vehicle was later recovered, but the gauge was no longer inside.
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“If the gauge is badly damaged or was struck by a vehicle, there is potential for damage to the radioactive source and spread of contamination,” officials said.
State officials believe the radioactive material within the gauge is in a safe, shielded position. However, the safe area may have been damaged after the theft of the vehicle.
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The nuclear density gauge is a yellow Troxler Model 3440 with serial number 31109. The device is the size of a shoe box and has an electronic keypad and a metal rod extending from the top surface.
“The Troxler gauge contains approximately 8 millicuries of Cesium-137 and 40 millicuries of Americium-241. The radioactive material is in a double encapsulated source capsule within the device to protect its integrity,” officials said.
“It is critical for anyone who has information about the lost nuclear gauge to contact local authorities or DEP,” Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection Bureau of Radiation Protection Director David Allard said. “As long as the device is not tampered with or damaged, it presents no hazard to public safety.”
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The gauge is typically used to evaluate the properties of building and road-bed materials at construction sites.
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