Case 3 – Detection of a Cs-137 source at Border Control

An increased radiation level was detected at a border station in a rail car which was transporting scrap metal. The country’s radiation experts found a Cs-137 source with 2.5 GBq activity. The shutter of the source container was partly open. 

Response  / Action taken

The radiation source was secured and transported to the Central Waste Management Facility. 

The owner of the Cs-137 source was identified by the responsible authority. The source was part of a device for level measurement installed in a mining company. After test operation the device was put out of service and was forgotten. During winter revision work at the mining area, the radiation source was transferred as scrap metal to a scrap metal facility, which shipped it sometime later abroad. 

The sealing of the source itself was intact and therefore no contamination occurred.

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