LITTLE ROCK (KFSM) — The Arkansas Department of Health received a notification that a gauge containing radioactive material has been stolen from a business in Hot Springs, Arkansas.
The ADH said in a press release that the radioactive control section of the department is missing a gauge transport case that is about the size and shape of a trunk. The case is made of a hard, yellow plastic with handles on each end and at the top.
The gauge is yellow with a rectangular base and a foot-long handle on the top. Both the case and the gauge are labeled as radioactive and each weigh about 85 to 95 pounds.
The gauge contains 8 millicuries of cesium-137 and 40 millicuries of americium-241. It’s used to take a moisture and density measurements by projecting radiation from the two radioactive sources into the ground and then displaying the amount of radiation reflected back to the gauge.
The gauge is a Troxler Electronic Laboratories Model 3440, serial number 15160.
The release states that state police, local government officials and law enforcement agencies, the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Arkansas Department of Emergency Management have also been notified.
The gauge does pose a potential public health risk, but does not contain sufficient material to be used for any explosive device.
