Worker Exceeded Annual Dose Limit


Print View Posted on: 21 August 2024

Event Date: 11 December 2023 Event Type: Other
Event Location: United States of America, Romeoville, Illinois/ SOFIE INES Rating: 2 (Final)

On December 11, 2023, a pharmaceutical technician noted a pressure issue with a synthesis cell, which contained 11.29 GBq (305 mCi) of Fluorine-18. The pharmaceutical technician opened the synthesis cell and Fluorine-18 splashed onto their upper chest, neck, and underarm. The pharmaceutical technician could feel wetness after the incident, and decontamination efforts were initiated within 3 to 5 minutes. The skin exposure calculations, based on radiological survey results, indicated that the pharmaceutical technician received an estimated shallow dose equivalent of 0.902 Sv (90.2 rem). The dose to the employee exceeded the U.S. regulatory limit for the annual dose to the skin of the extremities of 0.5 Sv (50 rem). NRC Event Number (EN) 56923

INES Rating: 2 - Incident (Final) as per 21 August 2024
Release beyond authorized limits? No
Overexposure of a member of the public? No
Overexposure of a worker? Yes

Contamination spread within the facility? No
Damage to radiological barriers (incl. fuel damage) within the facility? No

Degradation of Defence In-Depth No

Person injured physically or casualty? No
Is there a continuing problem? No

Todd Smith
Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)

todd.smith@nrc.gov
http://www.nrc.gov
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