CBRN event in India on Wed 26th June 2019

On June 25, 2019, a radiography agency undertook transportation of an industrial radiography exposure device (model Delta-880) containing Ir-192 source of 1.53 TBq in a vehicle from Navi Mumbai to a radiography site at Shikrapur, Pune in Maharashtra. Three persons i.e. a radiographer, a driver and a helper were travelling in the vehicle. On the way, the vehicle met with an accident at about 00:30 hrs on June 26, 2019 near Bhose village in Chakan, Pune. The radiographer & the helper died on the spot and the driver suffered serious injuries. At about 01:00 hrs, the police informed the radiography agency in Navi Mumbai about the accident and took custody of the vehicle. The radiological safety officer of the radiography agency reached the accident spot at about 04:00 hrs and found that the radiography exposure device was not in the vehicle. Subsequently, the radiography agency lodged a complaint with the local police regarding the loss of radiography exposure device. The event was reported to Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) by the radiography agency at about 16:45 hrs on June 26, 2019. 

During the search operation, the radiography agency located the exposure device at about 15:00 hrs on June 28, 2019 from a scrap dealer at 10 kms away from the accident site. The device was recovered with the help of police. The device was checked by the radiography agency and found to be in intact condition. AERB also physically verified the safe and secured status of the device. 

The event is rated at level 1 on INES.