Halliburton Co's misplaced radioactive probe found along TX highway by oilfield worker

[Emily]

"...it has been years since a device with americium-241/beryllium, the material in Halliburton?s device, was misplaced in Texas."

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-09-13/halliburton-hunting-for-missing-radioactive-probe-in-west-texas

Bloomberg News
Halliburton Hunting for Missing Radioactive Probe in West Texas
By Kathy Warbelow and Brian Wingfield on September 13, 2012

A device similar to the missing radioactive probe is shown. Source: Texas Department of State Health Services via Bloomberg

Halliburton Co. (HAL) is scouring a 130- mile swath of West Texas oil fields for a lost seven-inch cylinder with radioactive material used when drilling natural- gas wells by hydraulic fracturing, or fracking.
[snip]
?It?s not something that produces radiation in an extremely dangerous form,? Chris Van Deusen, a spokesman for the Texas Department of State Health Services, said in an interview. ?But it?s best for people to stay back, 20 or 25 feet? if they find a cylinder marked ?radioactive -- do not handle,? he said....

 

[Emily]

Re: Halliburton Co's misplaced radioactive probe found along TX highway by oilfield worker

They had Halliburton workers, police officers and the national guard looking for this thing for a month, yet it was discovered right on the road 7 miles from where it was last used by a worker not even looking for it at the time? It's a strange story considering how sensitive modern detection equipment is.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2012/oct/08/halliburton-radioactive-rod-texas

Halliburton finds lost radioactive rod in Texas

Rod containing americium-241/beryllium had been lost a month ago during a 130-mile journey between oil wells
Rupert Neate
guardian.co.uk, Monday 8 October 2012 12.52 BST
[snip]
The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) had warned that the radioactive materials "could cause permanent injury to a person who handled them".

The agency said americium-241/beryllium, known as Am-241, is a "category 3" source of radiation and would normally have to be held for some hours before causing health problems. But the NRC still warned that "it could possibly ? although it is unlikely ? be fatal to be close to this amount of unshielded radioactive material for a period of days to weeks"...