Lost Uranium Found In Lab Coveralls

Samples of highly enriched uranium were recovered from the pocket of a pair of coveralls located on a laundry truck that tripped an alarm as it tried to exit the protected area of the Department of Energy’s Y-12 National Security Complex located in Oak Ridge, Tenn. The incident, which occurred in January 2014, triggered a yearlong investigation by the DOE Office of Inspector General, which described the incident in a report this month. Although Y-12 officials had reviewed the incident, OIG found their responses insufficient. For instance, after the samples were found, Y-12 staffers did not establish a safe perimeter, and security officials were not notified for approximately eight hours after the discovery, the report says. The site has since made improvements to its tracking system, according to OIG. “We confirmed that chemical operators are no longer allowed to place samples in their pockets and must check their pockets before removing their coveralls,” the report says.