A specialist company from Oxfordshire who were responsible for transporting an emitting flask containing a radioactive isotope, has been fined £250,000 along with costs of £150,000, for breaching the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, the Ionising Radiations Regulations SI 1999/3232 and the Radioactive Material (Road Transport) Regulations SI 2002/1093. During March 2002, AEA Technology Plc transported a large container containing cobalt 60 from a hospital in Yorkshire to Sellafield in Cumbria, but a plug was left off the 2.5 tonne device. Its condition was detected by staff who picked up exceptionally high gamma ray readings. This had been continuous throughout the journey, and a highly dangerous stream of ionising radiation was emitted through the opening end of the container and onto the road.
It remains unknown whether any members of the public or workers were significantly exposed as there was a massive potential for a serious incident. Anyone exposed to the ray from the container could have exceeded the legal dose limit in seconds and suffered radiation burns in minutes. The two employees responsible for transporting the load completed paperwork claiming they had carried out the required safety procedures and checks, which they clearly had not.
