Overview
- A DPS corporal’s vehicle-mounted radiation detector alarmed Friday, July 24, and a follow-up survey traced elevated readings to ground near South County Road 1210.
- Specialized teams from Texas DPS, the FBI, the Texas Department of State Health Services, the Midland hazmat team and private security carried out a planned excavation on July 25 and located the source about 6 to 8 inches underground.
- Officials identified the object as a 100-millicurie sealed Cesium-137 capsule manufactured in April 1967 and recorded radiation readings before removal.
- Personnel established hot and cold zones, monitored exposure, rotated workers and recovered the capsule with no injuries, no contamination and no threat to the public.
- Authorities have not explained how the decades-old capsule became buried or who owned it; Cs-137 is a man-made isotope used in industrial gauges, it has an about 30-year half-life, and sealed capsules are designed to prevent environmental release.