Authorities Searching for Missing Container That Stores a Radioactive Device

A Southern Illinois well logging company says it is unable to locate a radioactive well logging source holder.

The container shields radioactive material and went missing Friday. Authorities say if you find the container, don't move or handle it and report it to local police for assistance.

The locked steel container, which houses the well logging source holder, was last known to be in a company vehicle. This source holder is part of a larger tool used to assess geological formations in oil and gas, groundwater, mineral and geothermal exploration. The steel container is silver in color, 12 inches high and 14 inches in diameter. It weighs about 75 lbs. The container is labeled on two sides as 'DOT RADIOACTIVE YELLOW II' with the radiation trefoil symbol, and the manufacturer's name, 'Hopewell Designs, Inc.,' is on its base.

The inner source holder is about 4 inches long and 2 inches wide and is labeled as 'DANGER RADIOACTIVE MATERIAL, DO NOT HANDLE, NOTIFY CIVIL AUTHORITIES.'

The missing source holder, owned by Wayne County Well Surveys, Inc., of Fairfield, Illinois, has triggered an 18-county search. The Illinois State Police and Illinois Department of Transportation assisted with the search on Friday after the device was reported missing. The search is focused in Clay, Cumberland, Edwards, Effingham, Franklin, Hamilton, Jasper, Jefferson, Macon, Marion, Moultrie, Richland, Shelby, Wabash, Wayne and White counties in Illinois and Gibson and Pike counties in Indiana.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has categorized sources in five categories, with categories 1 and 2 being the most dangerous and requiring increased controls. The missing source, which is housed within two robust containers, is an IAEA category 3 source. If un-shielded and not safely managed or securely protected, exposure to the source could cause permanent injury to a person who handled it or who was otherwise in contact with it.