Radiological Cleaning of Rubble Contaminated with RA-226; Important Milestone in the Dominican Republic

The Dominican Republic, as in most of the countries of the world, since the middle of the 20th century, various nuclear techniques have been used in industry, medicine, research and other branches of socio-economic endeavors. These activities based on the use of radioactive materials generate waste in gaseous, liquid or solid form, the management of which requires treatment depending on its characteristics. This presentation will present the lessons learned from an event that occurred in an oncology hospital in the country in 1989, which occurred accidentally when trying to cut with a scissors a tandem arrangement formed by 4 sources of Ra-226, the salt of Radius from one of the sources, consequently contaminating the entire work area. Those contaminated materials and supplies were buried in the hospital parking lot.30 years later, an important milestone is achieved for the country: The rubble was removed because the emanation of Rn-222, which is the son of Radio, was detected; They were transferred to the national center for the management of radioactive waste and disused sources for storage. The implementation of protocols and procedures for physical security and radiological protection was achieved. In addition, a chapter on radiation protection and physical security was integrated into the COE Emergency Operation Center, among others. (author)