Decontamination of Personnel

TM 55-315

(c) Control Personnel Who May Be Contaminated.

1. Obtain names and addresses.

2. Discourage smoking, eating, drinking, and leaving until monitoring and decontamination assistance is

available.

(3) Localize contamination. Example: Leakage and spillage on highway can be removed by sweeping or

shoveling contaminated material into a suitable container and holding for disposal. If liquid has been spilled, the

contamination may be contained by means of dirt, cloth, sawdust, or other absorbent material. Dusts can be settled by

means of a fine water spray. Appropriate radiation monitoring should accompany these actions.

b. Subsequent Actions.

(1) The responsible person at the scene, after taking the emergency action required to protect personnel and

property, will report by telephone to the nearest military or Department of Energy (DOE) (fig 7-1) installation and, if

needed, will request aid. The person will also request that the Army area be notified. If there are no nearby military or

DOE installations from which help can be secured, a telephone report and request for aid will be made to the

headquarters of the Army area in which the accident/ incident occurred (table 7-1). Appropriate telephone numbers to

call for assistance will be included in the written instructions provided to the driver or escort commander.

(2) Local police authorities may be called upon to assist in the control of the area and to exclude the public, to

prevent possible radiation exposure until authorized Army control can be established.

(3) If the shipment is unescorted, the driver or conductor will be instructed to obtain assistance at the scene to

maintain exclusion of the area until other assistance is available. In the event of a fire, contact local fire department.

(4) Monitor and decontaminate personnel, if necessary. See paragraph 7-7 for guidance on decontamination of

personnel. Assistance from local health department, civil defense, nearest chemical biological radioactive team, or other

regional accountable depot safety team may be required.

(5) Monitor and decontaminate property. (Same assistance as (4) above may be necessary.) Reduce exclusion

area to bare minimum.

(6) Document the emergency.

(7) Accidents or incidents that occur in transit shall be reported by the carrier to the Department of

Transportation as required by 49 CFR 171.15 and 171.6.

7-6. Procedures in Case of Theft or Loss

a. Notify Army area headquarters (table 7-1).

b. Notify consignor.

c. Notify FBI and local police officials.

d. Attempt to recover.

7-7. Decontamination of Personnel

a. If packages were undamaged, contamination is

unlikely. However, radiac instruments are needed to verify the presence or absence of contamination. For beta-gamma

materials, a Geiger Mueller-type instrument capable of distinguishing exposure rates between 0 and 0. 2 milliroentgen

per hour is needed. For alpha-emitting materials, an instrument capable of detecting 500 alpha particles per minute per

16 square inches is required. Further, it should be noted that alpha radiation cannot be detected on moist or wet

surfaces.

b. Washing in lukewarm water with nonabrasive soap is the best general method to decontaminate the hands and

other parts of the body, regardless of contaminant. If the contaminant is localized, it is often more practical to mark off

the affected area and cleanse with swabs, rather than to risk the danger of spreading the contaminant by general

washing.

CAUTION

Organic solvents must be avoided as decontaminating agents because they may increase the

probability of the radioactive materials penetrating through the pores of the skin. Special attention

must be given to the areas between the fingers and around the nails; also, the outer edges of the'

hands are readily contaminated and often neglected in the washing.

Table 7-1. Army Headquarters

Telephone for assistance

Army

Address

AUTOVON

Area Code

Local No.

First

Fort George G. Meade, MD 20755-7000

923-1110

301

677-6261

677-6262

Fifth

Fort Sam Houston, TX 78234-5000

471-1110

512

221-1211

Sixth

Presidio, San Francisco, CA 94129-5190

586-1110

415

561-2211

MDW*

Fort Meyer, VA 22211

227-0101

202

545-6700

* Military District of Washington

7-2