(Mis)Uses of Technology

(Mis)Uses of Technology

by Mike Masnick




Nuclear Alert Detector Set Of By Radiation Therapy Patient

from the how-about-that dept

Uber-Review writes "Is that a fuel rod in your pocket ... A man who recently had received radiation treatment for a medical condition set off a nuclear alert detector on a fire engine, prompting police to close down a roadway in Escondido while authorities searched for a nuclear weapon.The Fire crew's radiation monitor sounded Tuesday when the man and his friend walked past the crew on their way to fill a gas can. The Nuke Alert monitor sounded again as the men walked back to their vehicle. Firefighters notified the San Diego County Sheriff's Department after they drove by the men's vehicle and the monitor sounded a third time. Sheriff's deputies pulled over the driver and detained him and his passenger for about one hour while they confirmed that the man was not carrying a nuclear weapon and that he had received radiation treatment. The radiation monitor was purchased with Homeland Defense Department grant money."

4 Comments | Leave a Comment..

 
 

Reader Comments

(Flattened / Threaded)

Add Your Comment

Have a Techdirt Account? Sign in now.
Get Techdirt’s Daily Email
Plain Text HTML
Save me a cookie
  • Plain Text: A CRLF will be replaced by break <br> tag, all other allowable HTML is intact
  • HTML: No formatting of any kind is done without explicitly being written in
  • Allowed HTML Tags: <b> <i> <p> <a> <em> <br> <strong> <blockquote> <hr> <tt>
Close
Have a Techdirt Account? Sign in now.
Get Techdirt’s Daily Email
Plain Text HTML Save me a cookie

Search Techdirt
And now, a word from our Sponsors..



Subscribe to Techdirt's Daily Email Newsletter

Techdirt's Daily Email Newsletter

Related Stories
Close
E-mail It