L.A. Public Works lost a tool that can cause radiation poisoning. A resident found it

A potentially dangerous device that uses radiation went missing last week, but was found Monday and returned to the Los Angeles County Department of Public Works.

The agency had issued a $1,000 reward over the weekend for information that could lead to the recovery of the device, which could cause radiation poisoning if damaged or mishandled.

The device was last seen around 4 p.m. Thursday in the back of a county truck near 110th Street East and Avenue R-4 in the unincorporated Antelope Valley community of Littlerock.

Public Works described the device as a thin layer density gauge, which is used during construction to measure soil and asphalt density.

On Monday afternoon, a resident contacted the office of Supt. Kathryn Barger, whose district includes Littlerock, to report they had found an item that matched the description of the device. Public Works crews were dispatched to the address and recovered the tool, determining it had not been damaged, according to agency spokesman Kerjon Lee.

“We’re thrilled that it’s been returned,” Lee said.

In a statement, Barger said she urged Public Works to report a corrective action plan to the L.A. County Board of Supervisors to prevent this from happening in the future.

“It’s a big relief to know that no one was hurt by radiation sickness in the process of recovering it,” Barger said. “However, this cannot happen again.”