Gunpowder-Contaminated Cash Set Off SRS Lockdown

The Aug. 17 security lockdown at the Savannah River Site was sparked by gunpowder particles on cash within a Coca-Cola delivery truck, a Department of Energy spokesman said on Wednesday. Two dogs trained to detect explosives “alerted” on the vehicle after it entered the Savannah River Site on Aug. 17, and the facility went on lockdown for about three hours. Law enforcement personnel from South Carolina and Georgia responded to the incident, but no explosive material was found and normal operations resumed just before 6 p.m., according to Jim Giusti, DOE spokesman at SRS.  Subsequent investigation determined that the truck was carrying cash picked up from a vending machine at a gun manufacturer. Employees at that facility had transferred gunpowder residue to the money they used to buy soda, Giusti said.