Couple finds Uranium in an old NASA tool box

Crescent City, Florida (AP) — A Putnam County couple got a startling surprise when they found a piece of depleted uranium at the bottom of a box of tools.

Susan and Lance Greninger called NASA because they had bought the box at an auction near the Kennedy Space Center. A Hazmat team from the fire department examined the metal and said it was a solid piece of depleted uranium about the size of a child's fist.

They closed the road in the front of the home for about five hours just to be safe.

The state Bureau of Radiation Control retrieved the cylinder. They said the piece is toxic, but does not pose a health hazard to the community. They did say that if the couple had walked around the house with the uranium in their pocket, they would get radiation sickness.

Authorities said the piece may have been part of a tool. Depleted uranium can be used as a radiation shield and is sometimes used as a ballast in commercial airliners and ships.