SerpApi.Org
The former radiation safety officer for Florida State University filed a whistleblower retaliation complaint, alleging she was fired after raising serious concerns about the mishandling of dangerous radiological and chemical materials at the Dittmer Chemistry Lab building and other locations.
Amy Allen worked at FSU for nearly three years, overseeing its compliance with state and federal radiation rules, regulations and statutes – until she was fired April 7. She filed her complaint a week later with the Florida Commission on Human Relations ahead of a planned lawsuit against the university.
Allen alleged that the university plunged forward with work on its $95 million renovation of the Dittmer building, home to atomic research dating back to the Cold War, without proper decommissioning and state clearances.
She also detailed in a separate 55-page report to state regulators how two people were exposed to radiation above regulatory limits during two different incidents that occurred in laboratory space on the seventh floor at Dittmer.
Kelly Carnahan, the university’s chemical inventory management officer, was exposed to depleted uranium while responding to a natural gas leak on Dec. 12, 2025, according to Allen’s report and Tallahassee Democrat interviews with her and Carnahan.
That wasn’t discovered until Jan. 7, when an acid drain line was cut during asbestos abatement and a contractor who didn’t speak English was exposed to the same radioactive contamination.
Allen’s complaint says she reported misfeasance, malfeasance and gross misconduct concerning “highly radioactive contamination, which could lead to individuals getting cancer and other deadly health issues.”
“Defendant was aware of the radiation and still allowed people to work in buildings, despite confirmed radiological contamination, significant chemical hazards and without legally required remediation methods being performed per (Florida administrative code),” the complaint says.
University officials refuted many of Allen’s allegations, including that any contaminants escaped from Dittmer into the environment. However, they acknowledged that staff and contractors were “potentially exposed” to low-level radioactive contamination.
Amy Farnum-Patronis, an FSU spokeswoman, said in a prepared statement that third-party experts determined there was “potential” for low-level radiological contamination in confined, inaccessible systems at Dittmer, including drain lines, vents and fume hoods. The building itself is currently fenced off and restricted only to those with card-swipe access.
“These areas are not accessible to the campus community or the general public,” she wrote. “These areas did not and do not present radiological risks to the campus community or the general public.”
Allen, however, described in interviews what she called “radioactive messes” at FSU, including sludge found at the bottom of an interceptor drain under a city sewer manhole outside Dittmer that contained “multiple radio isotopes,” along with old syringes and pipette tips left over from lab work.
She documented that in a photo she showed to high-ranking university officials, one of whom asked her to delete it from her phone during a meeting at the Westcott Building, she said.
“The main thing here is they were not doing proper decommissioning of buildings on (their) radioactive materials license,” she said. “And they were allowing people, especially contractors, students and researchers in these places without doing proper decommissioning or radioactive clearances. Because this is like dirty dust ... it can be spread everywhere.”
Farnum-Patronis said FSU performed a soil and groundwater investigation near the manhole and found "no known historical or current ongoing release of contaminants to the environment from Dittmer." Carnahan, however, said FSU's own soil tests show PCBs and other dangerous, cancer-causing chemicals above reportable state limits.
Carnahan filed a formal disclosure letter May 12 with Florida Chief Inspector General Melinda M. Miguel, outlining what she called “egregious” violations at FSU and her own exposure to radiation. She said she saw “widespread and systemic” problems across multiple buildings, labs and departments.
“Documented concerns did not involve isolated housekeeping issues or singular events,” she wrote. “Rather, the conditions observed are indicative of longstanding deficiencies involving hazardous chemical management, laboratory safety practices, hazard communication, storage compatibility, waste handling, and inspection consistency.”
FSU employee exposed to radiation: 'I just have to wait'
According to a radiological incident report, which Allen filed Feb. 26 with the Florida Bureau of Radiation Control (FLBRC), two contractors doing asbestos abatement work were found to have cut through subfloor acid drain lines during the January event.
The report says the workers, who were not radiologically trained, were authorized to remove old workbench tops and pipe wrap containing asbestos but were not allowed to access or alter restricted areas, including the drain lines, which are part of Dittmer’s acid waste system.
“The disturbance resulted in removable radioactive contamination exceeding institutional release criteria and led to one confirmed internal exposure of radioactive material in a worker above regulatory limits for members of the public,” it says.
The report doesn’t mention Carnahan by name, referring to her as another individual who suffered an “internal uptake of radioactive material” during the earlier incident in December.
In interviews, Allen said she and Carnahan, along with an associate radiation safety officer and a project manager for radiation remediation firm Perma-Fix, found the two contractors doing unauthorized work in the labs.
Allen said she instructed Perma-Fix to start cleanup efforts and that radiological contamination was found throughout the seventh floor over two days of surveys. After the data came back, Carnahan told Allen she was worried because she had been in one of the contaminated labs when she responded to the gas leak in December.
Carnahan, who worked closely with Allen, said in an interview that her exposure was 1,260% above the public safety limit, enough to worry her about worst case health scenarios. She noted that depleted uranium embeds in organs and bones and eventually turns into heavy metal toxicity.
“What that means is that over the next 10 or 20 years, I just have to wait to have kidney failure or lung cancer or it crosses the blood-brain barrier and I have neurological effects from it,” she said. “So it’s a serious situation.”
A total of 16 people, all university employees or contractors, were tested for radiation exposure. Results came back showing five people with internal exposures. Two of them, Carnahan and the outside employee, were exposed to amounts above limits for the general public but within occupational limits for radiational workers — something FSU stressed in its statement.
"Reports submitted to FLBRC confirmed that doses of all individuals evaluated were well below regulatory occupational limits, and all but two individuals evaluated were also below the limit for members of the public," Farnum-Patronis wrote.
FSU: Workers were 'potentially exposed' to 'residual' radiation
Farnum-Patronis said that as part of the renovation of Dittmer, which opened in 1967, FSU worked with specialized third-party technical experts and consultants, outside contractors with environmental expertise, outside legal counsel and regulatory authorities “to address legacy issues associated with more than six decades of chemistry research.”
The Legislature gave FSU a combined $95.4 million in Public Education Capital Outlay (PECO) funds in 2023 and 2024 for the Dittmer remodel, which is in the design phase, she said.
Farnum-Patronis acknowledged the January incident, in which contractors penetrated areas of the seventh floor that contained “residual low-level radiological contamination.” She said the work was done “without proper authorization or clearance from FSU.”
“As a result, certain FSU Facilities, Environmental Health & Safety staff and contractors working in the vicinity were potentially exposed to residual low-level radiological contamination,” she wrote.
She said that once that occurred, FSU Environmental Health & Safety staff and outside experts “immediately implemented” safety protocols by clearing and controlling affected parts of the building.
FSU also notified the Florida Bureau of Radiation Control, identified people who may have been nearby and initiated exposure evaluations through "bioassay testing," which measures the type, quantity, location and concentration of radioactive materials in the body.
Farnum-Patronis said the bureau confirmed in a March 19 letter that FSU’s response to the exposures and corrective actions "assured compliance" with regulations and conditions of FSU’s radioactive materials license.
She added that regulators permitted certain maintenance work at Dittmer but that any work requiring decommissioning won’t proceed until the plan has been submitted to the state and approved.
The Democrat asked the university on July 9 whether it ever filed a decommissioning plan before work started on Dittmer. FSU filed the plan the next day.
FSU initially declined to comment on why Allen was terminated. However, Farnum-Patronis later said the decision was based on "legitimate business and operational concerns."
"By way of example only, there were ongoing issues related to adherence to leadership direction, collaboration with key stakeholders, communication practices, and the ability to effectively perform the responsibilities of the role," she said.
Former FSU safety officer got a bonus before she was fired
Tallahassee attorney Marie Mattox, who is representing Allen and Carnahan, said Allen "was only trying to help" but “suffered the consequences” by taking a stand. She said it was a “miracle” that Carnahan still has her job and called the university's handling of the situation "horrific."
Walter Cofer, a radiation safety specialist who spent years with the Florida Bureau of Radiation Control and worked as a consultant at FSU, also filed a complaint with the Governor’s Office. He said Allen’s termination raised serious questions about whether it was because she objected to existing and planned actions involving campus radiation hazards.
“I can say with certainty that she has always administered the FSU Radiation Safety Office in an exemplary manner and has done nothing to warrant dismissal,” wrote Cofer, who is voluntarily assisting Mattox with Allen’s case.
Cofer alleged FSU repeatedly contracted with West Physics, an out-of-state firm serving as interim radiation safety officer, without a competitive process. But Farnum-Patronis said FSU "followed all procurement process" in hiring the firm, which is being paid $336,000 under a one-year contract.
Allen was told by management in a meeting that she was being let go without cause. She refused to sign her termination letter.
“I said wow, this is just shocking,” she said. “No reprimand, no nothing? Why, why, why, why?”
Her 114-page personnel file, which the Democrat obtained through a public records request, shows she was rated “exemplary” in annual evaluations from 2024 and 2025. Her overall rating was a 5, the highest on a scale of 1 to 5.
In July 2024, Allen, who earned $90,000 a year, got a $4,500 performance bonus for “outstanding work performance” that resulted in two successful state inspections. An email from Lonyell Butler, an assistant HR director, said Allen worked “most nights and weekends" during an inspection period.
“Amy took on a massive undertaking to ensure that the Radiation Safety Office and FSU were in regulatory compliance,” the email says. “There were numerous deficiencies that could have led to state violations, including the revocation of registrations and licensing terminations, but Amy’s hard work and dedication prevented that.”
An FSU memo on her contract cancelation says she was “argumentative” on one occasion and didn’t follow the chain of command on others. It says she ordered radiation testing for two employees but didn’t tell higher-ups about “the incident, testing or results” until after “after the fact.”
“Despite good faith efforts to provide guidance and support, Allen has not demonstrated the professional judgment, discretion or collaborative approach required for the RSO role,” the unsigned memo says. “Her continued employment presents risk to the university’s operations and reputation.”
'Safety comes third'
After her termination from FSU, Allen appeared to have landed a new job with the Florida Bureau of Radiation Control. But on July 13, the day she was supposed to sign her final offer letter, she said she got word from someone at the state that upper administration put the brakes on her hiring.
That person couldn't say whether the decision was connected with her ongoing dispute with FSU. The Florida Department of Health said it does not comment on personnel decisions or hiring practices as a matter of standing policy.
“I’m devastated,” she told the Democrat after getting the news.
Allen and Carnahan both described an environment in which the budget took priority over safety concerns. Carnahan said she was given that message directly by a colleague on her first day on the job in 2024.
“Safety comes third,” she said the coworker told her, “after time and money.”
Farnum-Patronis painted an entirely different picture and said Florida State has spent more than $4.3 million in remediation and cleanup at Dittmer, with additional remediation work expected as the project continues.
"The university will continue to prioritize health, safety, and compliance as it completes the remediation and renovation process," she said.
Contact Jeff Burlew at [email protected] or 850-599-2180.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Fired FSU safety official, others raise alarms over radiation exposure
