NRC Finds Severe Safety Violation At Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant In Alabama

Source: ASSOCIATED PRESS

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission issued a rare red finding against the Browns Ferry nuclear power plant near Athens, Ala., after it investigated how a valve on a residual heat removal system became stuck shut. Safety regulators said only five red findings _ the most severe ranking the agency gives to problems uncovered in its inspections _ have been issued nationwide in the past decade.

In an emergency, the failure of the valve could have meant that one of the plant's emergency cooling systems would not have worked as designed. The problem, which was identified as the plant was being refueled in October 2010, was fixed before the reactor was returned to service.

"The valve was repaired prior to returning the unit to service and Browns Ferry continued to operate safely," said Victor McCree, the NRC's Region II administrator. "However, significant problems involving key safety systems warrant more extensive NRC inspection and oversight."

It was not immediately clear whether TVA officials would appeal the finding from federal regulators. Officials at the TVA had attributed the valve to a manufacturer's defect and said it inspected all similar valves in the facility to catch any problems.




Read more: http://www.newser.com/article/d9n4lfcg0/apnewsbreak-nrc-finds-severe-safety-violation-at-browns-ferry-nuclear-plant-in-ala.html

Thanks for the thread, Purveyor.

nothing to see here

move along

yup

I wonder where the defective part was manufactured.