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Risky nuclear plant problem not detected for 19 months

Diablo had an undetected problem for 19 months New Times BY ROBERT A. McDONALD Two switches had been misaligned for 19 months at the Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant, tests revealed last week. The error could have made it difficult for operators to cool the reactor had there had been a reactor emergency, a Nuclear Regulatory Commission official said.

The misaligned switches could have prevented a back-up cooling pump from being turned on from the control room, said Michael Peck, the NRC senior regulatory inspector at the plant. Workers would have been forced to switch on the pump manually, a step that would have delayed the operation of the cooling pump during an emergency. The misaligned switches could have diminished the ability of the critical backup cooling system to replace coolant during a breach of the reactor vessel.

October 30, 2009 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | safety, USA | antinuclear, nuclear, nuclear secrecy, nuclear wastes