nuclear-news

How wildlife can, and does, damage nuclear reactors

Wildlife vs U.S. nuclear plants: Flies short-out transformer — Pelican starts emergency generator — Snake causes fire — Bird shuts down reactor… more http://enenews.com/wildlife-incidents-at-u-s-nuclear-plants-flies-short-out-power-transformer-pelican-starts-emergency-generator-snake-causes-fire-fish-block-water-intake-more
  March 27th, 2013
 Title: Fission Stories #133: Mayflies, and Squirrels, and Rats 
Source: All Things Nuclear (Union of Concerned Scientists)
Author: Dave Lochbaum, director, Nuclear Safety Project
Date: March 26, 2013

[…] one wonders about the havoc that an individual saboteur or a team of bad guys might be able to cause by malicious intent. Could well-trained and heavily armed attackers cause more devastation than a furry little squirrel or a pesky rat? […]

Selected incidents at U.S. nuclear plants:

Pelican started an emergency diesel generator
Bird caused […] shut down […] after it landed in the switchyard containing electrical cables connecting the plant to its offsite electrical power grid
Snake slithering onto an overhead power cable […] caused a short that caught the wooden pole holding the cable on fire
“A large number of small forage fish” blocked the screens at the intake structure
Squirrel caused an electrical short in the main power transformer.
Bunch of jellyfish blocked the screens at the intake station
Mayflies caused a power transformer to short out

Full report here      

See also: Tepco: Animal caused extended power outage at Fukushima Daiichi — Nearly a foot long (PHOTO)

March 29, 2013 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | safety, USA