UPDATED AT BOTTOM OF POST
From Reuters:
Unusually high levels of radioactive particles were found at an underground nuclear waste site in New Mexico on Saturday in what a spokesman said looked like the first real alarm since the plant opened in 1999.
U.S. officials were testing for radiation in air samples at the site where radioactive waste, such as plutonium used in defense research and nuclear weapon making, is dumped half a mile below ground in an ancient salt formation.
“They (air monitors) have alarmed in the past as a false positive because of malfunctions, or because of fluctuations in levels of radon (a naturally occurring radioactive gas),” Department of Energy spokesman Roger Nelson said.
“But I believe it’s safe to say we’ve never seen a level like we are seeing. We just don’t know if it’s a real event, but it looks like one,” he said.
UPDATE - AOW reminds me that there was a fire at this Nuclear Waste Facility just a little over 10 days ago:
Crews declared a blaze at an underground nuclear repository in southeastern New Mexico snuffed out and determined that there was minimal damage after a truck hauling salt caught fire and prompted an evacuation.
Two mine rescue teams went into the earth at the Carlsbad-area Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, where the federal government seals away its low-grade nuclear waste, including plutonium-contaminated clothing and tools.
The teams determined the fire was no longer burning and reported the air was clear and safe to breathe, a news release and Susan Scott, a spokeswoman who answered an emergency line, said late Wednesday.
All employees were evacuated from the underground site after the fire broke out about 11 a.m. Wednesday, and none of the radioactive waste was affected, plant officials said.
Six people were treated for smoke inhalation and released a short while later. Early Thursday, officials said the situation was stable and firefighting foam was applied to prevent embers from reigniting.
Emergency response efforts wrapped up but an investigation is underway in an effort to get the plant safely back online, a statement said. A phone call to the plant early Thursday went unanswered.
No information was released on what caused the blaze or when the site would reopen.
5 comments:
How much is this story being covered by the media? I've seen the information at a few places online, but not elsewhere. Maybe I missed it?
First thought . . .who had access and was access compromised by this administrations recent purges/replacements?
Wasn't there some kind of major fire there a few months back?
You're right. I just updated the post.
Strange about that fire.
I wonder how bad it was.
Salt itself isn't very flammable.
So, what made that truck catch on fire?
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