Water leak at Pilgrim Nuclear Power Plant, Massachusetts

[Ian David]

GLIDE Number: NC-20070321-10439-USA
Date / time: 21/03/2007 04:30:35
Event: Nuclear Event
Area: North-America
Country: USA
State/County: State of Massachusetts
City: Manomet region
Number of Deads: None or unknow
Number of Injured: None or unknow
Damage level: Minor

Description:
The Pilgrim nuclear power plant was shut down at about 5 p.m. Saturday so operators could investigate a water leak that was dripping into the containment vessel around the reactor.

The problem has been fixed and the plant was expected to be restored to full power today, plant spokesman David Tarantino said. The incident was reported to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The leaking valve was part of the reactor water-filtering system, investigators said.

Tarantino said that during the day Saturday, operators noted that the amount of water leaking into the plant’s dry well was increasing at a rate of less than a half gallon every four hours.

Some valves are designed to leak into the dry well, but there was no apparent reason for the increase. ‘‘To be absolutely positive you have to go in there and see the water dripping,’’ Tarantino said. He said the plant began powering back up at about 8 a.m. yesterday. Pilgrim will be closed next month for maintenance.

More:
http://hisz.rsoe.hu/alertmap/woalert_read.php?lang=eng&id=10439