The Nation : Reactor Reported Briefly Out of Control

A nuclear reactor used in weapons production went out of control briefly last week, apparently as operators seeking to restart it after a four-month shutdown were boosting power to sustain a reaction, according to the Energy Department and other sources, the Washington Post reported. The reactor, one of three bomb-production plants at the Savannah River Plant in South Carolina, was ordered shut down because of what plant managers called “concern within the peer-review process.” The incident alarmed DOE safety officials, largely because Savannah River operators continued to run the reactor during the spikes (essentially abrupt and unexpected increases in temperature and pressures) and even increased power, although the reactor had behaved unpredictably in earlier stages of the start-up. One official called the episode a “complete collapse” of safety procedures that, in other circumstances, could have resulted in a disaster the magnitude of the 1986 nuclear accident in Chernobyl in the Soviet Union. Sources said the spikes were short-lived and did not pose the threat of a serious accident, although they could have resulted in severe damage to the reactor.