HARTSVILLE, S.C. — A control problem with a turbine at a nuclear power plant in South Carolina has shut the reactor down until the issue can be fixed. It's the third shutdown this year.
Raleigh, N.C.-based Progress Energy reported Thursday's incident at the H.B. Robinson plant in Hartsville to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Plant spokesman Andy Cole says the shutdown was triggered by a control problem with a turbine unrelated to the nuclear side of the plant. The reactor shuts down as a safety precaution whenever there are problems in any part of the plant.
Earlier this year, two fires in Robinson's electrical system led to a nearly four-month shutdown of the plant that included a planned refueling outage and some needed repairs. The reactor was restarted in mid-July.
Rolling Eyes:
I'm with you on this. Doesn't sound too good to me!!!
This is VERY reassuring to me!
You WANT shutdowns- far better than the alternative!
Shutdowns means that everything is working properly.
Do you know of any equipment, any where, that functions properly 100% of the time? If so, I have a bridge to sell you!
I work with turbines. It could have been any number of things. The turbines are turned with steam generated from the reactors. They are in no way connected to the reactor process. It could be a overspeed or electrical or any of a thousand other thing. It presents no chance of a nuclear release.
Thoughts. How many people in the US have died due to a nuclear accident? How many people have died as the result of burning fossil fuel, hard to determine but I would think many, and what is the damage to our climate if any. We have to have energy and the nuclear industry in the US is the most closely monitored industry in the world. It is clean, and I say the waste goes in the mountain in Nevada. Not nearly as bad as the tons of fossil emissions belched into the atmosphere on a daily basis, even with current standards. If we are to grow and prosper as a nation, we need nuclear power, plus we need the high paying jobs it brings. As a nation we have to stop bowing to the egoism of special interest and do what is in the best interest of all the citizens of the US.
The Augusta Chronicle ©2012. All Rights Reserved.
