One Dead, Three Injured In Arkansas Nuclear Power Plant Accident

March 31 2013

By Eric Brown
International Business Times

An accident at an Arkansas nuclear power plant resulted in the death of one worker and the injury of three others Sunday. No nuclear material was released.

A generator was being moved out of the turbine building at Russellville’s Arkansas Nuclear One power plant when it fell, crushing one of the workers, Reuters reported. The injured workers were quickly taken to a hospital.

“We are deeply saddened by what has happened today,” said Jeff Forbes, the chief nuclear officer of the power plant’s parent Entergy Corp. (NYSE:ETR), the Associated Press reported. “Our greatest sympathy is with the family and friends of the employee who lost his life, and with those who sustained injuries.”

While the accident resulted in injuries and a loss of life, Arkansas Nuclear One’s owner was quick to note that the accident was not nuclear in nature and there is no danger of nuclear fallout.

The accident was labeled an “unusual event,” the lowest of four levels of emergency situations defined by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

“There was no nuclear release of any kind,” Reuters quoted Arkansas Health Department representative Ed Barham as saying.

Both of Arkansas Nuclear One’s nuclear generators were shut down after the accident.

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