Entergy still looking for cause of Indian Point Nuclear Plant fire
Nearly two weeks after a failed transformer caused a fire and a spill of dialectric fluid, Entergy is still investigating what may have caused it.
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Indian Point Nuclear Plant. Credit: Entergy |
The incident occurred May 9 at Entergy's Indian Point Energy facility, which is located about 30 miles north of New York City in Buchanan, New York, and houses two nuclear power plants -- Units 2 and 3. The combined capacity of the plant is 2,000 megawatts (MW), and supplies about 25 percent of energy in New York City and Westchester County.
"Preliminary assessments of the moat system designed to catch the transformer's dielectric fluid following a transformer failure, along with drains and other areas around the transformer, indicate as of today approximately 8,300 gallons of dielectric fluid have been recovered or were combusted during the fire," Entergy said in a statement. "Entergy will vigorously investigate and seek to recover as much of the remaining approximately 16,000 gallons as possible. Visual observations in the discharge canal and the Hudson River have not indicated significant quantities of transformer oil, and further investigation and aggressive recovery efforts at the site will continue."
The company explained that the transformer that failed is located outdoors, and therefore outside any buildings that might contain radioactive materials. Unit 2 of the plant is operating at full power, but Unit 3 remains in shutdown mode.
The fire was extinguished by an automatic sprinkler system and onsite firefighters.
"In addition, Entergy environmental professionals and contractors swiftly responded following the event and placed protective oil booms in the plant's discharge canal and river to capture fluid and mitigate potential releases to the river," the utility said. "Teams were also dispatched to begin monitoring for any fluid that may have reached the River."
Entergy said the investigation, as well as clean-up efforts, are likely to take several months, and will happen in coordination with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC).
There are also environmental mitigation crews on-site conducting investigations to identify potential transformer oil onsite, and have installed additional mitigative protective measures in the plant's discharge canal to prevent any potential release of transformer oil to the river while the investigation continues.
The dialectric fluid in the failed transformer was used as an electrical insulator and coolant, and contained no polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB).
"Any spill of transformer oil to the environment is not in accordance with our standards, and Entergy will be accountable for any violation of our responsibility," said Bill Mohl, president of Entergy Wholesale Commodities, in a statement. "We take this commitment very seriously, which is why we have been working closely with the U.S. Coast Guard and NYSDEC to identify and respond to reports of transformer oil in the river in order to minimize any potential impact. We will continue to be open and transparent throughout the process, provide regular updates to our stakeholders, and continue our commitment to good environmental stewardship. We also are committed to learning from and evaluating our emergency preparedness program in response to this event."
There are also engineers and transformer experts on site working to find a cause -- and Entergy said they expect to have an answer by June 30.
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