Just days after the largest earthquake in the Mid-Atlantic in 67 years, nuclear plant operators along the East Coast are preparing for a hurricane anticipated to cause severe winds and power outages in several states.
As of Thursday evening, the National Weather Service had issued a hurricane warning for the North Carolina coast and a hurricane watch from Virginia to northern New Jersey. The storm is expected to reach North Carolina on Saturday as a category 2 hurricane with winds up to 110 miles per hour.
More than a dozen nuclear plants are located in areas expected to see severe weather in the coming days. Constellation Energy Nuclear group said in a release that it was preparing its Calvert Cliffs plant in Maryland and its Nine Mile Point and R.E. Ginna plants in New York for the storm by removing on-site trailers and inspecting outdoor areas for equipment that could become airborne in heavy wind. Plant crews also are topping off emergency diesel fuel tanks and evaluating roof conditions, according to the release.
PSEG, which operates three reactors along the Delaware River in New Jersey, and Entergy, which operates New York’s Indian Point plant, and other utilities reported taking similar precautions. Nuclear plants are designed to withstand hurricanes, and a Progress Energy spokesman told Reuters that company’s Brunswick plant in North Carolina is engineered to withstand winds up to 128 miles per hour.
Utilities and weather agencies also warned customers of potential outages caused by the storm, with severe weather anticipated in many urban areas and winds up to 75 miles per hour possible in New York City.
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UPDATE: Entergy released a statement early this morning offering further details of the utility's hurricane planning:
New Orleans, La. – Entergy Nuclear’s
Indian Point Energy Center in New York, Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station in
Massachusetts and Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station in Vermont are continuing
to track Hurricane Irene’s path and potential for high winds and rainfall as the
storm approaches New York and New England.
“Our nuclear plants are designed and
built to withstand extreme weather,” said John Herron, president and CEO of
Entergy Nuclear. “Our team of expert personnel worked diligently this past week
to ensure our plants are prepared for any impacts resulting from this storm.”
Entergy employees at each site began
preparing for the storm earlier this week and work is continuing to ensure each
plant is prepared for the worst conditions the storm is expected to deliver.
In addition to coordinating with the
Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and the
New York Independent System Operator, preparations for the storm include
reviewing emergency staffing plans and verifying emergency communications
sources such as satellite phones and radios, communicating with local and state
emergency response organizations, and securing outside material and equipment
around the plant sites.
Back-up diesel-powered generators are
available to provide electricity to plant safety systems if power from outside
sources is lost. In addition, in the event of a loss of offsite power, plants
are designed to safely shut down should they need to. Entergy Nuclear operators
at each site have ensured sufficient diesel generator fuel and water as part of
preparations to deal with an extended loss of off-site power in the event that
damage to area transmission lines interrupts that power source.
Under severe weather procedures,
plant operators monitoring area wind speeds may actually take precautionary
actions to begin shutting the plants down prior to those winds reaching the
site.