Officials at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico are investigating a June 15 furnace fire inside a glovebox at the laboratory’s plutonium facility after operators observed smoke and flames during recovery and purification operations.
The incident prompted an emergency response but caused no injuries, radiological release or damage beyond the affected equipment, according to an occurrence report by the Department of Energy Program Office emailed to the Exchange Monitor.
The fire occurred inside a furnace located within a glovebox, where two operators noticed smoke and flames during routine operations.
One operator immediately shut off power to the furnace and activated a nearby fire alarm, automatically initiating an emergency response before both operators evacuated the building, according to the report.The operator also notified the facility’s operations center, which directed a building-wide fire alarm response.
The Los Alamos Fire Department responded to the scene and monitored the furnace while the fire burned itself out. After determining the situation was stable, firefighters returned control of the facility to laboratory management.
Three operators were evaluated by the laboratory’s occupational medicine staff and were released without restrictions. The laboratory reported no adverse impacts to personnel, the facility or the environment, according to the DOE report.
Laboratory officials continued reviewing the incident after the initial response. On June 22, facility management conducted a second fact-finding meeting to further examine the event and confirmed its official classification.
The affected glovebox remains out of service until corrective actions have been completed. The incident has been entered into the laboratory’s internal issues management system.
Laboratory officials have not publicly identified the cause of the fire, and the investigation is continuing to determine what led to the incident and what corrective actions are needed before the equipment is returned to service.