The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission said Tuesday it was continuing to monitor one operational nuclear power plant and a closed facility in Nebraska amid widespread flooding in the region from the Missouri River.
“We are keeping an eye on the situation at both plants,” NRC spokesman Victor Dricks said. However, the agency said in a statement that the weather-hardened design of the facilities and emergency diesel generators installed at each are expected to prevent any potential dangers.
The Nebraska Public Power District’s (NPPD) river-side Cooper Nuclear Station, near the village of Brownville, remained operational Tuesday afternoon. The utility sustained the “notification of unusual event” declared Friday as the river reached 899.05 mean sea level at the plant, which stands at 903 feet above sea level.
As of 4 p.m. local time Tuesday, the river was at 900 feet mean sea level. “NPPD continues to produce power at our CNS facility & is operating at 100%,” according to an update on Twitter.
A notification of unusual event is the least severe of the NRC’s four-level emergency classification system. It is used for events that represent a potential safety issue or security threat, but that are not anticipated to produce a radioactive material release requiring outside response or monitoring.
The Omaha Public Power District’s (OPPD) Fort Calhoun Station, also near the Missouri River about 80 miles from the Cooper plant, closed in October 2016. Sandbags and other barriers were also placed around the OPPD facility last week. The site’s spent fuel storage pad remains several feet above water levels, and the radioactive material is kept within waterproof containers, the Omaha World-Herald reported.
The NRC has three resident inspectors at the Cooper Nuclear Station, one of whom has also been checking on Fort Calhoun during the flooding, Dricks said. The inspectors are ensuring both sites are taking necessary safety measures, including sandbagging and checking to ensure critical areas of the plants are not being flooded.
