On Tuesday the Nuclear Regulatory Commission began a special inspection at Exelon's Oyster Creek nuclear plant, where Sandy's storm surge caused an alert at its offline reactor.While the NRC emphasized the event posed no immediate safety concerns, Region 1 Administrator Bill Dean said in an NRC release, “There are certain observations involving procedures and on-site activities that surfaced during the event warranting a closer look. This special inspection will focus on those areas to gain a better understanding of how the intake water level information was monitored and communicated during the event.”Oyster Creek operates a single 619 megawatt General Electric type 2 boiling water reactor on the New Jersey coast about 55 miles south of Manhattan. When the storm made landfall, a combination of wind, tide and storm surge at the plant's intake structure pushed water above levels requiring unusual event and alert declarations. A concurrent power outage also caused the reactor protection system to activate and emergency diesel generators to start. The reactor was down for refueling at the time and remained in a safe condition throughout. An Exelon spokesman reported that the plant itself did not flood. Nonetheless, water levels were high enough to provoke concern that they might reach heights capable of inundating one of the redundant systems that provide spent-fuel cooling.Adding to the previous work of resident inspectors, the special inspection team will review circumstances surrounding the event declarations caused by the rising water. Their report will be available within 45 days of its completion.
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