The Omaha World-Herald has reported that an OPPD worker suffered burns to his arms and face as he fought a fire started as a water pump was being re-fueled at the flooded Ft. Calhoun atomic reactor. While an OPPD spokesman downplayed the significance of the fire to the overall safety of the nuclear power plant, it is yet another indication of the mounting risks at a severely flooded atomic reactor.
On June 26th, when Ft. Calhoun's Aqua Dam collapsed, the inrushing flood waters spilled fuel oil for water pumps, causing a fire hazard that OPPD had not anticipated. The utility's incident report to NRC, entitled "OFFSITE NOTIFICATION DUE TO PETROLEUM RELEASE TO THE MISSOURI RIVER," stated:
"At approximately 0125 CDT, the AquaDam providing enhanced flood protection for Fort Calhoun Station Unit 1 failed. This resulted in approximately 100 gallons of petroleum being released into the river after a protective barrier was breached and many fuel containers were washed out to the river. The fuel/oil containers were staged around the facility to supply fuel for pumps which remove water within the flood containment barriers. The spill was reported to the State of Nebraska at 10:45 AM CDT on 6/26/2011."
As John Sullivan of ProPublica reported, on June 9th yet another fire at Ft. Calhoun knocked out electricity to run cooling water circulation at the high-level radioactive waste storage pool for 90 minutes, causing the pool water to heat up 2 degrees. Sullivan had earlier reported the widespread violation of fire safety regulations throughout the nuclear power industry, as had Susan Stranahan at the Center for Public Integrity's iWatch News.