The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) announced Friday that the River Bend Nuclear Generating Station has been issued a “White” finding following an inspection.
The facility had an unplanned reactor shutdown on Dec. 25, 2014 that is believed to have occurred due to failing circuit breakers and issues with its system that delivers short-term cooling water to the reactor’s core.
“Entergy officials failed to ensure that a control room simulator used to train reactor operators was capable of reproducing all of the challenges those operators might encounter during a specific, unplanned reactor shutdown scenario,” NRC Region IV Administrator Marc Dapas said. “As a result of this training program deficiency, the operators took some actions that unnecessarily complicated the plant’s response to the unplanned shutdown on Dec. 25, 2014.”
Following a special investigation of the facility, it was found that there was a violation of NRC requirements relating to training simulations. Inspectors found that the facility did not maintain this required system. The lack of a simulation likely had operators unprepared for the event and further complicated their effort to respond to the shutdown.
A “White” finding indicates a low-to-moderate safety risk and can lead to increased regulatory and inspection activity.
