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Event Notification Report for October 18, 2000

                    U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
                              Operations Center

                              Event Reports For
                           10/17/2000 - 10/18/2000

                              ** EVENT NUMBERS **

37401  37429  37433  37434  

!!!!!!!!! THIS EVENT HAS BEEN RETRACTED. THIS EVENT HAS BEEN RETRACTED  !!!!!!!
+------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
|Fuel Cycle Facility                              |Event Number:   37401       |
+------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
+------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| FACILITY: PORTSMOUTH GASEOUS DIFFUSION PLANT   |NOTIFICATION DATE: 10/02/2000|
|   RXTYPE: URANIUM ENRICHMENT FACILITY          |NOTIFICATION TIME: 22:52[EDT]|
| COMMENTS: 2 DEMOCRACY CENTER                   |EVENT DATE:        10/02/2000|
|           6903 ROCKLEDGE DRIVE                 |EVENT TIME:        15:41[EDT]|
|           BETHESDA, MD 20817    (301)564-3200  |LAST UPDATE DATE:  10/17/2000|
|    CITY:  PIKETON                  REGION:  3  +-----------------------------+
|  COUNTY:  PIKE                      STATE:  OH |PERSON          ORGANIZATION |
|LICENSE#:  GDP-2                 AGREEMENT:  N  |JOHN MADERA          R3      |
|  DOCKET:  0707002                              |BRIAN SMITH          NMSS    |
+------------------------------------------------+                             |
| NRC NOTIFIED BY:  ERIC SPAETH                  |                             |
|  HQ OPS OFFICER:  LEIGH TROCINE                |                             |
+------------------------------------------------+                             |
|EMERGENCY CLASS:          N/A                   |                             |
|10 CFR SECTION:                                 |                             |
|NCFR                     NON CFR REPORT REQMNT  |                             |
|                                                |                             |
|                                                |                             |
|                                                |                             |
|                                                |                             |
+------------------------------------------------------------------------------+

                                   EVENT TEXT                                   
+------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| HISTORICAL INFORMATION REGARDING A FAILURE TO COMPLETE X-333 LOW ASSAY       |
| WITHDRAWAL (LAW) COMPRESSOR PYROTRONIC SMOKE DETECTION SYSTEM ENGINEERING    |
| MODIFICATIONS AS DESIGNED  (24-hour report)                                  |
|                                                                              |
| The following text is a portion of a facsimile received from Portsmouth      |
| personnel:                                                                   |
|                                                                              |
| "The engineering modifications to the X-333 LAW compressor Pyrotronic smoke  |
| detection system were not completed as designed.  The modifications were     |
| intended to cause the safety system to alarm with only one smoke head firing |
| instead of requiring two smoke heads to activate the alarm.  The             |
| investigation into this matter was completed 10/02/00 at 1541 [hours].  The  |
| investigation identified that on one occasion, a LAW station compressor was  |
| in an applicable operating mode where the Pyrotronic smoke detection safety  |
| system was required to be operable and one of the heads was in fact          |
| inoperable making the system inoperable.  Operations personnel did post an   |
| immediate smoke watch to maintain [Technical Safety Requirement (TSR)]       |
| compliance."                                                                 |
|                                                                              |
| "This finding is reportable to the NRC as a 24-hour event due to the fact    |
| the equipment was required by the TSR to be available and operable and       |
| should have been operating, and no redundant equipment was available to      |
| provide the required safety function."                                       |
|                                                                              |
| "Note:  The engineering modifications were completed 10/01/00, and           |
| applicable [post-maintenance tests were completed satisfactorily]."          |
|                                                                              |
| It was reported that the inoperable head that was identified to be           |
| inoperable on 10/01/99, but this issue was not identified until the          |
| investigation was completed today (10/02/00) at 1541 hours.  It was also     |
| reported that there was nothing unusual or misunderstood and that all        |
| systems functioned as required.                                              |
|                                                                              |
| NOTE:  The X-333 building LAW station was reported to be a UF6 withdrawal    |
| station.                                                                     |
|                                                                              |
| Portsmouth personnel have notified the NRC resident inspector and plan to    |
| notify the Department of Energy site representative.                         |
|                                                                              |
| * * * UPDATE 2125EDT ON 10/17/00 FROM KURT SISLER TO S. SANDIN * * *         |
|                                                                              |
| "NRA [Nuclear Regulatory Affairs] has reviewed the basis for the above NRC   |
| event notification and determined that this event can be retracted. The      |
| following provides the basis for this conclusion.                            |
|                                                                              |
| "On October 2, 2000, the NRC was notified of a design problem which caused   |
| the LAW UF6 Smoke Detection system to be inoperable at a time when the       |
| system was required to be operable in accordance with TSR 2.5.3.3 (outside   |
| each compressor housing one smoke detector must be operable in modes II or   |
| III). The design problem resulted from the fact that Pyrotronics smoke       |
| detectors were installed in series. In this configuration, the failure of    |
| one detector could prevent the redundant detector from activating the alarm  |
| contacts in the event of a UF6 release.                                      |
|                                                                              |
| "A review was conducted by engineering to determine if LAW had ever been in  |
| Mode II or III with a failed outside compressor housing Pyrotronics          |
| detector. The review identified one occasion in the past where this was the  |
| case.  As a result of the series configuration, the remaining Pyrotronics    |
| detector would not have been able to perform its design function at that     |
| time.  Although there were CADP smoke detectors available for this area,     |
| operating procedures did not recognize that CADP smoke detectors provided    |
| backup to the Pyrotronics detectors.  Based on the fact that the Pyrotronics |
| smoke detection system was inoperable and no redundant equipment was         |
| available to perform the required safety function, the PSS notified the NRC  |
| of this past safety system failure. This safety system failure was           |
| documented on Problem Report PR-PTS-00-04649.                                |
|                                                                              |
| "A followup evaluation by engineering confirmed that there was an outside    |
| compressor housing CADP smoke detector available and operable at the time    |
| the event occurred. The evaluation also confirmed that the SAR, Table        |
| 3.2-4B, recognizes that CADP detectors provide smoke detection for outside   |
| compressor enclosures. Engineering also confirmed that CADP detectors were   |
| available and operable in all cases since March 3,1997, when any single      |
| Pyrotronics head was inoperable.                                             |
|                                                                              |
| "Based on the above, redundant outside compressor housing CADP smoke         |
| coverage was available at all times when the Pyrotronics heads were          |
| inoperable and this event may be retracted."                                 |
|                                                                              |
| The NRC resident inspector was informed.  Notified R3DO(Lanksbury) and       |
| NMSS(Holonich).                                                              |
+------------------------------------------------------------------------------+

+------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
|Power Reactor                                    |Event Number:   37429       |
+------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
+------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| FACILITY: COOPER                   REGION:  4  |NOTIFICATION DATE: 10/14/2000|
|    UNIT:  [1] [] []                 STATE:  NE |NOTIFICATION TIME: 05:14[EDT]|
|   RXTYPE: [1] GE-4                             |EVENT DATE:        10/14/2000|
+------------------------------------------------+EVENT TIME:        03:24[CDT]|
| NRC NOTIFIED BY:  WILLIAM GREEN                |LAST UPDATE DATE:  10/18/2000|
|  HQ OPS OFFICER:  LEIGH TROCINE                +-----------------------------+
+------------------------------------------------+PERSON          ORGANIZATION |
|EMERGENCY CLASS:          N/A                   |DAVE LOVELESS        R4      |
|10 CFR SECTION:                                 |                             |
|ARPS 50.72(b)(2)(ii)     RPS ACTUATION          |                             |
|AESF 50.72(b)(2)(ii)     ESF ACTUATION          |                             |
|                                                |                             |
|                                                |                             |
+-----+----------+-------+--------+-----------------+--------+-----------------+
|UNIT |SCRAM CODE|RX CRIT|INIT PWR|   INIT RX MODE  |CURR PWR|  CURR RX MODE   |
+-----+----------+-------+--------+-----------------+--------+-----------------+
|1     A/R        Y       100      Power Operation  |0        Hot Shutdown     |
|                                                   |                          |
|                                                   |                          |
+------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
                                   EVENT TEXT                                   
+------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| AUTOMATIC REACTOR SCRAM DUE TO A MAIN GENERATOR TRIP FOR UNKNOWN REASONS     |
|                                                                              |
| The following text is a portion of a facsimile received from the licensee:   |
|                                                                              |
| "At 0324 [CDT], a reactor scram occurred due to a main generator trip.       |
| Group isolations 2, 3[, and] 6 occurred due to low reactor water level.  The |
| lowest [reactor water] level recorded was -20 inches on [the] wide range     |
| level recorder.  Reactor water level recovered, and both reactor [feedwater] |
| pumps tripped on high reactor water level.  Group isolations have been       |
| verified and reset.  [The] 'A' reactor [feedwater] pump has been returned to |
| service and is being used to control water level.  [High pressure coolant    |
| injection] and [reactor core isolation cooling] did not inject and were not  |
| needed to control reactor water level.  The plant will be placed in Cold     |
| Shutdown.  The electrical grid is stable."                                   |
|                                                                              |
| The licensee stated that all control rods fully inserted and that all        |
| systems functioned as required.  The licensee also stated that alternate rod |
| insertion initiated as a result of high pressure due to the transient.  The  |
| highest pressure observed was 1,085 psi.  None of the relief valves lifted,  |
| and the main steam isolation valves remained open throughout the event.      |
| Steam is currently being dumped to the condenser.                            |
|                                                                              |
| In addition, the licensee stated that the cause of the main generator trip   |
| is currently under investigation.  There were no related surveillance or     |
| maintenance activities ongoing at the time of the event.                     |
|                                                                              |
| The licensee notified the NRC resident inspector.                            |
|                                                                              |
| * * * UPDATE  on 10/18/00 at 0428 ET by Myers taken by MacKinnon * * *       |
|                                                                              |
| A detailed review of the plant response to the scram has been conducted.     |
| This review indicated the following clarification to the initial report are  |
| needed:                                                                      |
|                                                                              |
| Alternate Rod Insertion initiated on low level, rather than high pressure.   |
| The low level was not in long enough to trip the Recirculation pumps.  The   |
| pumps trip after a 9 second delay, and the low level signal was only in for  |
| ~ 7 seconds.                                                                 |
|                                                                              |
| Initial indications were that reactor pressure had reached 1085 psig, based  |
| on pressure recorder LRPR97, the highest reading of the pressure recorders.  |
| Additional pressure recorders and the plant computer indicate  pressure      |
| reached a maximum of ~ 1068 psig.  Evaluation of the recorder indicates it   |
| is in calibration, and the "overshoot" of indicated pressure is due to       |
| mechanical characteristics of the recorder linkage.  NRC R4DO (John Pellet)  |
| notified.                                                                    |
|                                                                              |
| The NRC Resident Inspector was informed of this update by the licensee.      |
+------------------------------------------------------------------------------+

+------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
|Power Reactor                                    |Event Number:   37433       |
+------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
+------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| FACILITY: QUAD CITIES              REGION:  3  |NOTIFICATION DATE: 10/17/2000|
|    UNIT:  [1] [2] []                STATE:  IL |NOTIFICATION TIME: 12:13[EDT]|
|   RXTYPE: [1] GE-3,[2] GE-3                    |EVENT DATE:        10/16/2000|
+------------------------------------------------+EVENT TIME:        18:30[CDT]|
| NRC NOTIFIED BY:  DARYL NOHR                   |LAST UPDATE DATE:  10/17/2000|
|  HQ OPS OFFICER:  STEVE SANDIN                 +-----------------------------+
+------------------------------------------------+PERSON          ORGANIZATION |
|EMERGENCY CLASS:          N/A                   |ROGER LANKSBURY      R3      |
|10 CFR SECTION:                                 |                             |
|HFIT 26.73               FITNESS FOR DUTY       |                             |
|                                                |                             |
|                                                |                             |
|                                                |                             |
+-----+----------+-------+--------+-----------------+--------+-----------------+
|UNIT |SCRAM CODE|RX CRIT|INIT PWR|   INIT RX MODE  |CURR PWR|  CURR RX MODE   |
+-----+----------+-------+--------+-----------------+--------+-----------------+
|1     N          N       0        Refueling        |0        Refueling        |
|2     N          Y       95       Power Operation  |95       Power Operation  |
|                                                   |                          |
+------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
                                   EVENT TEXT                                   
+------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| 24-HOUR FITNESS-FOR-DUTY REPORT INVOLVING A CONTRACT SUPERVISOR              |
|                                                                              |
| A contract supervisor was determined to be under the influence of alcohol    |
| during a test for cause.  The individual's access to the plant has been      |
| terminated.  Contact the Headquarters Operations Officers for additional     |
| details.                                                                     |
+------------------------------------------------------------------------------+

+------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
|Power Reactor                                    |Event Number:   37434       |
+------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
+------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| FACILITY: WATERFORD                REGION:  4  |NOTIFICATION DATE: 10/17/2000|
|    UNIT:  [3] [] []                 STATE:  LA |NOTIFICATION TIME: 22:15[EDT]|
|   RXTYPE: [3] CE                               |EVENT DATE:        10/17/2000|
+------------------------------------------------+EVENT TIME:        19:53[CDT]|
| NRC NOTIFIED BY:  BRUCE PROCTOR                |LAST UPDATE DATE:  10/17/2000|
|  HQ OPS OFFICER:  STEVE SANDIN                 +-----------------------------+
+------------------------------------------------+PERSON          ORGANIZATION |
|EMERGENCY CLASS:          N/A                   |JOHN PELLET          R4      |
|10 CFR SECTION:                                 |                             |
|ADAS 50.72(b)(2)(i)      DEG/UNANALYZED COND    |                             |
|                                                |                             |
|                                                |                             |
|                                                |                             |
+-----+----------+-------+--------+-----------------+--------+-----------------+
|UNIT |SCRAM CODE|RX CRIT|INIT PWR|   INIT RX MODE  |CURR PWR|  CURR RX MODE   |
+-----+----------+-------+--------+-----------------+--------+-----------------+
|3     N          N       0        Cold Shutdown    |0        Cold Shutdown    |
|                                                   |                          |
|                                                   |                          |
+------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
                                   EVENT TEXT                                   
+------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| INDICATION OF RCS PRESSURE BOUNDARY LEAKAGE DISCOVERED DURING INSPECTION OF  |
| PRESSURIZER HEATER SLEEVE                                                    |
|                                                                              |
| "A SMALL AMOUNT OF BORIC ACID WAS DISCOVERED IN THE AREA AROUND PRESSURIZER  |
| HEATER SLEEVE NUMBER F4 DURING A BARE METAL INSPECTION PERFORMED ON          |
| 10/17/00.  THE BORIC ACID IS BELIEVED TO BE EVIDENCE OF PRIMARY STRESS       |
| CORROSION CRACKING OF THE INCONEL ALLOY 600 HEATER SLEEVE.  THE BORIC ACID   |
| IS BELIEVED TO BE EVIDENCE OF REACTOR COOLANT SYSTEM (RCS) PRESSURE BOUNDARY |
| LEAKAGE, CONSTITUTING A DEGRADATION OF THE RCS PRESSURE BOUNDARY."           |
|                                                                              |
| THE LICENSEE INFORMED THE NRC RESIDENT INSPECTOR.                            |
+------------------------------------------------------------------------------+


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