Another Nuclear Reactor At Limerick Shuts Down Unexpectedly

LIMERICK, Pa. (CBS) - For the second time in one week, a nuclear reactor at Limerick has shutdown unexpectedly.

Amy Schilpp, spokesperson for plant owner Exelon, says the reactor shut down, automatically, after the turbine in Unit one tripped offline, "At this point in time, we don't know why the turbine tripped offline. We're investigating that cause, but the turbine tripping is one of the conditions that -- as a safety precaution -- requires the reactor to automatically shutdown."

Schilpp says there were no injuries and there is no risk to the public. "On Sunday, unit two automatically shutdown after a turbine trip," and Schilpp says that incident was caused by a faulty control valve. "We made those repairs and restored the unit to service and (it) should be at 100% just as planned, so unit two is completely unaffected by the shutdown of unit one.

As for the power supply, Schilpp says it should not suffer because of the shutdown, "We are fortunate that we don't have to think about that so much as it's nowhere near as hot and humid as it was over this past weekend, so I don't expect the demand to be as high."

Schilpp says unit one should return to service after workers make repairs and submit a restart plan. That could take several days.

Reported by Pat Loeb, KYW Newsradio 1060