Some of the nation’s nuclear powerplants are not prepared to deal with potential station blackouts that could result from a severe event like the simultaneous earthquake and tsunami that struck Fukushima Daiichi, officials from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission said on June 14.
Officials from the task force established to inspect and evaluate the safety of the nation’s fleet of powerplants said in their 60-day report that some of the powerplants in the United States are not prepared to cope with a total station blackout—with a loss of both power from the electrical grid as well as from emergency generators-- that could last for days, as was the case at the Japanese plant. “NRC inspectors revealed deficiencies at some plants,” said the task force’s chairman, Charlie Miller.