Cheshire Cat Photo Blog(...said the Cat: 'we're all mad here....')

A small fire occurred yesterday, April 20, at 12:49 PM on the non-radiological side of the Unit 2 nuclear reactor. The fire did not involve any radioactive material, and it was quickly extinguished. As you will recall from our last exciting episode, BOTH the Unit 2 and Unit 3 reactors have been shut down since January 31, as the Nuclear Regulatory Commission examines unexpected wear on comparatively new steam generator tubes for the two reactors.

Although the Nuclear Regulatory Commission initially reported that the type of wear at Unit 2 was different from the unusual type of wear on tubes at Unit 3, which was caused by tubes vibrating excessively and rubbing against each other. On Wednesday, Southern California Edison, which operates the power plant, said that it had found:

“… additional minor tube wear” in Unit 2 of a type that is “similar to the type of wear that was seen in Unit 3, but at a very low level.” The power company, which operates San Onofre, is conducting additional inspections at Unit 2. San Onofre has been out of commission since Jan. 31, when a tube in Unit 3 sprung a leak, releasing a small amount of radioactive steam.”

Last week, Nuclear Regulatory Commission Chairman Gregory Jaczko toured the plant last week along with Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Vista).

Jaczko assured reporters, anti-nuclear activists and local elected officials that the plant would remain shut down until the problems are thoroughly investigated and fixed, although Issa expressed hope that the plant would be up and running again before summer.

Ahhhhh yes! Republicans! 😉

Edison and NRC officials have not said what they believe is causing the wear. A report commissioned by the advocacy group Friends of the Earth contended that design changes in the new generators — including a different alloy used to make the tubes, a change in the flow rate, the addition of more tubes and changes in the support structures that hold the tubes in place — probably caused the issues.

-Bill at

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