AmerenUE officials declared an “Unusual Event” at the Callaway Nuclear Plant near Fulton, Mo., at 12 noon today due to a water leak that occurred during normal maintenance operations on a water purification system inside the plant’s Auxiliary building, located adjacent to the Reactor Building. The declaration was lifted at 12:23 p.m. when the leak was isolated.
At no time did the incident present any danger to the public or plant employees. There were no injuries associated with this event and no release of radioactivity to the environment above normal operating limits. Company officials said the plant remains in normal operation, and continued to operate safely throughout the event. They added that all appropriate federal, state and local agencies were notified in accordance with plant procedures.
Unusual Event is a term established by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to describe a relatively minor occurrence at a nuclear power plant that could reduce the overall level of safety. At an Unusual Event, no action by the public is advised.
The water leak occurred from a valve in a system that processes and purifies water used in certain plant systems, and the leakage was captured and contained within the plant in another water system per design.
An Unusual Event is the least significant of four emergency classifications established by the NRC. The other categories, in order of severity, are “Alert,” “Site Area Emergency” and “General Emergency.”
AmerenUE, founded in 1902, provides electric and gas service to approximately 1.2 million customers across central and eastern Missouri, including the greater St. Louis area. UE serves 57 Missouri counties and 500 towns. The company's electric rates are among the lowest in the nation. For more information, visit www.amerenue.com.
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