(
Reuters) - Power company
Exelon Corp said Wednesday it ended an alert at the
Oyster Creek nuclear power plant in
New Jersey after high water from Hurricane Sandy returned to normal levels.
Oyster Creek, the nation's oldest operating reactor, declared the rare "alert" Monday night after water levels at the plant rose more than 6.5 feet above normal, potentially affecting the "water intake structure" that pumps cooling water through the plant.
The pumps were not essential to keep the reactor cool since the plant has been shut for planned refueling since October 22.
Exelon, however, was concerned that if the water rose more than 7 feet it could submerge the service water pump motor used to cool the water in the spent fuel pool, potentially forcing the company to use emergency water supplies from the in-house fire suppression system to keep the used uranium fuel rods in the pool from overheating, the
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) said Monday night.
...