Nebraska’s Fort Calhoun nuclear plant site flooded

Flooding on the Missouri River is threatening Nebraska’s Fort Calhoun nuclear reactor, owned and operated by the Omaha Public Power District. On June 7, news came that an electrical fire had broken out in the basement, with possible damage to containment structures. The station has been in cold shutdown since April 2011 and has completed its refueling process with 2/3 of the reactor holding older, highly radioactive fuel.
Situated at 1004 feet above sea level, the site’s water level is currently at 1005 feet 7 inches and is projected to rise to 1006 feet 4 inches above sea level according to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. According to their report last month, adequate measures and infrastructure to deal with flooding were only implemented in early 2011. The power station has been in operation since 1973 – and is licensed to run until 2033.

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