19.09.2007 // Information Department of Leningrad NPP

Complex emergency training at Leningrad NPP started with a “falling crane” situation

Complex emergency training has set off at Leningrad NPP today.

During the first hour the trainers have responded to five situations:

— a crawler crane has fallen on a cable rack leaving the pump station of unit 1 without electricity. The reactor of the unit has been stopped;

— the pipeline of the main condenser of unit 1 has broken down. The automatic system has stopped the unit’s diesel generator;

— unit 2 has caught fire. Two people have been wounded. The trainees are fighting the fire. The victims have been taken to hospital;

— some fuel assemblies have begun to leak. The radiation background at the plant has risen to 200 mSv/h, which is far above the norm;

— the water pipeline has broken down. The trainees are repairing it.

Leningrad NPP is ready for emergency.

According to the scenario, the head of Rosatom, the director general of Rosenergoatom, the head of the REA Emergency Response Group, the governor of Leningrad region, the mayor of Sosnovy Bor and the director of Rostekhnadzor have been informed of the accident.

The REA Emergency Response Croup and the crisis centers of REA and Rosatom are jointly localizing the accident.

All the safety systems of Leningrad NPP are on alert. The radiation specialists are monitoring the radiation situation at the plant and in the 30-km zone.

The personnel have been recommended to use means of individual protection and iodine and have been taken to special shelters. The residents of Sosnovy Bor are being evacuated to suburbs.

The local road companies and drivers have been warned that the roads leading to Sosnovy Bor are busy.

Mass media have warned that all the people living in the area should take potassium iodine: adults — one pill, children (5–14) – half, children under 5 – quarter.

If they don’t have pills they can drink water with iodine: 44 drops per glass for adults, 22 drops for children and 11 drops for babies.  

The Emergency Committee of Leningrad NPP has opened a hot line:  8 (813–69)55–555 and 8 921 989 53 11 (mob)

Note

Since Apr 1 2002 Leningrad Nuclear Power Plant has been the branch of Federal State Unitary Enterprise “Russian State Concern for Production of Electric and Thermal Power at Nuclear Power Plants” (Rosenergoatom Concern).

The plant has four units with RBMK-1000 reactors with a total capacity of 4000 MW. It employs 5,977 people: 5,635 industrial employees and 342 non-industrial employees and pays them 26,695 RUR a month: 27,306 RUR to industrial personnel and 11,380 RUR to non-industrial personnel.