Duke Energy explains recent leak at Oconee Nuclear Station

Duke Energy officials say site operators did not take all possible precautions to prevent a radioactive water leak that led to shutdown of a South Carolina nuclear reactor. The Associated Press reports that the comments came during a U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission meeting in Atlanta on Thursday. Engineers and regulators examined the development of a crack in a high-pressure injector line that led to a leak that forced the shutdown at the Oconee Nuclear Station last November. The shutdown came after engineers detected flaws in the airtight, steel-lined concrete containment building designed to prevent radiation from leaking into the air or ground. Officials said there was no threat to employees or the public, and the crack was quickly repaired. Regulators made no decisions public Thursday about the safety significance of the leak.