US Babcock Wilcox faces US$35,000 fine in nuke box leak

BABCOCK & WILCOX, a company that handles enriched uranium for nuclear fuel, faces a fine of US$35,000 because it delayed reporting a uranium leak in a container it for more than two hours after its discovery.

The radioactive chemical was found when workers at the Lynchburg, Virginia, facility spotted traces of it in oil on a saw used to cut fuel components discharged into a container, said the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

The facility went into the lowest emergency status of alert for five hours, said the commission, reported The Associated Press.

The commission's report flagged up three further violations of procedure but will not propose civil penalties for these.

(Source: www.schednet.com)