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Comment: Needs cleanup and more references for establishing notability. The Herald (Benison) (talk) 07:04, 19 February 2024 (UTC)
On 24 July 1964 at around 6:06pm, a fatal criticality accident occurred at the United Nuclear Corporation Fuels Recovery Plant near Wood River Junction.[1][2]
Opened on 16 March 1964, the nuclear fuel recycling plant was designed to recover highly enriched uranium from scrap material left over from fuel element production.[3][4] Technician Robert Peabody, intending to add a bottle of trichloroethane to remove organics from a tank containing radioactive uranium-235 in a sodium carbonate solution, mistakenly added a bottle of uranium solution instead. This produced a criticality excursion accompanied by a flash of light. About 10 liters (2.2 imp gal; 2.6 U.S. gal) out of 40 to 50 liters (8.8 to 11.0 imp gal; 11 to 13 U.S. gal) of the tank's contents were splashed out of the tank.[3][5] This criticality exposed the 37-year-old Peabody to a fatal radiation dose exceeding 10,000 rad.[3][6][7] He died 49 hours later from acute radiation syndrome.[7][8]
Ninety minutes later, a second excursion happened when a plant manager returned to the building and turned off the agitator, exposing himself and another administrator to doses of up to 100 rad (1 Gy).[3][6][9]
The local Hope Valley Ambulance Squad (HVAS) responded to render aid, initially transporting Peabody to Westerly Hospital; the hospital was not equipped for such a patient, so the ambulance was redirected to Rhode Island Hospital in Providence.[8][10]
As a result of the incident, the Atomic Energy Commission charged UNC with 14 violations of nuclear safety regulations, however no fines were ever levied against the company.[8] After decontamination, the plant reopened on 1965 and remained in operation until it was decommissioned in 1980.[8] A 1979 aerial survey found radiation exposure rates in the area to be consistent with natural background radiation, except directly over the UNC facility.[11]
Although commonly referred to as taking place in Wood River Junction, the incident actually occurred just across the river in Charlestown.[2]
References
edit- ^ Compliance Investigation Report, Volume 3 — Supplemental Report with exhibits (PDF) (Report). United States Atomic Energy Commission. 16 September 1964.
- ^ a b Allison, W. L.; Shapiro, H. M.; Clemonss, P. E. Jr.; Edelmann, A.; Nakache, F. R. (21 August 1964). Nuclear Incident at United Nuclear Corporation Wood River Junction Rhode Island July 24 1964 (PDF) (Report). New Haven, CT: United Nuclear Corp.
- ^ a b c d McLaughlin, Thomas P.; et al. (2000). A Review of Criticality Accidents (PDF). Los Alamos: Los Alamos National Laboratory. pp. 33–34. LA-13638. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 5 November 2012.
- ^ Carini, Frank (6 January 2016). "Tragic Death Gives Way to Environmental Rebirth". ecoRI News. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
- ^ Johnston, Wm. Robert. "Wood River criticality accident, 1964". Archived from the original on 18 April 2017. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
- ^ a b Nakache, F. R.; Shapiro, Mathew M. (12 November 1964). The Nuclear Aspects of the Accidental Criticality at Wood River Junction, Rhode Island (PDF) (Report). New Haven, CT: United Nuclear Corp.
- ^ a b Goans, R E; Wald, N (1 January 2005). "Radiation accidents with multi-organ failure in the United States". British Journal of Radiology: 41–46. doi:10.1259/bjr/27824773.
- ^ a b c d "Nuclear Fatality at Wood River Junction | Yankee Classic". newengland.com. Yankee Publishing, Inc. 6 July 2022. Retrieved 19 August 2023. (Excerpted from Powell, Dennis E. (October 1994). "Incident at Wood River Junction". Yankee.)
- ^ Shapiro, M. M.; Nakache, F. R.; Soodak, H. (16 June 1965). Some Problems and Advances in the State-of-the-Art in the Analysis of the Wood River Junction, Rhode Island Accidental Criticality Excursion (PDF) (Report). White Plains, NY: United Nuclear Corp. doi:10.2172/4450054 – via U.S. Department of Energy Office of Scientific and Technical Information.
- ^ Compliance Investigation Report, Volume 1 — Report details (PDF) (Report). United States Atomic Energy Commission. 14 August 1964.
- ^ Bluitt, C.M. (May 1981). An aerial radiological survey of the area surrounding the UNC Recovery Systems Facility, Wood River Junction, Rhode Island (PDF) (Report). EG&G Energy Measurements Group. doi:10.2172/6316102 – via U.S. Department of Energy Office of Scientific and Technical Information.
Category:Radiation accidents and incidents Category:Nuclear accidents and incidents in the United States Category:Nuclear history of the United States Category:1964 industrial disasters Category:1964 in Rhode Island Category:1964 in the environment Category:1964 disasters in the United States Category:Disasters in Rhode Island Category:United Nuclear Corporation