The South Carolina site plays a key role in maintaining America’s nuclear arsenal, including processing tritium for warheads
A fire broke out at a major nuclear research complex in South Carolina that supports the US nuclear weapons program, the Department of Energy has said.
The blaze started at Savannah River National Laboratory, part of the Savannah River Site (SRS) near Aiken, on Wednesday evening and was subsequently extinguished, officials said. “No contamination has been reported outside the affected facility,” the department said in a statement.
Emergency protocols were activated, with employees not involved in response efforts ordered to suspend operations and shelter in place as a precaution. The site was closed to incoming traffic, while nearby rail, river and air traffic was restricted.
Officials lifted the emergency declaration at 9:45pm, saying radiation surveys had found no detectable contamination. Protective measures were lifted, and the site was cleared to resume normal operations on Thursday.
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