Fire Safety Closely Monitored at U.S. Nuclear Power Facilities

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Safety systems at nuclear power plants are varied and multiple in order to address foreseen and unforeseen events and keep plant personnel and the general public safe from a catastrophic radiation release.

One component of a nuclear facility safety system is the plant fire protection system, which is composed of three major parts:

• Taking measures to minimize the likelihood that fires will occur.
• Establishing fire protection systems such as sprinklers, fire pumps and hoses, fire extinguishers and fire barriers, as well as training plant personnel in case a fire occurs in order to limit fire damage.
• Redundant operational safety systems such that are unlikely to be damaged by a single fire.

Today's nuclear power plants are divided into fire cells, or compartments, which reduce the risk of the spread of fire, corrosive gases, heat, smoke and radioactive contamination from one area to another. The main fire cells in a nuclear power plant are the containment building, turbine building, electrical equipment building, auxiliary systems building, and radioactive waste storage area.

All nuclear power plants are subject to the strict fire protection requirements established by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to protect critical systems, in order to maintain the reactor and to shut it down safely in the event of a conflagration large enough to threaten plant safety.

If a fire occurs, several systems are activated either automatically or manually in the individual fire cell, such as smoke detection and ventilation to remove toxic fumes, limit damage to electrical equipment, remove heat and assure access to fire-fighting personnel; automatic or manually operated fire suppression systems; and the organization and response of the plant fire brigade, which all plant personnel are trained to participate in.

Communication with management, local and state representatives, and communities, as well as off-site emergency response organizations, can be called whenever back-up assistance is needed.

Fire protection systems at nuclear power plants are updated frequently, as well as audited by the NRC annually or semiannually in order to assess the plants' fire protection equipment, program implementation and training, and to verify that the level of safety is consistent with NRC guidelines.

Fire protection is just one of many safety systems designed in nuclear power plants to address the concerns of plant personnel, the public, and state and federal officials.

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