ML20125C877

Special Rept:On 921030,fire Zones Bypassed to Avoid Frequent Alarms During dual-unit Outage to Replace Cooling Water Pipe.Separate Fire Watches Posted for Each Ignition Source Activity & Open Penetration Door

ML20125C877
Person / Time
Site:	Prairie Island
Issue date:	12/07/1992
From:	Parker T NORTHERN STATES POWER CO.
To:	NRC OFFICE OF INFORMATION RESOURCES MANAGEMENT (IRM)
References
NUDOCS 9212140125
Download: ML20125C877 (3)

Text

-..

Northem States Power Company 414 Nicollet Mall Minneapolis, Minnesota 55401 1927 Telephone (612) 330 5500 December 7, 1992 Technical Specifications TS 3.14.A and TS 3.14.G.2 U S Nuclear Regulatory Comraission Attn:

Document Control Desk Washington, DC 2055S PRAIRIE ISLAND NUCLEAR GENERATING PLANT Docket Nos. 50 282 License Nos. DPR-42 50 306 DPR 60 Report of Plans for Alternate Provisions for Inonerable Fire Detection Instruments and Fire Barriers This letter is provided in accords.nce with Section 3.14.A and 3.14.C of the Prairie Island Technical Specifications which require that Fire Detection Instrumentation and Fire Protection Penetrations be OPERABLE whenever equipment they are protecting is required to be operable.

INOPERABLE FIRE DETECTION INSTRUMFNTATION i

Technical Specification 3.14.A states that:

Fire Detection Instrumentation 1.

The minimum fire detection instrumentation for each fire detection zone shown in Table 3,14-1 shall be OPERABLE whenever equipment in that fire detection zone is required to be OPERABLE (except as specified in 3.14.A.2).

Fire detection instruments located within containment are not required to be OPERABLE during the performance of Type A containment leakage rate tests.

2.

If specification 3.14. A.1 cannot be met:

Within one hour, establish a fire watch patrol to inspect the a.

cone with the inoperable instruments at least once per hour.

Fire zones located inside primary containment are exempt from this requirement when CONTAINMENT INTEGRITY is required.

140007 9212140125 921207 PDR ADOCK 05000282

/

g PDR

/

D.

1

/

-..- - ~..-. -.

-. _ -. = - - -. -

I 4

e Northem States Power Company USNRC

~ December 7, 1992 Page 2 e

b.

Restore the inoperable instruments to operable status'within 14 days or submit a special report to the Commission within 30 days outlining the cause of the malfunction and the plans for-l restoring the instruments to OPERABLE status.

1 On October 30, 1992, durin6 a dual unit outage, work began on the replacement of the cooling water pipe. The large amount of cutting and grinding that took place from that time forward required the detection instrumentation in some fire tones to be bypassed to avoid frequent alarms. Within an hour of the zone being bypassed, either a continuous or a roving fire watch was posted,-

depending on Technical Specification requirements.

In addition, separate fire watches were posted for each ignition source activity, por plant _ directives.

The zones will remain in bypass with the required fire watches posted until i

construction activity is complete and in any case will be restored prior to 4

either Unit 1 or 2 resuming power operation.

Since the detection instruments were not restored to OPERABLE status within the 14 days required by Technical Specification 3.14.A.2.b, a written report is required which this submittal satisfies.

INOPERABLE PENETRATION FIRE BARRIERS Technical Specification 3.14.0 states that:

Penetration Fire Barriers 1.

All penetration fire barriers in fire area boundaries protecting equipment required to be OPERABLE shall be OPERABLE (except-as specified in 3.14.G.2 below).

2.

If Specification 3.14.C.1 cannot be met within one hour:

a) establish a continuous fire watch on at least one side of the-affected penetration (s), or b) verify the OPERABILITY of the fire detectors on.at least one side of the inoperable barrier:and establish an hourly fire watch.

Restore the inoperable-penetration fire barriers to OPERABLE status within 7 daysfor submit _a special report to the Commission within 30.

days outlinin6 the cause of the inoperability and the plans and q

schedule for restoring the barriers to OPERABLE status.

-_._..r_

4 t

o o

Northern States Power Company December 7, 1992 Page 3 On October 30, 1992 a number of fire penetrations were breached to remove and install the new cooling water pipe. The penetrations to fire areas that protect safety related equipment were subsequently covered by either continuous or roving fire watches as required by Technical Specifications.

These penetrations will remain open until the cooling water project is complete and will be restored prior to Unit 1 or 2 resuming power operation.

The open penetrations also included the Unit 1 door to the control room which.

was open from November 6 to November 14, 1992 to allow cable to pass through for a control board modification.

During the time the door was open a fire watch was posted.

Since the fire penetrations were not restored to OPERABLE status within the 7 days requirement of Technical Specification 3.14.C.2, a written report is required which this submittal satisfies.

Please contact us if you require additional information.

YM4

' Thomas M Parker Director of Licensing Nuclear Cencration c: Regional Administrator - Region III, NRC Senior Resident Inspector, NRC NRR Project Manager, NRC J E Silberg P

t-

-,y-w--y

=-y-twry,--

s y.

2.-.

v,cw,..wy--we.-,w,,,

S..,

cy n-- %.e. v.-w c qw

,ve,-s,

,,yw,w,,.

,,..,.,,m,we+,,,%.w..fm,wwe,-,,m%.,,gstr,,,s-,.-e.r.we.,-

c-e...e-ww sr < t-e