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| Start date | Reporting criterion | Title | Event description | System | LER | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ENS 54991 | 11 November 2020 00:27:00 | 10 CFR 50.72(b)(2)(xi), Notification to Government Agency or News Release | Inadvertent/Malfunctioning Siren Activation | On November 10, 2020, at 1827 CST, River Bend Station (RBS) received a report of a single inadvertent and malfunctioning siren which is part of the Emergency Notification System. The siren was heard by residences in the area and they contacted local agencies, who in turn contacted RBS. This siren activation was not related to any condition or event and no emergency has occurred at RBS. RBS has notified the appropriate authorities and the Governor's Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness of the inadvertent siren activation. RBS has sent a team to locally disable the siren to prevent any further inadvertent sounding and it is now disabled. A press release from Entergy is not planned at this time. The NRC resident has been notified of the event. The licensee also notified the East and West Feliciana Parish Authorities. If an emergency notification were required, there is overlap of working sirens to cover the area of the siren that is out of service. | ||
| ENS 52293 | 10 October 2016 15:32:00 | 10 CFR 50.72(b)(2)(xi), Notification to Government Agency or News Release | Offsite Notification Due to a Spill of a Reportable Quantity of Hydraulic Oil Onsite | At 1032 (CDT) on October 10, 2016, it was determined that a spill of hydraulic oil that occurred earlier in the morning on the site was of sufficient quantity (approximately 60 gallons) to warrant a notification to the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality. This report will be made within 24 hours of the determination. The spill was the result of a hydraulic system failure on a truck that was on site to pick up non-radioactive trash. The truck was on company property but outside the Security Owner Controlled Area (SOCA). There are no radiological or off-site impacts arising from this event. The spill did not reach surface water and is now contained. This event is being reported in accordance with 10 CFR 50.72(b)(2)(xi) as a condition requiring the notification to State environmental authorities. The NRC Resident Inspector has been notified. | ||
| ENS 51599 | 3 August 2015 21:30:00 | 10 CFR 50.72(b)(2)(xi), Notification to Government Agency or News Release | Offsite Notification for Condensate Spill in the Turbine Building | On August 1, 2015, during tagging activities to support planned maintenance on a condensate demineralizer, operators incorrectly positioned certain air-operated components which, combined with apparent leakage past a solenoid valve, resulted in a drain opening on a demineralizer that was in service. Flow through the drain line caused a turbine building sump to overflow to the floor of the 67 foot elevation of the Turbine Building. Immediate actions were taken to stop the leak. The spill volume was approximately 60,000 gallons of condensate. The tritium activity of the water is estimated at 1.32E-2 microCi/ml. Gamma activity was from noble gases only in a concentration of approximately 2.30E-6 microCi/ml. The spill was confined to the Turbine Building. The affected area contains degraded floor seals which might allow the spill to reach groundwater. The reason for this notification is that industry and governmental officials were notified of this event on August 3, 2015. The NRC Senior Resident Inspector was notified and informal notification was made to the NRC Region IV office, the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality, and West Feliciana Parish government authorities. The Nuclear Energy Institute was informed as specified in their ground water protection initiative. Plant cleanup activities arising from the spill are complete. | ||
| ENS 50109 | 12 May 2014 20:00:00 | 10 CFR 50.72(b)(2)(xi), Notification to Government Agency or News Release | Tritium Confirmed in Water Samples On-Site Underground | On May 12, 2014, at 1458 CDT, River Bend Station management determined that tritium confirmed to be present in water samples taken from in-leakage into the below-ground elevation of the turbine building basement, through an underground pipe penetration, was reportable in accordance with NEI 07-07, Ground Water Protection Initiative. The leakage was tested for gamma and tritium activity. No gamma contamination was detected. Tritium was measured at 28,270 picocuries per liter. The source and volume of the radioactive in-leakage is unknown. The leakage into the plant is currently being contained, and actions are in progress to identify the source. The Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality was notified at 1500 CDT today (5/12/14). This event is being reported in accordance with 10 CFR 50.72(b)(2)(xi) as an event requiring notification of the state government. The NRC Resident Inspector has been notified. | ||
| ENS 49701 | 7 January 2014 20:39:00 | 10 CFR 50.72(b)(2)(xi), Notification to Government Agency or News Release | Offsite Notification for Spill in the River Bend Owner Control Area | On January 8, 2014, at 1439 CST, River Bend Station management determined that a spill discovered on the morning of January 7 was reportable in accordance with NEI 07-07 (Nuclear Energy Institute), Ground Water Protection Initiative. The spill was the result of freeze damage that occurred on a valve connected to the cooling tower blow-down line. Dams were installed to prevent the water from reaching any storm drains, and the spill was confined to the owner-controlled area. Since this system has the potential to contain diluted radioactive plant effluent, samples were collected for analysis. The leak was immediately reduced to a small drip and actions are in progress to completely isolate and repair the valve. The effluent was determined today to contain 4584 pico-curies per liter of tritium, but no detectable gamma activity. The calculated volume of the leak was between 100 and 1200 gallons. This exceeds the NEI reporting criterion of 100 gallons from a source containing licensed material. The Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality was notified at 1549 CST today. This event is being reported in accordance with 10 CFR 50.72(b)(2)(xi) as an event requiring notification of the state government. The NRC resident inspector has been notified. | ||
| ENS 48828 | 18 March 2013 21:05:00 | 10 CFR 50.72(b)(2)(xi), Notification to Government Agency or News Release | Offsite Notification Due to Radioactive Release Onsite | On March 18, 2013, at approximately 1605 CDT, the station commenced notification of the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality and other offsite governmental agencies that traces of radioactive contaminants were found at the site of an underground pipe leak on station property. This leak could potentially contain tritium and cobalt-60, and is believed to have been contained on the plant site. The leakage path has been isolated. The station is currently starting up following a refueling outage. In October 2012, water was found leaking from the ground and accumulating in a ditch near the station's sewage treatment plant. The initial investigation concluded that the source of the leak was domestic water, based on pH sample results, known buried piping in the area, and the fact that the sewage treatment plant operates intermittently. During the recent refueling outage, which started on February 16, it was noted that the leak had stopped. Testing of the potentially affected piping found that the leak was not domestic water, but was actually coming from the sewage treatment plant effluent line. It was determined that the constant leakage seen in October 2012 was due to a failed check valve in the effluent line. This check valve is designed to prevent backflow from the main condenser circulating water system blow-down line. The failed check valve was allowing water from the blow-down line to flow backwards into the sewage plant effluent line and out of the breach. The leak had stopped because the circulating water system blow-down line was shut down at the start of the refueling outage. Discharges from the liquid radwaste system also flow into the blow-down line at a point upstream of the connection to the sewage plant effluent line. During planned discharge of liquid radwaste, some of the diluted radioactive water was thus able to leak out on the ground. Samples of the dirt in the area of the leak obtained on March 17 found detectable levels of cobalt 60. No water is available to perform tritium analysis. This event is being reported in accordance with 10 CFR 50.72(b)(2)(xi) as a condition requiring notifications to local and state governmental agencies in accordance with the NEI 07-07 Industry Ground Water Protection Initiative. The leak path has been isolated. The licensee notified the NRC Resident Inspector. | Circulating Water System Main Condenser | |
| ENS 48785 | 26 February 2013 20:30:00 | 10 CFR 50.72(b)(2)(xi), Notification to Government Agency or News Release | State and Local Agencies Notified of Inadvertent Tritium Release Due to Overflowing Sump | On February 25, 2013 at approximately 1030 CST, plant personnel discovered that a sump within a concrete berm area adjoining the condensate storage tank was overflowing. Water from the sump was entering an open excavation within the berm, and was soaking into the dirt underneath. At approximately 1400 (CST) that day, the sump level was pumped down to terminate the overflow. A portable tank has been staged in the area should any further pumping be required. Analysis of the water within the berm found tritium activity of 1.135 million picocuries per liter. Additionally, total gamma activity of 1.145 E-6 microcuries per milliliter was present in the sample. The estimated volume of water reaching the open excavation was approximately 380 gallons. Notification of this event has been made to local and state governmental agencies in accordance with NEI 07-07, Industry Ground Water Protection Initiative. The initial notifications were made at approximately 1430 CST today. This event is being reported in accordance with 10CFR50.72(b)(2)(xi) as a condition for which local and state governmental agencies have been notified. The station has also notified the NRC Resident Inspector, as well as NRC Region 4 personnel. | ||
| ENS 48732 | 7 February 2013 21:53:00 | 10 CFR 50.72(b)(2)(xi), Notification to Government Agency or News Release | Inadvertent Emergency Siren Actuation | At 1553 CST on 02/07/2013, River Bend Station emergency preparedness personnel were notified by a dispatcher at the Pointe Coupee Parish Sheriff's Office that several calls had been received regarding one or more River Bend emergency sirens sounding in the vicinity of the city of New Roads, Louisiana. The siren(s) sounded at least twice. Emergency Preparedness personnel notified the caller that no emergency condition existed at the station and made other notifications in accordance with River Bend procedure EPP-2-401 for inadvertent siren sounding. Notifications included the governors office of homeland security to notify the public that the sounding is inadvertent and that no emergency exists at the station. Additionally, the Emergency Alert System local station (WJBO/WFMF) was directly notified to broadcast the notification. The cause of the siren sounding is currently being investigated. The Senior Resident NRC Inspector has also been notified. | ||
| ENS 48555 | 4 December 2012 15:42:00 | 10 CFR 50.72(b)(2)(xi), Notification to Government Agency or News Release 10 CFR 50.72(b)(3)(xiii), Loss of Emergency Preparedness | Licensee No Longer Has Control of Emergency Sirens | At time 0942 (CST) telecommunications technicians reported to the Main Control Room that the site no longer has the ability to control offsite sirens. This was apparently caused by lightning strike in the area prohibiting the ability of the siren control computers to communicate with the sirens. This lost capability to alert a large segment of the population for one hour (by sirens and/or tone alert radios) requires a report per 10 CFR 50.72(b)(3)(xiii). Technicians are currently attempting to repair and correct this issue by moving another computer to the affected radio repeater in an effort to reestablish control of offsite sirens. At time 1057 the station began contacting offsite sirens agencies including the Louisiana Governor's Office of Homeland Security & Emergency Planning as well as all parishes within the 10 mile EPZ in order to initiate contingency actions for this issue. All agencies were notified as of time 1125. This constitutes a reportable notification of offsite agencies in accordance with 10 CFR 50.72(b)(2)(xi). Plant status remains Mode 1, 100% power, with no grid restrictions to report or radiological releases in progress. A follow up notification will be made to the NRC after the ability to control offsite sirens is restored. Contingency actions are in place until the sirens are restored. The licensee notified state and local governmental agencies as well as the NRC Resident Inspector.
On 12/6/12 at time 0200, River Bend Station was able to restore control to offsite sirens. Silent testing was performed to ensure all necessary controls were regained for all 93 sirens. This testing was performed satisfactorily. Plant status remains Mode 1, 100% with no grid restrictions to report or radiological releases in progress. The licensee notified the NRC Resident Inspector. Notified R4DO (Drake). | ||
| ENS 47541 | 21 December 2011 15:30:00 | 10 CFR 50.72(b)(2)(xi), Notification to Government Agency or News Release | Offsite Notification for Detectable Levels of Tritium in Groundwater Well | On Tuesday, December 20, 2011, technicians discovered detectable levels of tritium in an onsite groundwater well. The measured concentration of the isotope was approximately 48,000 picocuries per liter. This discovery was made during the conduct of the site's ongoing groundwater monitoring program. The tritium concentration in the well sample exceeds the EPA established threshold for drinking water of 20,000 picocuries per liter. However, no groundwater wells on the River Bend site are used for drinking water. There has been no tritium identified in any wells downstream of, or surrounding, the affected well. This test result does not indicate any threat to public health or safety, since the affected well is only used for groundwater monitoring, and not drinking water. Other onsite wells in the area were tested and will continue to be tested to ensure the tritium is not migrating offsite. The monitoring of the wells in the area immediately surrounding the affected well will be increased to a monthly frequency. Voluntary notification of this discovery has been made to local and state governmental agencies, with the initial notification being made at 0930 CST today. This event is being voluntarily reported in accordance with 10CFR50.72(b)(2)(xi) as a condition related to health and safety of the public and onsite personnel for which a news release is planned. The licensee has notified the NRC Resident Inspector, state and local agencies and will be releasing information to the media.
On August 7, 2012, one of the six new groundwater monitoring wells installed near the monitoring well which yielded the positive results on December 20, 2011, produced a groundwater sample containing 432,733 picocuries per liter of tritium. The investigation of the groundwater tritium activity is still ongoing, and the installation of these wells is part of that effort to determine the source. The NRC Resident Inspector has been notified and officials with the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality will be briefed. Notified R4DO (Michael Vasquez) | ||
| ENS 46611 | 11 February 2011 21:07:00 | 10 CFR 50.72(b)(2)(xi), Notification to Government Agency or News Release 10 CFR 50.72(a)(1)(i), Emergency Class Declaration | Unusual Event Declared Based on Fire Alarm in Drywell | At 1438 CST on 02/11/2011 a fire detector alarm was received for Recirculation Pump B in the Reactor Building Drywall. At 1453 CST the main control room was unable to determine the alarm was invalid. At this time the condition was met for EAL HU4 for a Fire within the Protected Area boundary that is not extinguished within 15 minutes of detection. At 1507 CST a Notification of an Unusual Event was declared. The alarm was verified to be invalid following visual inspection at 1513 CST. All Drywall parameters and operation of Recirculation Pump B verified to be normal. " The licensee has notified State and local authorities as well as the NRC Resident Inspector. No media or press release is planned.
At 1552 CST River Bend terminated the Notification of an Unusual Event following confirmation that no fire existed. The licensee has notified the NRC Resident Inspector. R4DO (Clark) and NRR EO (Hiland) notified. DHS (Inzer) and FEMA (Canupp) informed. | ||
| ENS 46546 | 15 January 2011 15:33:00 | 10 CFR 50.72(b)(2)(xi), Notification to Government Agency or News Release | Notification of State of Louisiana Agencies Due to Offsite Transport of Potentially Contaminated Injured Individual | In response to a personnel injury, River Bend Station notified the State of Louisiana Governor's Office of Homeland Security and the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality that a potentially contaminated employee was being transported offsite for medical attention. Later, it was determined by River Bend Radiation Protection technicians that the employee was not contaminated. State of Louisiana agencies were notified that no contamination was found on the employee, the gurney, or the ambulance. The NRC Senior Resident Inspector was notified. The injured individual was non-responsive when transported. At the time of this report, no other details concerning the injured individual's condition were available. | ||
| ENS 46158 | 7 August 2010 05:15:00 | 10 CFR 50.72(b)(2)(xi), Notification to Government Agency or News Release | Offsite Notification Due to Inadvertent Sounding of One Offsite Emergency Siren | River Bend Station is making a 4 hour report in accordance with 10CFR50.72(b)(2)(xi) of an event that occurred at approximately 0015 hours on August 7, 2010 when one offsite emergency siren for River Bend located in West Feliciana Parish inadvertently sounded. The siren activation was not related to any condition or event at River Bend. River Bend has notified West Feliciana Parish authorities and the Governor's Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness of the inadvertent siren activation. At 0230 hours on August 7, 2010 the malfunctioning siren was disabled to prevent any further inadvertent sounding. The site NRC Resident Inspector's office has been informed of the inadvertent siren activation and that a 4 hour notification is being made. The River Bend alert and notification system remained operable for the duration of the event. The Governor's Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness does not intend to air the inadvertent siren sounding message over the emergency alert system. A press release from Entergy is not planned at this time. | ||
| ENS 45380 | 24 September 2009 06:30:00 | 10 CFR 50.72(b)(2)(xi), Notification to Government Agency or News Release | Offsite Notification of Inadvertent Siren Sounding | At time 0130 CDT the Louisiana Governor's Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness was notified of an inadvertent sounding of one siren (WF39) at River Bend Station. The Louisiana Governor's Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness initiated their procedure for inadvertent siren sounding which includes a broadcast of an EAS (Emergency Alert System) message of the inadvertent sounding. West Feliciana Parish Sheriff Office 911 center was also contacted. The cause of the siren actuation is under investigation and the siren has been disabled until the problem is identified and repaired. The licensee has notified State and local authorities and the NRC Resident Inspector. | ||
| ENS 43916 | 18 January 2008 16:15:00 | 10 CFR 50.72(b)(2)(xi), Notification to Government Agency or News Release | Offsite Notification of Tritium Identified in Water Samples from Piping Leak | This is a report of a situation, related to the protection of the environment, for which a notification to other government agencies is being made, as described in 10CFR50.72(b)(2)(xi). On January 17, 2008, at approximately 1300 hours, site environmental monitoring personnel at River Bend Station completed analysis which confirmed the presence of tritium in water samples taken from a piping leak that occurred on January 16, 2008, on plant property. The source of the tritium was from water that had been treated in the liquid radwaste system and was suitable for release. The Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality and other state and local officials are being notified in accordance with the voluntary NEI groundwater protection initiative. The following is a summary of the events that led up to the identification of tritium in the water sample. On January 16, 2008, at approximately 1750 hours with the plant shutdown in Mode 5 (Refueling), River Bend Station personnel identified a water leak from a cooling tower blowdown line. The design of this system takes water from the plant's cooling tower basin. This water mixes with treated water being discharged from the liquid radwaste system. The diluted blowdown is then discharged to the Mississippi River. Plant operators received a low blowdown line flow alarm and immediately terminated the discharge of water from the liquid radwaste system. The cooling tower blowdown pumps were also subsequently stopped. The leak was caused by a failure of the blowdown piping. The leak was located inside the owner controlled area near the plant's cooling towers. Based on the location of the leak, the water drained to a nearby storm drain and into East Creek (Outfall 3). East Creek exits the plant site and discharges to the Mississippi River. The volume of the spill as been estimated to be less than 720 gallons of water from the radwaste system. This water had been treated and was suitable for release. Additional clean water from the cooling tower basin mixed with the water from the liquid radwaste system and was released. The analysis of a water sample, taken at the discharge point to East Creek determined that the samples contained 28,042 Pico Curies per liter (pCi/I) tritium. The NRC reporting level for a non-drinking water pathway is 30,000 pCi/I. Samples taken directly at the location of the leak contained 129,456 pCi/I tritium. The release has no potential to impact the health and safety of the public. RBS personnel are investigating the cause of the leak and will not restore blowdown until action is taken to prevent further occurrence. The licensee has notified the NRC Resident Inspector. | ||
| ENS 43759 | 30 October 2007 18:42:00 | 10 CFR 50.72(b)(2)(xi), Notification to Government Agency or News Release | Inadvertent Activation of Offsite Emergency Sirens | River Bend Station is making a 4 hour report in accordance with 10 CFR 50.72 (b)(2)(xi) of an event that occurred at approximately 1342 hours on October 30, 2007 when the offsite emergency sirens for River Bend located in West Feliciana Parish were inadvertently activated. The siren activation was not related to any condition or event at River Bend. The sirens sounded for approximately 1 minute. River Bend has notified West Feliciana Parish and the Governors Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness of the inadvertent siren activation. The site NRC resident inspector's office has been informed of the inadvertent activation and that a 4 hour notification is being made. The cause of the inadvertent activation is not precisely known at this time, but occurred in conjunction with vendor testing of a new siren control system. This activation of the sirens has been entered into the site corrective action program to determine the cause and the actions necessary to prevent recurrence. There was no impact on River Bend due to the activation of the offsite sirens located in West Feliciana Parish, Louisiana. The River Bend alert and notification system remained operable for the duration of the event. The Governors Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness is making notification to the public of the inadvertent siren activation using the emergency alert system. A press release from Entergy is not planned at this time. | ||
| ENS 42415 | 13 March 2006 23:40:00 | 10 CFR 50.72(b)(2)(xi), Notification to Government Agency or News Release | Failure of One Emergency Siren | The station received a report that a siren was sounding. The station investigated and determined that one siren, EBR#3 was intermittently activating. A communications team was dispatched to remove this siren from service for repairs. The Louisiana Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness was notified in accordance with station procedures. Responsible personnel at that facility determined that no further action was required since the activation involved only one siren. The siren is in East Baton Rouge Parish and was reported to the site by the Sheriff. The failure is suspected to be a circuit board problem. The licensee notified the NRC Resident Inspector. |