NRC RELEASES EVENT REPORTS FOR NUCLEAR FUEL SERVICES 

AND BWXT FACILITIES FOR 2004 – 2007 

 The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is releasing event notification reports for two 

nuclear fuel fabrication facilities, Nuclear Fuel Services (NFS) in Erwin, Tenn., and BWX 

Technologies (BWXT) in Lynchburg, Va., for the period 2004 – 2007, which were previously 

withheld for security reasons. 

 Fifty-eight event reports were posted today on the NRC Web site home page at 

http://www.nrc.gov, at the Event Reports link. They are clearly marked to show that they are not 

new reports on recent events, and some sensitive information – primarily building identifiers – 

has been redacted. More event reports may be released in the future as the agency continues 

redacting previously withheld documents. 

From 2004 until last year, nearly all documents regarding NFS and BWXT were withheld 

as security sensitive information under a Commission policy established in response to issues 

identified by the Department of Energy’s Office of Naval Reactors. Last September, the 

Commission reversed that policy and directed the staff to release redacted documents in order to 

achieve an appropriate balance in ensuring its regulatory process is open to the public while 

maintaining the secure use and management of radioactive materials. 

Although many of the reports involve events of low safety significance, they help identify 

performance issues that can lead to more serious problems if left uncorrected. NRC’s reporting 

requirements protect workers and the public by allowing the NRC to evaluate whether a licensee 

has taken proper corrective actions. Event reports also help the NRC identify generic safety 

concerns so other licensees can be alerted. 

 Two of the event reports – EN 42393 and EN 42411 – concern the March 6, 2006, spill of 

high-enriched uranium at NFS and the subsequent discovery of an uncontrolled elevator pit 

where the uranium might have accumulated and posed a criticality risk. The spill was included in 

the annual report to Congress in April 2007 on abnormal occurrences at licensee facilities. 

 There are also two emergency notifications (EN 41841 and EN 43350), both involving 

BWXT. Emergencies are the most serious incidents and require immediate notification to the 

NRC NEWS

U.S. NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

Office of Public Affairs Telephone: 301/415-8200 

Washington, D.C. 20555-0001 

E-mail: opa@nrc.gov 

Site: http://www.nrc.gov

No. 08-091 May 12, 2008
NRC, which monitors the situation until the emergency is resolved. In the first emergency 

declaration, multiple alarms were triggered by lightning strikes. The second involved a fire in a 

waste compactor; the fire was extinguished within 20 minutes and no radioactive material was 

released. Both emergencies were resolved quickly, and neither involved a risk to public health 

and safety. 

 

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