U.S. power reactors to be examined for vulnerabilities

摘要

There may be no credible scenario in which a 9.0-magnitude earthquake and a 46-foot-high tsunami could occur near any power reactor site in the United States, disabling all of the sources of backup power needed to ensure a safe and secure cold shutdown. Nonetheless, the events at Fukushima Daiichi following the March 11 earthquake and tsunami in Japan have spurred U.S. licensees and regulators to take a fresh look at how reactors in the United States might be affected—especially by a station-wide blackout, regardless of the cause.