CCTV News:According to the forecast, Hurricane Florence may land on the east coast of the United States in the early morning of the 15th Eastern Time, and will move to the southwest. According to a spokesman for Duke Energy, the six nuclear power plants operated by the company are in the moving path of Hurricane Florence. At present, the company is ready to deal with the hurricane.
Hurricane Florence
Duke Energy said that the six nuclear power plants operated by the company are currently very safe and the public need not worry. The company will start the shutdown procedure at least two hours before Hurricane Florence lands on the east coast of the United States. According to officials of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Federal Emergency Management Agency is not worried about the safety of these nuclear power plants, because first of all, these nuclear power plants have undergone a series of reinforcement and can withstand hurricane attacks. Secondly, if these nuclear power plants are flooded, the internal emergency generators and pumps will also start pumping operations to ensure the safety of nuclear power plants. The official said that at present, these nuclear power plants have no potential safety hazards, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency will follow up and monitor the situation of these nuclear power plants.
However, some local experts are worried about this. Experts said that the Brunswick nuclear power plant, one of the six nuclear power plants, is one of the closest nuclear power plants to Hurricane Florence. The two nuclear reactors of the nuclear power plant have the same design as those of the Fukushima nuclear power plant in Japan, which suffered a leakage accident due to the earthquake and tsunami. Although the relevant agencies said that the nuclear power plant had been strengthened safely, the specific situation was not announced to the public. Therefore, if Hurricane Florence caused heavy rains and floods, it is still unknown whether the Brunswick nuclear power plant can safely cope with these situations.
The picture shows the disaster relief scene of Fukushima nuclear power plant accident.
In addition to concerns about the safety of nuclear power plants, the pollution that Hurricane Florence may cause has also attracted much attention.
According to the US Environmental Protection Department, Hurricane Florence may bring environmental disaster to the local area after landing on the east coast of the United States. According to the department, the rainstorm and flood caused by the hurricane may wash toxic waste and cinder into local residents’ homes, and even flow into the groundwater system, polluting local water sources.
At present, the department is closely monitoring the situation of several toxic waste treatment plants and more than 20 cinder treatment plants in the hurricane-hit areas. Relevant areas are taking measures, including opening the reservoir and releasing water, to avoid environmental disasters caused by Hurricane Florence.