Investigators Admit Leak of Plutonium
- Share via
From Times Staff and Wire Reports
After two months of denying radiation was released in an explosion at the Hanford nuclear reservation, federal officials admitted that a tiny amount of plutonium did escape the Plutonium Reclamation Facility on May 14, when an explosion in a chemical tank severed a waterline, flooding the building and flowing through a door. Some of the flooding occurred around plutonium-processing equipment and washed plutonium traces out of the building, said Ron Gerton, leader of the U.S. Department of Energy team that investigated the blast.
Sign up for Essential California
The most important California stories and recommendations in your inbox every morning.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
