A gas leak sparked an explosion and fire Tuesday at a nuclear plant that is believed to produce enriched plutonium for Pakistan's atomic weapons program. Two workers were killed.
The Khushab heavy water plant was shut down while undergoing annual maintenance at the time, the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission said. The commission evacuated the plant but assured the public that there was no risk of exposure outside the sprawling facility southeast of the capital, Islamabad.
The "situation was immediately brought under control, and two workers lost their lives while controlling the incident," the commission said.
It said the leaking gas was burned off by plant equipment and that the cause was under investigation.
The government claims Khushab produces electricity. Last year, the Washington-based Institute of Science for International Security said the plant has three reactors, including two that were still under construction last June. It cited satellite photos of the sprawling site that is under military control.
The development of the reactor and other nuclear-related activities "imply" that Pakistan has decided to "increase significantly its production of plutonium for nuclear weapons," the institute said in a report analyzing the images.
Police near the plant said they were advised by plant officials to prepare buses for a wider evacuation, but then were told they would not be needed. ...
Ghulam Muhammad, the mayor of the neighboring town of Khushab, said there was initial panic as the plant and the residential colony for workers were evacuated and roadblocks thrown up to cordon off the area.
Within three hours, plant management gave an all clear and removed the roadblocks, he said, adding he was unhappy that local officials were not immediately told of the incident.
- ACCIDENT... OR ATTACK & COVER-UP?
- OTHER NUKE SITES IN PAKISTAN HAVE BEEN TARGETED BY AL QAEDA.
- JUST A FEW DAYS AGO A PAKISTANI WORKING IN A USA THINK TANK SAID THAT THESE SITES ARE SAFE, BUT I DON'T BELIEVE 'EM; PAKISTAN'S MILITARY MUST BE LITTERED WITH TALIBAN SYMPS.
- I THINK THAT THIS IS THE MOST LIKELY WAY AL QAEDA WILL GET THE NUKE THEY HAVE LONG SOUGHT.
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