July 28--FULTON, MO. --Callaway County's nuclear plant has been shut down since shortly before midnight Friday when a small fire broke out in the turbine building, authorities said.
No one was injured.
"No personnel were hurt, and no radioactivity was released" above normal operating limits, Barry Cox, senior director of nuclear operations at Callaway, said Saturday. Cox said the fire was in the "non-nuclear" side of the plant.
The plant -- officially called the Ameren Missouri Callaway Energy Center -- declared an "unusual event" at 11:49 p.m. Friday.
The fire was discovered immediately when alarms sounded in the control room. There also were reports of black smoke, Cox said.
Within minutes, the fire was extinguished, Cox said. The plant was shut down as part of established multiple safety layers and procedures.
"It was not such a large fire that we had to call for assistance from outside sources or evacuate anyone," Cox said. No one was working in the turbine room at the time, he said.
The plant has its own fire brigade on duty 24 hours a day.
Cox said it's uncertain when the plant can return to service.
"We are still doing our investigating as to the cause and assessing the damaged area," he said.
Ameren Missouri and the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission are conducting the investigation.
On Saturday night, crews were placing red warning tags around the area of the fire.
Ameren said in a statement: "At no time did the situation threaten the public or nearby communities." An "unusual event" is the least significant emergency category designated by the commission.
The Callaway Energy Center generates about 20 percent of the electricity supplied to Ameren Missouri's 1.2 million customers, the company said. While the plant is shut down, customers will receive energy from other Ameren Missouri facilities.
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