Davis-Besse to repair five reactor head nozzles

OAK HARBOR, Ohio - An inspection at the Davis-Besse nuclear plant found cracks in five reactor head nozzles, forcing the plant operator to make repairs.

The cracks, found during ultrasonic tests this week, don't pose a safety threat, according to plant operators and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

"We were not caught by surprise," said Richard Wilkins, a FirstEnergy Corp. spokesman. "We anticipated making repairs."

The defects will be fixed within the next month while the plant is shut down for its refueling, which is done every two years to replace fuel rods in the reactor's core.

The NRC started requiring the tests after cracks were discovered in nozzles at a nuclear plant in South Carolina.

The ultrasonic tests at Davis-Besse were the first on the plant's reactor nozzles in its 25-year history. Visual inspections last week revealed no problems, Wilkins said. Cracks can take years to develop.

The nozzles are long, vertical tubes in the reactor head and serve as passageways for rods that keep the plant running as it should.

The nuclear plant is along Lake Erie, about 25 miles east of Toledo.