South Carolina nuclear plant gets warning over another cracked emergency fuel pipe

JENKINSVILLE, S.C. (AP) — Federal officials have issued a warning about a substantial safety violation at a South Carolina nuclear plant after cracks were discovered again in an emergency fuel line. The State newspaper reports that small cracks have been found a half-dozen times in the past 20 years in pipes that carry diesel fuel to emergency generators that provide cooling water to the nuclear reactor if electricity fails at the V.C. Summer plant near Columbia. The agency issued what it calls a preliminary “yellow” warning to plant owner Dominion Energy last week. It is the second most serious category, and a nuclear power expert says only seven similar warnings have been issued across the country since 2009.