A French power plant stopped due to jellyfish
The Gravelines nuclear power plant, located north of France near Dunkirk, had an unexpected start to the week. Indeed, a swarm of jellyfish caused the most nuclear power plant in Western Europe (six reactors with a capacity of 900 megawatts each), by infiltrating the water intake systems used for the cooling of the reactors located by the sea.
The French nuclear company EDF said that reactors 2, 3 and 4 of Gravelines stopped automatically just before midnight, after the filter drums of the pumping stations filled with these sea creatures, before the reactor 6 was stopped a few hours later.
Jellyfish from the North Sea
The operator also declared that the incident did not affect the safety of facilities, staff or the environment and that the jellyfish were found in the non -nuclear part of the facilities. But how could jellyfish be able to end up in a nuclear power plant?
Knowing that the Gravelines nuclear power plant feeds its cooling systems by taking water from a channel connected to the North Sea, which contains many native jellyfish species, their presence seems to come from this. In addition, the beaches around Gravelines have experienced a larger number of marine creatures in recent years.
A situation that is gradually adjusted
In a statement published on Wednesday August 13, the EDF group said that “The number 6 reactor restarted this morning at 7:30 am”, Before clarifying that “The reconnection of production units (…) 2, 3 and 4 will be done gradually, in the coming days. The units (…) 1 and 5 remain at the end as part of their scheduled maintenance ”. The Gravelines power station therefore resumes service little by little.
This is not the first time that jellyfish have been responsible for stopping a nuclear power plant. Indeed, power stations in China, Japan, the United States or Sweden have experienced stops due to the presence of a swarm of jellyfish.
Sources: France 24/Le Monde
With an unwavering passion for local news, Christopher leads our editorial team with integrity and dedication. With over 20 years’ experience, he is the backbone of Wouldsayso, ensuring that we stay true to our mission to inform.
