1 Person Killed in French Nuclear Waste Site Explosion

A file photograph showing a general view of the nuclear power plant of Marcoule, in Chusclan, France, 30 March 2011. EPA/BGNES

One person has been killed and four have been injured at an explosion at the French nuclear waste site of Marcoule shortly before noon on Monday.

Marcoule is a nuclear waste management site that does not include any reactors. The explosion took place near a furnace, according to a spokesperson of the French nuclear watchdog ASN, as cited by international media.

In spite of initial fears, the French authorities quickly reacted to announce Monday afternoon that there has been no radiation leak as a result of the blast at the Centraco site, owned by French power utility EDF and adjacent to the Marcoule nuclear research center, which is 30 km from the city of Avignon and about 80 km from the Mediterranean coast.

The furnace that exploded is used to melt waste with levels of radioactivity ranging from low to very high, ASN said.

ASN has not provided an immediate explanation of the blast but insisted that its consequences have been contained on the spot.

France is the world's most nuclear-reliant country with 58 nuclear reactors. It has been carrying out stress tests on its own nuclear facilities in the aftermath of the Fukushima NPP disaster in Japan, where French experts were also summoned to help tackle the consequences.

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