Transformer explodes at NY nuke plant; no one hurt

A transformer exploded at the Indian Point nuclear power plant Sunday night, leading to an automatic emergency shutdown of one of its reactors, authorities said.

A transformer exploded at the Indian Point nuclear power plant on Sunday night, leading to an automatic emergency shutdown of one of its reactors, authorities said. No one was injured and no radioactive materials leaked.

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The explosion happened after 6:30 p.m. and triggered an alert at one of the plant's two main electrical transformers, said officials with Entergy Corp., the plant's owner.

An alert is the second-lowest of four classification levels for emergency events. The alert ended at around 10:20 p.m., but workers would continue to monitor the transformer, Entergy spokesman Jim Steets said. The affected reactor, Indian Point 2, would remain offline until investigators determined the cause of the explosion, Steets said.

The reactor began operating in 1973 and generates about 1,000 megawatts of electricity. "The plant's other main transformer, Indian Point 3, was operating normally," he said. However, this was the second shutdown within the hour at an Entergy-owned plant.

The Vermont Yankee nuclear plant in Vernon, Vermont, shut down at about 7 p.m. after workers detected radioactive water seeping from a leaky pipe in the complex.

The Indian Point plant is located in Buchanan, about 25 miles (40 kilometers) north of New York City.