The Nuclear Regulatory Commission said Tuesday that failures by Entergy Corp. led to the March 31, 2013, accident at Entergy's Arkansas Nuclear One plant near Russellville.
Wade Walters, 24, an employee with a contracting firm, was killed in the accident after a 1 million-pound turbine generator stator fell 30 feet to the floor of the plant. Eight other workers were injured.
The commission determined that the collapse resulted from Entergy's "failure to adequately review the assembly design and ensure an appropriate load test" was done before the attempt was made to lift the stator.
The Easter Sunday accident was "of substantial safety significance," the commission's most serious level of regulatory performance, the commission said. The determination was made following two inspections last year and this year of the accident.
The commission's decision is significant, said Sach Oliver, an attorney with the Bailey & Oliver law firm in Rogers. The firm represents several of the injured workers and Walters' family in lawsuits filed in Pope County Circuit Court.
"We now have an official government investigation that, in our interpretation, is assessing fault on the licensee, which is Entergy; assessing fault on the contractor, which is Siemens [Energy Inc. of Orlando, Fla.]; and assessing fault on the subcontractor, which is Bigge [Group Inc. of San Leandro, Calif.], for the failure to structurally design the lift safely and appropriately and also for the failure to ensure the load test was conducted," Oliver said.
Sarah Millard, a spokesman for Arkansas Nuclear One, said Entergy takes the NRC's findings "very seriously."
"We are committed to learning from this tragic incident, sharing our knowledge with the industry and ensuring that it never happens again," Millard said.
The commission said Tuesday that it will determine the appropriate level of agency oversight and notify Entergy officials of that decision in a separate letter.
Trial dates have not been set in the cases, said Ryan Scott, an attorney with Bailey & Oliver.
The Pope County Circuit Court has denied Entergy's motion to dismiss the utility from the lawsuits but Entergy appealed that decision to the Arkansas Supreme Court, Scott said.
"They now are arguing the Circuit Court didn't have jurisdiction to decide if Wade and [Jess Clayton, an injured worker] were legal employees of Entergy," Scott said.
The state Supreme Court is expected to make a ruling in August or September, Scott said.
Oliver said he expects the cases against Entergy will go to trial.
Another subcontractor working at Arkansas Nuclear One at the time of the accident is facing a lawsuit from its insurer.
Hartford Casualty Insurance Co. on Monday asked a federal judge in Texas to rule that it is not required to defend a Texas engineering company, DP Engineering LLC, in lawsuits involving the accident at Arkansas Nuclear One, according to Law360.com. DP Engineering is insured by Hartford.
Hartford said that DP Engineering's policies exclude liability for bodily injury and property damage, the lawsuit said, according to Law360.com.
Business on 06/25/2014