A-panel reports on failure at plant in New Jersey

March 25, 1983

A critical equipment failure at the Salem nuclear plant in New Jersey went unnoticed because of an inadequate investigation by plant managers, utility company officials said.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has described the failures of the automatic shutdown system at Salem Unit 1 on Feb. 22 and 25 as the most significant events involving reactor safety since the Three Mile Island accident in 1979. Top executives of Public Service Electric & Gas Company blamed the incidents on an inexperienced operator and their review procedure.