Multiple employees were injured in an explosion at the Priest Rapids Dam along the Columbia River in Washington, according to the Grant Public Utility District, the dam’s operators.
Grant County Sheriff’s Office officials said there had been an explosion of electronic equipment, and at least six employees had been injured, according to KREM 2.
Grant Public Utility District officials have not revealed the number of employees hurt, the extent of their injuries, or the cause of the explosion.
However, utility spokesman Thomas Stredwick said, “at this point we know it’s not foul play or an act of terrorism,” according to Oregon Live.
Explosion reported at Priest Rapids Dam in Washington; multiple employees injured http://t.co/SFE83crLJ9 pic.twitter.com/OLCNNzIFYS
— The Oregonian (@Oregonian) October 9, 2015
The explosion has not affected the stability of the dam, the Grant County Sheriff’s office said, according to NBC, adding that it was in no danger of failing.
Fox Q13 is reporting multiple agencies have responded to the incident, including the Hanford Fire Department.
Priest Rapids Dam Explosion Injures Six — ADDITIONAL DETAILS: http://t.co/nfHw1MhvsS pic.twitter.com/kMFHCe5KcD
— KAPP-KVEW (@KAPPKVEW) October 9, 2015
Officials said all of the injured had been transported to hospitals via ambulance or aircraft.
The Priest Rapids Dam is a hydroelectric, concrete gravity dam, located between the Yakima Firing Range and the Hanford Nuclear Reservation in Central Washington, more than 50 miles east of Yakima.
The Hanford Nuclear Reservation stores approximately 53 million gallons of high-level radioactive hazardous waste in tanks. In a 16-month period, 50 nuclear gas leak incidents were reported at the site.
Grant PUD also operates the Wanapum Dam, which made news in 2014 when officials discovered a 61-foot crack.
https://www.rt.com/usa/318065-explosion-injuries-washington-dam/
“However, utility spokesman Thomas Stredwick said, “at this point we know it’s not foul play or an act of terrorism,” according to Oregon Live.”
It wasn’t an act of terrorism simply because you hadn’t had a drill for it yet, right?
You need to know that….all the dams in Washington state are run by the Army corpes of engineers .. so go figure. I was an IT contractor for them on east marginal way in south Seattle… me and the x vietnam vet corpsman picking up body parts that ran network operations would go to lunch and smoke weed. Man some of the stories he told me about nam were something else. The most questions he said that was mainly asked by guys dying.. blown in half was… are my dick and balls okay. He would say yeah they’re ok… then shoot them up with morphine… then it was peace , out for them.