Pilgrim Reports No Damage from Sandy

Entergy officials say Hurricane Sandy had no affect on Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station Monday.

"Because we are located inside Cape Cod Bay, we did not see the type of storm surges that some of the other regions received," plant spokesman Carol Wightman said Tuesday night.

"[W]e operated at 100 percent power throughout the storm and there was no damage to the plant or plant equipment as a result of the hurricane."

According to a release from Entergy, the all of the company's nuclear plants on the East Coast rode out the storm well.

"Indian Point 2, FitzPatrick and Pilgrim remained at full power while Vermont Yankee reduced power to 88 percent at the request of ISO New England to help maintain grid stability. Indian Point 3 automatically shut down at 10:41 p.m. Monday as a result of an electrical grid disturbance," according to the release.

Entergy Nuclear plants began preparations for the storm last week, coordinating activities with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, independent system operators and various state and local government officials. Critical Entergy Nuclear staff remained dedicated at each site, ready to respond to potential weather impacts.

In addition to the nuclear plant staff sequestered at Indian Point, FitzPatrick, Pilgrim and Vermont Yankee, the company’s utilities in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas sent more than 850 highly-experienced restoration workers and support personnel to the region impacted by the hurricane. They include scouts, who assess damage when safe to do so after the storm, and tool workers who will help rebuild the electrical system. Entergy will also provide some customer service representatives to remotely answer customer calls from affected areas.

"Nuclear plants are built to exceed the most severe natural forces historically reported for their geographic area," John Herron, president and CEO of Entergy Nuclear, said. "And we saw evidence of that again with Hurricane Sandy."