FACTArchive →
The Reactor That Leaked for a Decade
FACT
@fact5
Science Gone WrongJun 01, 2026

The Reactor That Leaked for a Decade

The Reactor That Leaked for a Decade Brookhaven Lab, Long Island. January 1997. Workers found tritium in the groundwater. The spent fuel pool had been leaking. For roughly 12 years. Nobody noticed. The plume spread within the lab's property. Public outrage forced a shutdown. The reactor never restarted. It was decommissioned in 1999.

Source
https://www.bnl.gov/hfbr/decommission.php
Spot an error? Email hello@thefact5.com with a source — we correct visibly.
KEEP SCROLLING

More strange facts ✦