Re: Accident in Japan: -- Lack of Safety Culture?

[Jim Muckerheide <jmuckerheide@delphi.com>]

More likely "could not occur" was fact, not wishful thinking - under the
original design, not as defeated by buckets, "poor config control".  We
say the same thing about US reactors, based on the design, but what if
the design is defeated? We've defeated designs, and worked to fix config
control problems - better now, but not always successful :-) We have
plans to deal with TMI accidents, but let's not try anything else :-)

Regards, Jim Muckerheide
muckerheide@mediaone.net
========================

"John R. Laferriere 671-8316" wrote:
> 
> J.J. Rozental wrote:
> 
> "17 - Among the unanswered questions is why the Tokio-based JCO Co. had no
> contingency plans   to deal with an accident. In a document given to
> government regulators in 1983, the company maintained that "critical fission
> chain reactions could not occur" at the plant, according to the Japanese
> daily Yomiuri Shmbun"
> 
> Although it is not clear WHY the company believed (or at least SAID they
> believed) that "critical fission chain reactions could not occur", the fact
> that this mindset existed is certainly one of the key root causes of this
> tragic accident.  This may be stating the obvious, but any time you base
> safety precautions on wishful thinking, fuzzy logic or incomplete technical
> analysis, you are asking for trouble.  The Challenger space shuttle blew
> up because the integrity of the booster rocket o-rings at low temperatures
> was treated with the same wishful thinking, despite clear evidence of problems
> at low temperatures.  Richard Feynman, who was part of the investigation team,
> did a simple demonstration with o-ring material and ice water, and said
> basically "Sorry folks, but you can't fool mother nature."
> 
> John Laferriere, CHP
> DuPont Pharmaceuticals Co.
> Medical Imaging Division
> john.r.laferriere@dupontpharma.com
> Standard disclaimers.
> 
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