Britain's worst nuclear accident marked 69 years on

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 10 Oct, 06:19 · Archive

On 10 October 1957, a fire broke out at Windscale nuclear reactor in Cumbria, which became Britain's worst nuclear accident.

On 10 October 1957, workers at Windscale discovered that Pile No. 1, one of two reactors built for Britain's post-war nuclear weapons programme, was on fire. The reactor had become operational in 1950 and was producing plutonium for Britain's atomic weapons. Temperatures had begun behaving abnormally after attempts to release energy stored in the reactor's graphite. By the morning of October 10 operators realised something was seriously wrong. Increasing the airflow to cool the reactor instead fanned the flames, whilst radioactive material began escaping through its chimney.

Workers eventually saw fuel channels glowing red inside the reactor. Attempts using carbon dioxide and water to extinguish the fire were unsuccessful before the shutdown fans were switched off, starving the blaze of oxygen and allowing water to extinguish it. Former Windscale worker David Staton, who was 27 at the time, was summoned to the scene with the message: 'Come at once. Pile One is on fire.'

Radioactive fallout spread across Britain and Europe. The distribution of milk from around 200 square miles of surrounding countryside was stopped because of contamination by radioactive iodine. No evacuation of the surrounding population took place. The accident was subsequently rated Level 5 on the seven-point International Nuclear Event Scale and remains the UK's most serious nuclear accident.

How it is being reported

• Britain's worst nuclear accident unfolded in Cumbria 69 years ago todayToday, 69 years ago, a fire broke out on the Cumbrian coast, which would become the worst nuclear accident in British history.Whitehaven News · 10 Oct, 05:00
• Britain's worst nuclear accident unfolded in Cumbria 69 years ago todayToday, 69 years ago, a fire broke out on the Cumbrian coast, which would become the worst nuclear accident in British history.News & Star · 10 Oct, 05:00

In this story: Windscale · Sellafield · Cumbria · Britain · Europe · David Staton

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