Last week's central Virginia earthquake jolted huge concrete containers holding spent nuclear fuel at the North Anna power plant in Louisa County, shifting some one to four inches, said the plant's operator, Dominion Virginia Power.
The containers, called casks, weigh 115 tons each and are filled with bundles of uranium dioxide fuel rods that no longer generate enough heat to produce electricity.
The plant houses a total of 53 casks on two concrete pads. Of 27 casks on one pad, 25 shifted during the magnitude 5.8 earthquake that struck Aug. 23 some 12 miles south of the plant, said Dominion spokesman Richard Zuercher.
"They are safe and remain intact," Zuercher said. "They are designed not to fall over and they didn't fall over."
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