Davis-Besse: a plan for change or a worst-case scenario? A nuclear reactor with a hole in its head should have triggered a widespread examination and overhaul of the safety program at the Davis-Besse Nuclear Power Station. Management says it has learned valuable lessons: critics charge that it's business as usual.(Davis-Besse Nuclear Power Station)(Cover Story) From: Occupational Hazards | Date: February 1, 2005| Author: Smith, Sandy | COPYRIGHT 2005 Penton Media, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan.  All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group.Copyright information

On Feb. 16, 2002, FirstEnergy Nuclear Operating Co. shut down the Davis-Besse Nuclear Power Station (DBNPS) in Oak Harbor, Ohio, for a fairly routine refueling and inspection operation that included checking for cracks in the reactor head nozzles. What workers found was anything but routine.

Cracks were found in several reactor head nozzles, but the worst was yet to come. On March 6, 2002, workers discovered a cavity with a surface area of 20 to 30 square inches in the r...