The turbine oil fire in the nuclear power plant, Muehleberg

At 21.15 hours on the evening of the 28th July 1971, a turbine oil fire broke out in the Nuclear Power Plant Muehleberg of the Bernische Kraftwerke AG, resulting in damage amounting to around 20 million Swiss Francs and a delay of some ten months in putting the plant into operation. The plant is equipped with a General Electric boiling water reactor and two BBC saturated steam turbines. Up to the time of the fire, both turbo-sets had already been run singly up to their full capacity of 160 MWe and the initial trials with both sets working parallel were shortly due to be carried out. Following the outbreak of fire, the causes of which are described in the contributions of the authors Hagn, L. and H. Huppmann and Christian, H. and H. Grupp, fire fighting action was immediately taken, in line with the emergency measures laid down in the operating regulations. With the assistance of the Berne City Fire Brigade, the blaze in the roof of the turbine hall was first extinguished and the spreading cable conflagration then fought, using foam and water. (orig.)