Office for Nuclear Regulation issues enforcement letters to Dounreay Site Restoration Ltd over 'near misses' at former nuclear plant
Dounreay's operators are being taken to task over several "near miss" industrial mishaps.
The incidents between April and November last year involved problems during crane-lifting operations at the Caithness site.
They have resulted in Dounreay Site Restoration Ltd and site contractor Graham receiving enforcement letters from the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR).
The regulator has warned that the breaches of compliance will lead to stronger action if improvements are not made.
They included problems with a lifting operation at the shielded intermediate waste store being built next to the site's cementation plant.
An ONR spokesman yesterday said a suspended load had to be dropped, causing damage to building cladding.
Later, a tractor trailer collided with an unoccupied mobile elevated working platform at the same plant.
There were two further separate incidents when chains became detached during a test lift and when an operation to lift stairways deviated from the approved plan.
Both of these occurred at the Advanced Transition Work site to prepare for the emptying of the site's underground waste shaft and silo.
The action taken by ONR was reported at the latest meeting of Dounreay Stakeholder Group by DSRL managing director Mark Rouse.
He said: "We have had two near misses on site over a period of months. ONR has reviewed those and will be sending us enforcement letters.
"The improvements made will be reviewed and monitored by ONR."
The issues highlighted in the letter follow an incident in early 2020 when a banksman was hoisted into the air after becoming snagged in a crane tag line during a lifting operation. Though extremely shaken, he was unhurt.
That prompted a temporary stop on lifting operations and the commissioning of a peer review by a team from Devonport Dockyard, which identified a number of improvements.
In a similar incident later that year, another operator worker avoided the same fate as his colleague after stopping the lift at the last minute after realising he was attached to the crane hook.
That again led to a temporary stop on operations pending an investigation. ONR was satisfied with DSRL's response and approved a restart.
Both of the 2020 episodes happened at the new waste plant extension which is being carried out by Graham as part of a £22 million contract.
The ONR spokesperson said yesterday: "We have sent enforcement letters after identifying issues arising from construction-related incidents at Dounreay Site Restoration Limited (in 2021).
"Although nobody was injured as a result of the incidents, and there was no risk to the public, our enquiries identified compliance breaches which require attention to address and rectify."
The spokesman added: "Following our investigation and findings, ONR has requested DSRL report back to us on key questions about their current arrangements and we will return to the site in the forthcoming months to monitor general progress made following our enforcement letter.
"We will continue to closely assess performance in this area to ensure that the improvements required at the site are made and we will take further action if necessary."
DSRL yesterday confirmed it has received its letter.
A spokeswoman said: "We take these issues very seriously and have submitted our proposals for addressing them to ONR.
"We are determined to improve our performance and ensure that the mission to decommission the site is delivered safely, securely and compliantly."