Explosion at nuke research center kills one staffer
Explosion at nuke research center kills one staffer
JAKARTA (JP): An explosion rocked a nuclear laboratory at the
Center for Science and Technology Development (Puspitek) in
Serpong, an area 30 kilometers southwest of the city, killing a
staff member and injuring a cleaning service worker, an official
said.
But Djali Ahimsa, the director general of the National Atomic
Energy Agency (Batan), said at an impromptu press conference
yesterday that the Wednesday's accident caused no radiation
leaks.
"We're still looking for the cause of the blast. We have not
ruled out sabotage," he said, adding that certain groups might
have caused the blast in an effort to discredit the agency.
Djali was apparently referring to staunch opposition among
certain non-governmental organizations to the government's plan
to build Indonesia's first nuclear power plant in Muria
peninsular, Central Java.
The Indonesian Environmental Forum (Walhi), a non-governmental
organization, demanded that the government thoroughly inspect the
extent of the damage and determine whether the blast caused
radiation leaks.
"If there are such leaks, the government should make the
information public. They should not try to cover up the case,
because the public has the right to know," Emmy Hafidz, a
spokesperson for Walhi, told The Jakarta Post.
Batan is a state-owned agency which administers the nuclear
laboratory along with its 30 megawatt research reactor, provided
by Siemens AG of Germany.
Djali said that the police are currently investigating the
incident. They identified the deceased as Waluyo, 39. The
cleaning service worker who was injured in the blast was
identified as Supriyanto, 26.
Supriyanto, who was evacuated from the building whose ceiling
was brought down by the blast, is currently in intensive care at
Assobirin hospital in Tangerang, 25 kilometers west of the city.
The laboratory, Djali said, is related only to engineering
activities and no chemicals were stored there.
When asked about chemical smell around the site, he said that
it was probably natural gas such as methane, which is not
dangerous to human beings.
Police
Meanwhile Lt. Col. Latief Rabar, a spokesman for City Police,
refused to comment on the incident.
"Sorry, I don't I have the authority to discuss the incident
because it was a national project."
A reliable source at the Tangerang police, which also oversees
Serpong area, admitted that they only knew about the explosion
after they received a report on Waluyo's death from a hospital.
"The employee of the Puspitek suffered a critical facial
wound," the source said.
The National Police deployed a number of their personnel from
the Forensic Laboratory Center to investigate the incident.
The police have already sealed the building while the military
officers had cordoned-off the whole area.
In a related development, local media, quoting unconfirmed
sources, reported that an air conditioner caused the explosion.
Puspitek's executives announced earlier this week that they
are going to open a tender for the development of a 10-megawatt
reactor, as part of a major research program for a commercial
nuclear-power plant.
The development of the US$ 26.88 million reactor is expected
to enter commercial production in 1998.
Batan planned to build a 600-megawatt nuclear plant on the
Muria peninsula on the northern coast of densely populated
Central Java. -- the first of many such plants planned for the
next 25 years.
A Japanese company has already completed off-site feasibility
studies for the project. (09/bsr)