Sunday, May 29 2005 11:45 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

London: In Britain's worst nuclear accident in 13 years, about 83,000 litres of highly radioactive liquid leaked unnoticed for up to nine months from a ruptured pipe in the controversial Thorp reprocessing plant at Sellafield, a media report said today (May 29, 2005).

The leak, detected last month, was the outcome of a catalogue of human and engineering errors which resulted in a pool of nuclear liquor, half the volume of an Olympic swimming pool, being accidentally discharged, the 'Independent on Sunday' reported.

The magnitude of the incident throws the future of the troubled reprocessing plant into doubt this weekend as copies of an internal investigation circulate among senior Ministers and officials.

The report said British Nuclear Group, the company that runs the plant, last night admitted that workers failed to respond to "indicators" warning a badly designed pipe had sprung a leak as long ago as last August. The pool of nuclear liquor, 83,000 litres, was eventually discovered on April 19.

The company has ordered a review to check for other potential leaks caused by metal fatigue and an urgent drive against staff "complacency." But Ministers privately concede that Thorp, now owned by a Quango, may never re-open as a result of the incident, classified as "serious" by the International Atomic Energy Authority.

In a statement released yesterday, the Nuclear Decommissioning Agency (NDA), the Quango that inherited Thorp on April one, said it needed time to assess the report's findings before "discussing their implications" with the company and the Government, adding that "safety is the NDA's absolute priority".