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Ukraine's Chernobyl Plant Shut Down
Ukraine's Chernobyl nuclear power plant was shut down early Monday after an ice-covered power line broke and caused a sharp drop of electricity, officials said.
Reactor No. 3, the plant's only working reactor, was closed down by its automatic safety system and workers plan to restart it on Saturday, a plant spokesman said.
There were no malfunctions in the reactor and no radiation leaks were reported.
Ukraine has said it will permanently close the nuclear power plant �� site of the world's worst nuclear disaster �� on Dec. 15. Ukraine promised to shut Chernobyl down after years of pressure from European governments and environmentalists.
The plant's reactor No. 4 exploded and caught fire on April 26, 1986, sending a radioactive cloud over much of Europe in a disaster believed to have eventually killed thousands of people.
Chernobyl's No. 2 reactor was shut down after a fire in 1991, and reactor No. 1 was halted in 1996.
The remaining reactor has been the focus of disputes between international groups concerned over safety and energy-strapped Ukraine, which fears losing the electricity the reactor provides.
It has been shut down frequently by automatic safety systems over the past year due to various malfunctions.
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