Texas nuclear weapons plant shuts down due to wildfire threat
On Tuesday, February 27, large-scale wildfires in the state of Texas in the United States led to the suspension of the Pantex plant, which specializes in the production of nuclear weapons
This was reported by Politico.
It is noted that the fire got out of control near the main facility where the US nuclear arsenal is assembled and disassembled.
“The fire near the plant is not localized. Response efforts are focused on evacuating people. A small number of personnel are in shelters on the territory of the plant,” Pantex said in a statement.
According to CNN, fires are raging in the US state of Texas, and more than 60 counties have declared a state of natural disaster. The fire spread over an area of more than 800 square kilometers and reached settlements from fields and forests. Rescuers and police are evacuating people from dangerous areas.
The cause of the fires is said to be fire hazardous weather, which was created by record spring heat, dry air and gusty winds.
No information about the victims has been received so far. At the same time, local police report that dozens of houses and several farms have burned down in several districts. It is impossible to estimate the damage caused by the disaster as firefighters continue to fight the spread of the fire.
For reference: Pantex is the United States’ primary nuclear weapons assembly and disassembly facility, which aims to maintain the safety and reliability of the U.S. nuclear weapons stockpile. The facility is located in Texas, on an area of 65,000 km2 northeast of Amarillo, in Carson County.
Also the day before, a state of emergency was declared in Chile due to the rapidly spreading forest fires: at least 51 people were killed and more than 43 thousand hectares of land were affected.
