Pipe Bomb at Palo Verde Nuclear Reactor

Well, that was exciting.

A contract worker tried driving into the Palo Verde had a "small capped pipe that contained suspicious residue" in the back of his pickup. In plain view.

He was stopped about a half-mile from the containment domes. The worker went into custody, and the nuclear power plant went into lockdown.

So far, there's no indication that this is a case of domestic terrorism. Or, I suspect, that it isn't.

Although I rather doubt that the pipe bomb was there to provide fireworks or be used as a hammer.

I actually feel a bit safer, after this incident. Although what happened today couldn't be considered a serious attempt at an attack, Palo Verde's security seems to respond rather good.

A spokesman for Palo Verde's operator, Arizona Public Service, said that every vehicle going into the plant goes through an "extensive" inspection. "It's not an accident they found it," the spokesman said.. "It's not like an inspection you go through at the airport. The security is highly trained and they are damned good at what they do and they did it today."

There's a video at MyFoxPhoenix.com.

It's good to read about situations where protective systems work. I rather hope that there's a follow-up article on this event. I'd like to know what that dipstick from South Carolina thought he was doing with a pip bomb in the back of his pickup.