WASHINGTON, Sept. 1 (UPI) -- Federal and regional nuclear regulators questioned about a recent security lapse at a Tennessee plant, security measures in place prior to the incident and changes made since then, have a simple message for the public: Just trust us.
United Press International made inquiries into Sequoyah Nuclear Plant's security scheme after the lapse and in light of accusations of reduced personnel numbers, checkpoints and procedures over the past few years.
While the gist of the incident has been confirmed -- that a box containing assault rifles were allowed unchecked and improperly stored in a secure zone at the plant, near Chattanooga -- how it happened and what has been done to prevent another similar incident are somewhere behind the fog of conflicting stories and government reluctance to reveal sensitive information.
Officials of both the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission and Tennessee Valley Authority, which operates Sequoyah, are playing down the incident -- TVA spokesman John Moulton said though the box was taken to the wrong place inside the plant it was never outside TVA's control -- and are mum on details.
"It's agency policy that we don't discuss security at nuclear plants," said NRC spokesman Ken Clark. He said there hasn't been nor is there now any security threat to Sequoyah or the public and that "any recent events ... have been adequately addressed by TVA."
A security worker at Sequoyah, however, told UPI that inspection protocol at the plant before the weapons box incident was "a big problem" and changes made since then have made the plant only less vulnerable.
"(The public will) have to decide whether they believe us or whoever said that," Clark said.
The employee of Pinkerton Government Services, the company contracted for security at the plant, spoke on the condition of anonymity.
The previous TVA policy didn't mandate every item be searched, though Pinkerton workers had the authority to search every package and every person, the worker said, adding they were given discretion on shipments with a factory seal -- like the plain, brown cardboard box of six M-4 rifles.
Security has been increased since, though there are still some exceptions which are "big enough to smuggle something into the plant. They would have no problem," the worker said, alluding to the most sinister plans of anyone from a terrorist to a disgruntled worker.
"It's not hard to move weapons once in (Sequoyah)," the worker said.
The public found out about the incident when Pinkerton workers notified the government watchdog Project On Government Oversight, which alerted the media. But the potential for a more serious problem was made possible, according to the worker UPI spoke to, because security staffing levels have been reduced in recent years, as have the number of checkpoints, including one at the entrance of the plant which the worker called "our first line of defense," removed in 2003 or 2004.
Most of those allegations are sidestepped by the TVA. Moulton, in an e-mail response to detailed questions, said the size of security has increased in the past five years.
But questions of details on the changes, including the worker's claims, received the same response: "We do not disclose for security reasons."
The same answer was given to inquiries into the package inspection policy prior to the assault rifle lapse.
As far as what changes had been made, Moulton wrote, "TVA has taken actions in regards to improving the receiving process and will determine if additional actions need to be made.
"Specific details on the receiving process and changes are not disclosed for security reasons," Moulton added.
The security employee UPI spoke to was weary of disclosing sensitive information, repeatedly pausing to carefully phrase answers to questions and often refusing to give specifics. But, the worker said, the issue deserves attention.
When asked what the public is to make of these conflicting accounts, TVA's Moulton wrote: "All we can do is provide the facts regarding the delivery of weapons to Sequoyah."
Moulton refused to disclose what concerns have been raised over Sequoyah security, including the specifics UPI learned, as well as to whose attention they were brought to -- Pinkerton, TVA or NRC.
"TVA and Pinkerton both have policies that encourage employees to raise any safety or security concerns as soon as they arise so that they can be quickly addressed," Moulton wrote.
Those routes were followed, the security worker told UPI, to no avail. And over fears the shipment of security worker guns could have been a package of malicious content, the worker decided to go to the media.
That is frowned upon, both the worker and POGO officials said, citing threats of pink slips, fines and jail time for talking to the media (to which Moulton wrote: "We are not aware of.")
NRC Chairman Dale Klein said Wednesday he is now looking into complaints of security protocol at Sequoyah, including how responsive the federal agency is to them.
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