Associated Press, 8 Dec 2011.

Federal regulators confirmed Thursday that they had been told by operators of a nuclear reactor about additional cracks found in the plant's concrete shell, which were discovered several weeks after workers initially discovered the concrete was cracked in other spots.

Details about the cracks near the top of the structure came to light publicly after officials from Ohio Congressman Dennis Kucinich's office said they spoke with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

Kucinich's office said it initiated talks with the NRC and investigated the issue, which revealed the cracks were more widespread at the Davis-Besse nuclear plant outside Toledo than what was publicly released.

A spokeswoman for FirstEnergy Corp. said on Wednesday that the additional cracks were found in November, and that the company informed regulators right away. It had previously announced that cracks were found near the bottom of a wall designed to protect the reactor from anything that might hit it from the outside, such as storm debris.

The plant along Lake Erie was shut down for maintenance in October when workers found the first 30-foot hairline crack.

Other cracks were found soon after, leading to closer inspections that revealed cracks close to the top of the 224-foot tall shield structure.

The NRC analyzed those additional cracks before allowing the plant to restart this week, said Viktoria Mitlyng, an agency spokeswoman.

The agency said FirstEnergy assured it that the cracks don't pose a threat. Regulators said they also completed their own checks and reviewed testing already done by the plant operator.

Kucinich, a Cleveland Democrat and a longtime opponent of the plant and its owner, has called on FirstEnergy to release everything it knows about the cracks. The company has said it plans on releasing a full report during a public meeting with the NRC that is likely to take place in early January.

The NRC said it also plans to discuss its preliminary conclusions at the public meeting. The agency typically does release inspection information until it completes its work.

The regulators have given Akron-based FirstEnergy Corp. until the end of February to find out what caused the cracks.

At full power, Davis-Besse makes enough electricity for around 750,000 customers, primarily in Ohio. The company's electric system has 4.5 million customers in Ohio, Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

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