A contractor working as an employee supervisor at the Surry nuclear power plant in Virginia tested positive for alcohol yesterday afternoon, according to an NRC Event Report. The contractor had his badge pulled and his access to the site was terminated.
There are some non-standard elements to this Fitness for Duty report. Usually, these reports indicate that the individual involved had failed either a random or scheduled drug or alcohol screening, and that a followup test will be conductecd.
The way this report was written seems to indicate that the individual was either visibly impaired or smelled strongly of alcohol. The immediate termination of site access suggests that the incident was severe enough that the individual refused testing and tendered his resignation.
The report also indicates that the employee had reported for work but had not entered the plant’s protected area. This also suggests that he was obviously impaired at check-in.
