Oak Ridge Today

DOE deputy secretary meets two ‘Calutron Girls’ at Y-12

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DOE Deputy Secretary and Calutron Girls

Two of the calutron girls met with DOE Deputy Secretary of Energy Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall during her visit to Oak Ridge. Seated from left to right are Petty Stuart and Ruth Huddleston. Standing left to right are Kathryn Grant, special assistant to the deputy secretary; commander Wayne Smith, senior military assistant; Sherwood-Randall and Timothy McClees, chief of staff. (Photo courtesy CNS)

 

When Deputy Secretary of Energy Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall was in Oak Ridge last week, she met two “Calutron Girls” at the Y-12 National Security Complex.

Peggy Stuart and Ruth Huddleston both came to Y-12 when they were 18 years old. They both were recruited as seniors in high school when someone from Oak Ridge, a place Peggy did not know existed, came to their schools and invited them to join the war effort.

Peggy said: “My friend had worked there and got lonesome for home in Sneedville, Tennessee. When she decided to go back to Oak Ridge, I came with her. They did not hire her because she did not stay when she was there before, but I got a job.”

Ruth was living in Oliver Springs. When the Manhattan Project began, she knew that something big was happening, so she applied for a job and got it. Peggy and Ruth both married and have spent most of their lives in this area. [Read more…]

Officials celebrate new bridge, road relocation, haul road for UPF at Y-12

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Bear Creek Road Extension and Bridge

Pictured above is the new Bear Creek Road extension and bridge on the west side of the Y-12 National Security Complex.

 

They called it their first major milestone: the completion of site readiness work, delivered on time and under budget. The work included the relocation of Bear Creek Road, a new bridge, and construction of a haul road.

It’s part of the project to build a Uranium Processing Facility at the Y-12 National Security Complex. UPF could replace World War II-era buildings at Y-12. The project has been capped at $6.5 billion, and it’s expected to be completed by 2025.

Federal officials and contractors celebrated the completion of the site readiness subproject in a Friday morning ceremony at Y-12. [Read more…]

Federal, contractor officials celebrate UPF site readiness work on Friday

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Frank Klotz

Frank Klotz

Federal officials and contractors will celebrate the completion of site readiness work for the multi-billion dollar Uranium Processing Facility at the Y-12 National Security Complex on Friday morning.

The UPF site readiness work includes a Bear Creek Road extension and the creation of a haul road.

“Site readiness is the first major step for UPF, a project essential for supporting our nation’s uranium mission,” a media advisory said. “Completion of this stage of the field work to prepare for building UPF signifies a move forward toward the National Nuclear Security Administration’s commitment to complete UPF and move out of the aging 9212 facility.”

The Friday morning celebration starts at 10 a.m. The media has been invited to attend. [Read more…]

Police: Calif. man arrested, questioned by feds after demanding tours of New Hope, ORNL

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Rishi Chatterjee Malakar

Rishi Chatterjee Malakar

Note: This story was updated at 12:18 p.m. March 9.

A California man was arrested by police and questioned by federal agents after he demanded tours of the New Hope Center at the Y-12 National Security Complex and Oak Ridge National Laboratory on Friday evening, authorities said.

The Oak Ridge Police Department responded to the call at about 6:22 p.m. Friday. A man had been found trying to get into the New Hope Center at 602 Scarboro Road through a rear door, Oak Ridge Police Chief Jim Akagi said.

An employee at the New Hope Center confronted the man, who demanded a tour of the building, Akagi said.

After he was denied a tour, the man reportedly left the area in a maroon-colored Jeep sport utility vehicle bearing a Texas license plate. [Read more…]

Anderson government closed; Y-12, Oak Ridge, UCOR, DOE, ORAU start late

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Snow in Oak Ridge on Feb. 26, 2015

Several inches of snow fell in Oak Ridge and across East Tennessee overnight. (Photo by Bruce Phillips)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 9:23 a.m.

Several inches of snow fell in East Tennessee overnight, and there are more closings and delays because of weather and road conditions.

The Y-12 National Security Complex is still clearing some areas at the site. Non-essential employees should delay arrival at the site until 11 a.m. UPF Offsite Offices also should delay until 11 a.m. Personnel are urged to use caution when driving and walking throughout the site and to use designated snow routes.

Anderson County government offices will be closed Thursday. The Roane County Courthouse is also closed. [Read more…]

NNSA finishes upgrades at Y-12 enriched uranium buildings ahead of schedule, under budget

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Y-12 Building 9212 Stack 110

At Building 9212, Stacks 110 and 43 were combined, which eliminated use of one exhaust stack. Further improvements on the project at the Y-12 National Security Complex included the old bag filtration system being replaced with a new cartridge dust collector, shown here. (Photos courtesy NNSA)

 

Project provides critical infrastructure upgrades in Building 9212

The National Nuclear Security Administration has completed a major capital improvement project that has resulted in critical infrastructure upgrades to two key production buildings at the Y-12 National Security Complex. The $75.7 million project was completed nearly 11 months ahead of the construction completion schedule and approximately $5.6 million under budget.

The Nuclear Facilities Risk Reduction, or NFRR, project included upgrades to mechanical, electrical, ventilation, and heating/cooling systems for enriched uranium operations in Buildings 9212 and 9204-2E. The project began in 2008, when 10 tasks were identified and undertaken to make those facilities safer for operations. The project was originally scheduled for completion in 2016.

Improvements include major portions of a 40‑year‑old ventilation system being replaced, and 11 steam stations being consolidated into seven with improved function and maintainability. Several upgrades, replacements, and modifications have been made to electrical switchgear and motor control center systems, and a Kathabar system was replaced with a more environmentally friendly brine chiller. [Read more…]

Friday: OR Schools closed; AC Courthouse, Y-12 open at 8

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Note: This story was updated at 10:02 p.m.

Oak Ridge Schools will be closed Friday, and the Anderson County Courthouse and Y-12 National Security Complex will open at 8 a.m.

The offices of the Anderson County Clerk and Trustee will not open until 10 a.m.

“County officials still urge that Anderson County citizens stay safe and use extreme caution if citizens must be out and about,” a statement said. “County officials will continue monitoring the weather, and if it worsens earlier than anticipated on Friday, the Courthouse and other county government offices will be closed early.” [Read more…]

Updated: Thursday closings—schools, Y-12, Roane State, AC Courthouse

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Oak Ridge Turnpike and Bus Terminal Road Snow on Feb. 18, 2015

Schools and many offices remained closed Thursday after a icy winter storm on Monday followed by this snow on Wednesday morning.

 

Note: This story was updated at 10:21 a.m. Feb. 19.

The temperature the next few days is expected to be brutally cold, and schools and some government offices and contractors have announced they’ll be closed Thursday, or for the rest of the week, because of the weather and road conditions.

Schools in Oak Ridge, Anderson County, Clinton, and Roane County will all be closed Thursday. Roane State Community College will also be closed.

Schools in Clinton and Anderson and Roane counties will also be closed Friday. The Central Office in Anderson County will be closed for the rest of the week, and the Central Office in Roane County will not report Thursday. [Read more…]

Updated: More closures, delays Wednesday as snow falls, temperatures drop

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Winter Weather Advisory

Image courtesy National Weather Service in Morristown

 

Note: This story was last updated at 12:56 p.m.

Many offices and schools will remain closed on Wednesday because of the weather and road conditions, and some will open late. The National Weather Service in Morristown has issued a winter weather advisory for snow on Wednesday and a wind chill watch for Wednesday night.

Schools in Oak Ridge and Clinton and Anderson and Roane counties will be closed again Wednesday. So will Roane State Community College campuses. Pellissippi State Community College will also be closed.

Anderson County Schools will be closed the rest of the week, officials said Wednesday, and the Central Office is closed as well.

Anderson County government offices and all courts will be closed Wednesday.

City of Oak Ridge offices will open at 9 a.m. City Hall in Rocky Top will close at noon Wednesday for deteriorating weather conditions. [Read more…]

Wanted: ‘Calutron Girls’

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Y-12 Calutron Girls

The famous “Calutron Girls” photograph by Manhattan Project photographer Ed Westcott that prompted Denise Kiernan to write the best-seller “The Girls of Atomic City.”

 

Submitted

Wanted! “Calutron Girls” who worked at Y-12 during the Manhattan Project.

The Japanese Public Broadcasting Corporation wants to produce a documentary film to commemorate the end of World War II. Their program director representative has contacted Y-12 National Security Complex Historian D. Ray Smith and wants to interview some women who worked on the calutrons at Y-12. [Read more…]

New DOE landfill could cost $1 billion, including construction, operations

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Oak Ridge Reservation with Bear Creek Valley

But it could also save $1 billion through on-site disposal, officials say

A new landfill that would hold waste from cleanup work at federal sites in Oak Ridge could cost $1 billion, a project manager said Wednesday. That start-to-finish estimate includes construction and 23 years of operations.

But federal officials said the new landfill could save $1 billion in on-site versus off-site costs. That’s because the waste would be disposed on site and wouldn’t have to be shipped out of town, possibly to other states such as Nevada and Utah.

Saving money through on-site disposal could, in turn, accelerate the cleanup work at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Y-12 National Security Complex, said Laura Wilkerson, federal project director for the Y-12 National Security Complex in the Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management.

The new landfill, the Environmental Management Disposal Facility, would be built on Bear Creek Road west of the Y-12 National Security Complex near another landfill that is already in use and has been operating since 2002. [Read more…]

CNS helps provide housing to homeless veterans

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Helen Ross McNabb Veterans Housing Project

This eight-unit apartment building on Coster Road in Knoxville was built to house homeless veterans who have mental illness or a behavioral health disability. The first four veterans moved into their new apartments before Christmas. By springtime, the Helen Ross McNabb Veterans Housing Project will provide permanent apartment homes to 23 veterans, who will also receive ongoing case management. (Photo provided by Helen Ross McNabb Center)

 

Donation contributes to new housing and care through Helen Ross McNabb Center

Consolidated Nuclear Security’s donation of $25,000 to the Helen Ross McNabb Center’s Veterans Housing Project served as one of the final building blocks in the $1.83-million effort to provide permanent housing to homeless veterans who have mental illnesses. On December 15, the ribbon was cut on the first apartment building, and the first four homeless veterans moved into their new homes in time to celebrate Christmas.

The CNS donation helped fund the newly constructed Cedar Crossing apartment building on Coster Road in Knoxville, which provides eight one-bedroom units. The second phase of the project is rehabilitating a former apartment complex off Washington Pike that will provide another 15 apartment homes. The three-building Washington Oaks renovation is expected to be completed by March 2015. [Read more…]