Nuclear employee had explosive device in truck

November 2, 2007

Arizona - An Arizona nuclear plant is on high alert after a contract employee was stopped with an explosive device in his truck.

There was no threat to the public, said Jim McDonald, spokesman for Arizona Public Service Company, which owns the Palo Verde Nuclear Generating Station in Wintersberg, Ariz., 34 miles west of Phoenix.

The employee works for the plant -- the largest nuclear plant in the nation -- but not for APS, McDonald said. He was on his way to work and at a security entrance about a half a mile from the plant when a routine security sweep found the item.

Victor Dricks, regional spokesman for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, said a capped pipe was found in the truck bed. Dricks said the pipe had suspicious residue, but the APS said initial checks failed to show any explosive material on the pipe.