Blast at French nuclear-waste plant kills 1

A nuclear plant in Marcoule, in southern France, was rocked  by an explosion earlier today, killing at least one employee. The explosion occurred in a furnace used for melting radioactive scrap metal at the plant site, France's Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) said.

Reports from the BBC suggested the fire occurred in a storage space for radioactive waste, and one person died in the explosion. Meanwhile, there were conflicting reports on the number of people injured ranging from three to four, at this point.

According to a spokesman for the Atomic Energy Commissariat (CEA), the blast hit the Centraco nuclear waste treatment centre belonging to EDF subsidiary Socodei.

The site is located 20 km north of the historic city of Avignon, which attracts thousands of tourists at this time of the year.

The Marcoule plant is a major site for nuclear activities and, according to the BBC, it does not have any reactors, but produces mixed oxide fuel (MOX) by recycling the plutonium found in nuclear weaponry. The plant also is used for creation of tritium, a radioactive isotope of hydrogen, according to the BBC.

Earlier this morning, there was some fear of a radioactive leak at the Marcoule site, but the CEA said the fire occurred "on the edge of the centre" of the facility, and was brought under control. According to the latest measurements of radioactivity, there had been no leakage outside the facility.