U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham
/ FILE
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) -- South Carolina U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham says Japan's nuclear crisis shouldn't cause a halt in the construction of nuclear power plants in the United States.
The Republican from Seneca said in a conference call Thursday from Washington he has confidence in America's nuclear power industry, which he said uses a different plant design than Japan.
Power company officials say nuclear plants along Japan's coast survived the 9.0-magnitude earthquake on March 11 and shut down properly. Trouble came when the subsequent surge of seawater swamped diesel generators powering the backup cooling system.
The senator says he lives five miles from Duke Energy's Oconee Nuclear Station and has no worries about its safety.
But Graham says America's nuclear industry needs to be more forthcoming to help the public understand nuclear power production.
(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
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