San Onofre Execs' 'Star Trek'-Themed Spoof Video Under Fire
SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO (CBS/AP) —A "Star Trek"-themed spoof video created by executives at the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station a few years before the plant was shut down has created a bit of a controversy.
The two-minute video called "SONGS Trek," obtained by KGTV in San Diego, was filmed in 2010 in a plant training simulator.
In the short, the plant's former chief nuclear officer, dressed as Captain Kirk, talked about safety hazards and the need for three-way communication, in which workers who receive orders repeat them and receive confirmation that they have correctly understood them.
The crew also discussed issues presented by an "unusual space fabric" the ship has encountered.
The captain was told that if they stayed in a certain state much longer, they risked equipment failure.
An activist group said it was "disturbing" that top managers were "fooling around like this" when the plant was dealing with generator issues and concerns about public safety.
In 2012, the twin-reactor nuclear plant was closed after a small radiation leak led to the discovery of damage to hundreds of steam generator tubes that carry hot, radioactive water.
Victor Dricks, a spokesman for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, said Thursday that the agency reviewed the video and determined that "it had no safety implications, other than reinforcing the importance of clear communications."
"It was filmed in the plant simulator, not in the control room," Dricks said.
The film was intended as a light-hearted safety video that was created for a meeting of workers to recognize individual accomplishments and make news announcements about the plant, Dricks said.
In a written statement, plant operator Southern California Edison said, "The making of the video cost $800 and was taped in a training facility, so safety was never compromised at San Onofre. The manager who authorized this video no longer works for SCE."
The video was never completed or used, Edison added.
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