It operated from 1958 to 1961, when an accidental explosion killed three plant operators, leading to changes in reactor design. This is the only U.S. reactor accident to have caused immediate deaths. [1]

While the mechanism for the severe explosion was not immediately apparent, it was found that the center control rod (No. 9) had been lifted too high—high enough for the reactor to cause a steam …

In the heart of winter 1961, in a remote area of the desert forty miles west of Idaho Falls, an Army- commissioned nuclear project went horribly wrong when the three on-duty operators were killed by a …

Sep 27, 2022 · Lessons learned and brief summary of the gruesome SL-1 nuclear reactor accident from 1961.

The world's first fatal atomic accident occurred on January 3, 1961 when a small, 3MW experimental BWR called SL-1 (Stationary Low-Power Plant No. 1) in Idaho was destroyed after a control rod was …

Dec 6, 2025 · The SL-1 disaster is one of the most chilling and little-known nuclear accidents in U.S. history. It didn’t cause mass evacuations or spread radioactive fallout across cities, but it was deadly, …

The SL-1 reactor accident, which occurred on January 3, 1961, at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory, is considered the first fatal nuclear reactor incident in the United States.

Sep 1, 2007 · In January of 1961, the SL-1 nuclear reactor exploded near Idaho Falls, Idaho, killing three engineering technicians on duty. While performing a basic maintenance procedure – attaching …

On January 3, 1961, three men were killed at the SL-1 nuclear reactor at the US National Reactor Testing Station (NRTS), in Idaho Falls, Idaho. This was the first nuclear power accident in the United …

Dec 18, 2024 · On January 3, 1961, during a restart of the reactor, a catastrophic tragedy unfolded when the reactor went supercritical.