Specially-trained workers have placed a camera atop an elevator to make unmanned tests inside a nuclear waste dump in Carlsbad, N.M., in this March 7, 2014, U.S. Department of Energy file photo.CARLSBAD, N.M. – Employees at the federal government’s troubled nuclear waste dump in southeastern New Mexico are preparing to enter the facility’s underground mine for the first time since a radiation leak contaminated workers last month.
The U.S. Department of Energy announced Saturday that 35 workers have undergone training simulations at a Potash mine before re-entry next week into the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP).
Employees went through a two-hour underground session using protective gear and air-breathing units, officials said.
Workers spent this week training for various scenarios that could occur in the mine.
According to the Department of Energy, the plan is for workers to set up an operating camp near a salt-handling shaft and then check for a secondary exit in the shaft that controls air flow. After that, they will focus on finding the source of the radiation release.