The nation’s worst commercial nuclear accident on March 28, 1979 was a seminal moment for most Central Pennsylvanians — many can recount where they were and how they reacted to the news. The same can be said of journalists who covered the story.
Reporters with little knowledge of nuclear power were given information that was often confusing and contradictory — if they got useful information at all from plant operator Metropolitan Edison. Even state government officials, including then Gov.-Dick Thornburgh, complained about the information that was disseminated.
It wasn’t until the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s Harold Denton was dispatched to TMI at the behest of President Jimmy Carter that media and officials were given clearer explanations of what happened.
Appearing on Smart Talk were three former journalists who covered the TMI story — Dick Hoxworth of WGAL-TV, WHP Radio’s Dave Sollenberger and Linda Miller with the Pennsylvania Newspaper Association.
Key points:
:06 – The TMI Project
2:35 – What happened the morning of March 28, 1979
13:15 – Public fear
20:32 – Call from listener (Joe)
40:30 – The hydrogen bubble
Walter Creitz, right, president of Metropolitan Edison Company, turns away as company Vice President John Herbein answers questions at a news conference in Hershey, Pa., on March 29, 1979. The conference was held because of an accident that occured at the company’s Three Mile Island nuclear power plant near Harrisburg, Pa., that caused radiation leakage into the atmosphere.
Paul Vathis / AP