Petrov’s Choice: How a Computer Error Nearly Started World War III in 1983
On September 26, 1983, Lieutenant colonel Stanislav Petrov saved the world from a nuclear disaster. A system made a mistake. A human being chose not to follow the order.
Updates
Signs of the Times: Radiation warnings on Interstate 5
Someone has been posting enormous radiation warning signs over the I-5 freeway in San Clemente. The signs mimic the color and layout of official California freeway road signs. The sign is an obvious reference to the 3.6 million pounds of deadly radioactive “spent” nuclear fuel stored at the non-functioning San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station. The so-called “spent” fuel is radioactively deadly for more than 25,000 years,…
Why San Onofre is a likely target for an Iranian counter-attack
On March 11, 2026, the FBI warned about possible drone attacks against California targets. The FBI warning is “restricted,” and therefore non-public. However, if the Iranian drone threat is legitimate, it is our contention that the Failed San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS) may be a priority target for the following reasons: 1) Trump is targeting Iran’s power plants and nuclear sites. Trump has announced plans…
US DOE chooses “Sensible Photonics” and “Guided Wave” to detect damaged nuclear waste canisters at San Onofre using ultrasound
The U.S. Department of Energy is attempting to use sound waves (ultrasound) to monitor wear and tear on canisters that store deadly radioactive spent nuclear fuel
Ushering in a Dark Age of Nuclear, the U.S. Energy Department is promoting nuclear as an energy solution
The Department of Energy (DOE), wants you to believe that somehow, the new designs for nuclear power plants are “advanced” technology. Don’t you believe them. “Advanced Nuclear,” and “Small Modular Reactors” are nothing more than the same old stuff in a shiny new bag. These “new” reactors are dangerous and filthy. “Advanced Nuclear” is increasing the threat of nuclear terrorism, and contributing to the proliferation of…
Recording of live Southern California Edison Community Engagement Panel Meeting, June 4, 2026, San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS)
Public Watchdogs has posted a recording of the June 4, 2026 Community Engagement Panel Meeting on its YouTube Channel.
Infant Mortality, Christi Brinkley, and a Nuclear Lububu?
In this week’s Nuclear Hotseat, Episode #775, Three-Mile Island Survivor and author, Libbe Halevy features Joseph J. Mangano, an epidemiologist who is working with Christi Brinkley on the Radiation Public Health Project and its latest study, titled Worsening Newborn/Infant Health in San Luis Obispo County and the Diablo Canyon Nuclear Reactors. In addition, Libbe also features Linda Pentz Gunter and her new book No to Nuclear. …
Why a new fungus that devours nuclear waste changes nothing
The fungi have amazed scientists because of their ability to grow in conditions that are lethal to most life forms. Some scientists believe this may be linked to the way these organisms interact with radiation at a cellular level. The hope is that these fungi could somehow devour nuclear waste and make the world safer for humans and other life forms.
A Three-Mile Island Evacuation Story: Nowhere to run, nowhere to hide
Today is the 47th anniversary of the USA’s worst nuclear disaster. Nina Babiarz, our Director of Development, was there. By Nina Babiarz Every anniversary of the Three-Mile Island (TMI) meltdown puts me in a reflective mood. It was so much more than just that moment the meltdown occurred at 4 am in middle of the night. The ensuing consequences were varied and numerous. Three Mile Island…
Bombing Iranian power plants is a war crime
What happens if Iran bombs our power plants? According to the Geneva Convention’s Rules of War, which have been ratified by the U.S.A. (and the Islamic Republic of Iran), the law forbids the bombing of power plants, even if those power plants are located on a military base. The 1977 Geneva Convention, Article 56, states that bombing power plants and water infrastructure is a war crime,…
Harvard cancer study finds more cancer victims near nuclear power plants.
Study shows that people near operating nuclear power plants get cancer more often.
New Harvard Study Links Cancer to Proximity to Nuclear Power Plants
Cancer rates are higher for people who live near nuclear power plants. That is the conclusion of a new report from a Harvard research team. According to the study, more than 20,000 cancer victims in Massachusetts contracted the cancers because they were living too close to a nuclear power plant. The study's summary has this blunt conclusion: "Residential proximity to nuclear plants in Massachusetts is associated...
Earthquake strikes 2.7 miles from San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station
At 12:36 PM yesterday, Sunday,December 7th, the United States Geological Survey(USGS) reported that a 3.3 earthquake occurred only 2.7 miles away from the San Onofre nuclear waste dump. The facility, located at the site of the failed San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS), is home to more than 3.6 million pounds of deadly, radioactive “spent” nuclear fuel, or SNF placed in 73 (seventy-three) ‘scratched and damaged’ canisters. The earthquake at...
Publication of SONGS Hazardous Waste Event Report No. 58027
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has received an Event Report involving the improper handling of hazardous waste material at the failed San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS). SONGS was shuttered in 2013 after it blew hazardous radioactive steam into the atmosphere from a defective Replacement Steam Generator (RSG). The California Department of Toxic Substance Control (DTSC) noted that in violation of the SONGS' permit, and California...
Edison “Engagement Panel” on SONGS, this Thursday, 5:30pm
To attend the meeting at 5:30PM on Thursday, November 13, click here. Click here to attend As a Public Watchdogs member, you are probably one of the most informed and educated people in our community regarding our community’s biggest concern: The 73 scratched and gouged canisters that are located 108 feet away from the mighty Pacific. With nowhere for that radioactive waste to go, we are...