Re: Rumors of War/Fear for the Future Missing Keys At U.S. Nuke Labs CBS News Jan. 1, 2004
The Energy Department is conducting a widespread review of security at America's nuclear weapons laboratories after reports of hundreds of missing keys, some of which could allow access to sensitive areas. Sources tell CBS News that lock and key experts will begin visiting all U.S. nuclear labs next month to assess the problem of missing keys and apparent security lapses, reports CBS News Correspondent Sharyl Attkisson. The review follows reports last summer that Oak Ridge National Laboratory had reported "a number" of keys missing. In fact, 200 keys were missing. Oak Ridge, located in Tennessee, was part of the Manhattan Project where uranium was processed for the first atomic bomb. Also known by its World War II code name "Y-12", it's considered the Fort Knox of highly enriched uranium - the kind terrorists could use for a devastating bomb. Some of the missing keys, according to one source, "provide possible access to sensitive areas" at Oak Ridge. At Sandia National Labs in New Mexico, a set of master keys went missing for more than a week, including keys that could get someone as far as the glass doors leading to the nuclear reactors. At the time, nobody bothered to change the locks or report the security breach as required. Someone also lost track of master keys at Lawrence Livermore Lab. The Energy Department's Inspector General investigated Livermore and recently determined the lab "did not immediately recognize the significant security implications . did not report the security incidents within the required timeframes," and "did not immediately assess the potential security risks." During the Inspector General's review, Livermore officials admitted five more master keys were missing, some for years. The Inspector General says it will cost $1.7 million dollars to replace 100,000 locks at Livermore alone. The lab claims it won't cost nearly that much. In response to the reports, the Energy Department is launching a "lock and key inventory" to try to pinpoint the extent of the security breach. Sources say it will be a "top to bottom review" at all the nation's nuclear weapons labs. The missing keys are only the latest blow to confidence in security at U.S. nuclear weapons labs. The Energy Department announced last year it would take competitive bids for the contract to run Los Alamos National Laboratory for the first time in the nuclear weapons lab's history, after high-profile management breakdowns shook confidence in current management. The University of California has managed the lab since it was the birthplace of the atom bomb six decades ago. The review of the contract was prompted after reports of financial abuse by several employees, equipment that was missing or unaccounted for, and the firing of two lab investigators who raised concerns about porous management. Two lab employees used lab money to buy hunting equipment, sunglasses, television sets, gas barbecues and other merchandise apparently unrelated to their jobs. Another used a lab charge card to try to purchase a customized Ford Mustang. The University of California made sweeping changes, firing or reassigning several top lab managers and instituting a series of reforms. But the latest problems at Los Alamos come in the wake of the 1999 investigation into Lee, a Taiwanese-born scientist who was imprisoned for nine months while under investigation. He was never charged with spying. The next year, two computer hard drives with secret nuclear-related material disappeared, only to turn up later behind a copy machine. http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/01/01/national/printable591068.shtml _______________________________________________ Sndbox mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://a8.mewebdns-a8.com/mailman/listinfo/sndbox_sandboxmail.net
