A reactor at a nuclear power plant in Russia's southwestern Rostov region was taken offline after the detection of a steam leak, but the operator said radiation levels were normal.
"The second power unit was disconnected from the network for routine maintenance of thermal and mechanical equipment," Rosenergoatom, a subsidiary of the state nuclear agency Rosatom, said on October 21.
Earlier in the day, workers at the Rostov nuclear power plant found an 18-millimeter crack in a welded joint on a pipe used to control humidity and steam levels.
Rosenergoatom said the pipe carries nonradioactive water.
Russia's public-health watchdog, Rospotrebnadzor, said in statement that the level of radiation at the site was normal.
The four-unit nuclear power plant is located on the bank of the Tsimlyansk water-storage basin, 250 kilometers from the regional capital, Rostov-on-Don.
