Three Mile Island, Pennsylvania
AFP/AFP/Getty ImagesThe Three Mile Island nuclear plant on March 28, 1979.
Three Mile Island is home to America’s worst nuclear power plant accident in history. On March 28, 1979, the plant’s Unit 2 reactor experienced a partial meltdown and released radioactive gases.
Official responses and communications with residents did not help abate concern. Authorities initially told citizens of nearby Middletown, Pennsylvania not to worry about the meltdown — only to change course over the proceeding days and urge residents to stay inside until a further investigation could be conducted. A few days later, officials ordered pregnant women and young children to evacuate the area without telling them when or if they could return home.
Then-president Jimmy Carter visited the increasingly panicked population in order to provide some semblance of comfort. This came too late: The event led to massive demonstrations, culminating in a final rally in New York City that attracted upwards of 200,000 protesters.
Jeff Fusco/Getty ImagesThe Three Mile Island nuclear plant on March 28, 2011.
Anti-nuclear activists and affected parties disputed authorities’ promises that the leaked radioactive gases wouldn’t cause permanent health damage, citing an increase in cancer rates and miscarriages following the event.
However, the Three Mile Island meltdown did lead to positive change in the U.S. While the reactor itself remains virtually untouched, the meltdown brought nationwide attention to the dangers of nuclear power. As the Three mile Island meltdown lingered in public memory, by the mid-1980s, nuclear power plant production had virtually ceased.
