February 11, 1981 (Wednesday)
- A misunderstanding at the Sequoyah Nuclear Generating Station Unit #1 near Chattanooga, Tennessee led to a nuclear accident in which 105,000 gallons of radioactive water flooded the containment building and contaminated thirteen Tennessee Valley Authority employees. After being asked to verify that a containment spray valve was properly closed, an auxiliary operator opened the valve instead, diverting the water to a sprinkler system and giving the persons inside "a chilly but slightly radioactive shower".
- Died: Charles F. Fogarty, 59, Chairman and CEO of Texasgulf, and 7 others in crash of a company aircraft. The plane crashed at 6:45 pm as it approached Westchester, Connecticut, on the way back from Toronto.
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Famous quotes containing the word february:
“If a man is a good lawyer, a good physician, a good engineer ... he may be a fool in every other capacity. But no deficiency or mistake of judgment is forgiven to a woman ... and should she fail anywhere, if she has any scientific attainment, or artistic faculty, instead of standing her interest as an excuse, it is censured as an aggravation and offence.”
—E.P.P., U.S. women’s magazine contributor. The Una, p. 28 ( February 1855)