16. Critical Mass: Rhode Island’s Forgotten Nuclear Disaster

On a quiet night in July 1964, a deadlyblue flash illuminated the United Nuclear Corporation fuel-processing facility in Wood River Junction, Rhode Island. In that instant, Robert Peabody, a hardworking technician and father of nine, became the victim of one of the most tragic—and forgotten—nuclear accidents in American history.

In this episode of Weirder After Dark, we uncover the chilling details of the Wood River Junction Criticality Event. How did a routine shift turn into a radioactive nightmare? What happened in the crucial moments leading up to Peabody’s fatal mistake? And what were the shocking effects of acute radiation exposure that doctors could do nothing to stop?

Join us as we explore the science behind a criticality accident, the harrowing final hours of Robert Peabody, and the lasting impact on his family, the facility, and the town that tried to forget. Was this an unavoidable tragedy, or a disaster waiting to happen? Tune in and find out—because in New England, even the past has a way of glowing in the dark.

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Sources:

• New England Historical Society. (n.d.). Wood River Junction Was the First — and Only — Nuclear Accident in Rhode Island. Retrieved from https://newenglandhistoricalsociety.com/wood-river-junction-was-the-first/

• U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. (2023, January 20). Wood River Junction Criticality Event Incident Report(Document No. ML23020A020). Retrieved from https://www.nrc.gov/docs/ML2302/ML23020A020.pdf

• Rourke, B. (2024, May 21). Nuclear disaster in Rhode Island: The tragic story of Robert Peabody and the Wood River Junction accident. The Providence Journal. Retrieved from https://www.providencejournal.com/story/news/history/2024/05/21/nuclear-accident-rhode-island-wood-river-juction-united-nuclear-corporation-robert-peabody/73729191007/

• Hazards and History. (2024, May 18). The Wood River Junction Criticality Incident: America’s Forgotten Nuclear Tragedy [Video]. YouTube. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QkEN_jrBN-M

• Wikipedia contributors. (2024, June 5). Wood River Junction, Rhode Island. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wood_River_Junction,_Rhode_Island

• Yankee Magazine. (n.d.). Nuclear Accident at Wood River Junction. Retrieved from https://newengland.com/yankee/history/nuclear-accident-at-wood-river-junction/