Blast rocks Russian nuke plant

"An explosion occurred on Thursday at a company located far from the reactors and did not affect the power station's operation. No increase in radioactivity was noted," Russian Atomic Energy Agency spokesman Nikolai Shingarev told AFP.

Vladimir Vorobiyev, the regional representative of Russia's emergency situations ministry, said the blast went off in a nearby metal smelting facility, but not actually within the limits of the power station, which is located in the town of Sosnovyi Bor near Saint Petersburg.