Atomic Twister (TV)
Encyclopedia
Atomic Twister is an original made for TV movie
starring Sharon Lawrence
and Mark-Paul Gosselaar
that was first aired in 2002 on TBS. The plot revolves around a series of tornado
es that damage a nuclear reactor
in a small town in western Tennessee
, in turn causing a near-meltdown
at the plant. The movie is loosely based on events that occurred on 24-Jun-1998 at the Davis-Besse Nuclear Power Station in Ohio
, which was hit by a tornado and off site power was lost.
When the diesel pumps fail, the staff try to restart the electric pumps, but they won't respond. The nuclear reactor overheats, causing coolant to evaporate from the waste pool, threatening to expose radioactive material. The staff attempt to initiate SCRAM procedures to try to shut down the nuclear reactor, but the computer fails to respond. An operator named Neville goes in to manually shut down the reactor, but is exposed to large amounts of radiation. He is successful, though, and the reactor is shut down, although he is presumably fatally injured by the radiation. Coolant is still rapidly evaporating from the waste pool, meaning the radioactive material will be exposed in half an hour.
A local police officer named Jake (Mark-Paul Gosselaar
), a friend of Corrine, searches for Campbell and finds him. Together they make their way to safety at Corinne's request. On the way they discover Jake's girlfriend, Ashley (Charmaine Guest), trapped on a steep hillside in her car. Jake goes down to rescue her. Both Jake and Ashley are nearly killed when her car slides over the cliff but Campbell saves their lives, risking his own to do it when he is given an option to escape. Jake laudes Campbell as a hero and lets a relieved Corrin know of her son's survival and heroism.
Firemen spraying water into the pool only slows the evaporation, however a disused diesel generator is found and they plan to hook it up to the electric pumps. They order some diesel fuel for it but the truck driver panics at the idea of driving in the adverse weather. Jake, a former truck driver, intercepts the fleeing truck driver and delivers the diesel to the plant himself. At the plant the heat is starting to prove too much for the firemen and they start to pass out while the water from the hoses is having very little effect. It is mere minutes before the waste pool will be completely exposed. Jake helps the firefighters while Corrine hooks up the fuel and attempts to start the generator. With the generator running the pumps restart and the waste pool starts to refill, and the crisis is averted. The plant is damaged, but stable. Campbell and Corrine are finally reunited as Jake and Ashley set a date to get married and Neville is led away, eventual fate uncertain although he likely dies of radiation poisoning as the characters said anyone who entered the reactor chamber would get a fatal dose.
and Meremere Power Station
, both in New Zealand
.
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
starring Sharon Lawrence
Sharon Lawrence
Sharon Elizabeth Lawrence is an American television actress. She is best known for the role of Sylvia Costas Sipowicz in the Television series NYPD Blue...
and Mark-Paul Gosselaar
Mark-Paul Gosselaar
Mark-Paul Harry Gosselaar is an American actor. He is perhaps best known for his roles as Zack Morris in NBC's Saved by the Bell, Good Morning, Miss Bliss, and Saved by the Bell: The College Years, Detective John Clark in NYPD Blue, Jerry Kellerman in TNT's Raising the Bar, and more recently Peter...
that was first aired in 2002 on TBS. The plot revolves around a series of tornado
Tornado
A tornado is a violent, dangerous, rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. They are often referred to as a twister or a cyclone, although the word cyclone is used in meteorology in a wider...
es that damage a nuclear reactor
Nuclear reactor
A nuclear reactor is a device to initiate and control a sustained nuclear chain reaction. Most commonly they are used for generating electricity and for the propulsion of ships. Usually heat from nuclear fission is passed to a working fluid , which runs through turbines that power either ship's...
in a small town in western Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
, in turn causing a near-meltdown
Nuclear meltdown
Nuclear meltdown is an informal term for a severe nuclear reactor accident that results in core damage from overheating. The term is not officially defined by the International Atomic Energy Agency or by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission...
at the plant. The movie is loosely based on events that occurred on 24-Jun-1998 at the Davis-Besse Nuclear Power Station in Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, which was hit by a tornado and off site power was lost.
Plot
A series of tornadoes in West Tennessee cripple the Helman-Klein Nuclear Power Plant by damaging a power transformer and a generator. This leaves the plant with very little power to operate. As an operator shuts down non-vital systems, which include the electric pumps, a second tornado hits the plant, damaging the diesel pumps. Meanwhile Campbell Maguire (Daniel Costello), the plant supervisor's young son, is caught in the twisters. His babysitter is killed and he runs away towards the plant on his bike.When the diesel pumps fail, the staff try to restart the electric pumps, but they won't respond. The nuclear reactor overheats, causing coolant to evaporate from the waste pool, threatening to expose radioactive material. The staff attempt to initiate SCRAM procedures to try to shut down the nuclear reactor, but the computer fails to respond. An operator named Neville goes in to manually shut down the reactor, but is exposed to large amounts of radiation. He is successful, though, and the reactor is shut down, although he is presumably fatally injured by the radiation. Coolant is still rapidly evaporating from the waste pool, meaning the radioactive material will be exposed in half an hour.
A local police officer named Jake (Mark-Paul Gosselaar
Mark-Paul Gosselaar
Mark-Paul Harry Gosselaar is an American actor. He is perhaps best known for his roles as Zack Morris in NBC's Saved by the Bell, Good Morning, Miss Bliss, and Saved by the Bell: The College Years, Detective John Clark in NYPD Blue, Jerry Kellerman in TNT's Raising the Bar, and more recently Peter...
), a friend of Corrine, searches for Campbell and finds him. Together they make their way to safety at Corinne's request. On the way they discover Jake's girlfriend, Ashley (Charmaine Guest), trapped on a steep hillside in her car. Jake goes down to rescue her. Both Jake and Ashley are nearly killed when her car slides over the cliff but Campbell saves their lives, risking his own to do it when he is given an option to escape. Jake laudes Campbell as a hero and lets a relieved Corrin know of her son's survival and heroism.
Firemen spraying water into the pool only slows the evaporation, however a disused diesel generator is found and they plan to hook it up to the electric pumps. They order some diesel fuel for it but the truck driver panics at the idea of driving in the adverse weather. Jake, a former truck driver, intercepts the fleeing truck driver and delivers the diesel to the plant himself. At the plant the heat is starting to prove too much for the firemen and they start to pass out while the water from the hoses is having very little effect. It is mere minutes before the waste pool will be completely exposed. Jake helps the firefighters while Corrine hooks up the fuel and attempts to start the generator. With the generator running the pumps restart and the waste pool starts to refill, and the crisis is averted. The plant is damaged, but stable. Campbell and Corrine are finally reunited as Jake and Ashley set a date to get married and Neville is led away, eventual fate uncertain although he likely dies of radiation poisoning as the characters said anyone who entered the reactor chamber would get a fatal dose.
Cast
- Sharon LawrenceSharon LawrenceSharon Elizabeth Lawrence is an American television actress. She is best known for the role of Sylvia Costas Sipowicz in the Television series NYPD Blue...
as Corinne Maguire - Mark-Paul GosselaarMark-Paul GosselaarMark-Paul Harry Gosselaar is an American actor. He is perhaps best known for his roles as Zack Morris in NBC's Saved by the Bell, Good Morning, Miss Bliss, and Saved by the Bell: The College Years, Detective John Clark in NYPD Blue, Jerry Kellerman in TNT's Raising the Bar, and more recently Peter...
as Deputy Jake Hannah - Carl LewisCarl LewisFrederick Carlton "Carl" Lewis is an American former track and field athlete, who won 10 Olympic medals including 9 gold, and 10 World Championships medals, of which 8 were gold. His career spanned from 1979 when he first achieved a world ranking to 1996 when he last won an Olympic title and...
as Securityman Stu - Jonathan Blick as Potter (as Johnny Blick)
- Daniel Costello as Campbell Maguire
- Charmaine Guest as Ashley Bishop
- George HenareGeorge HenareGeorge Winiata Henare, CNZM, OBE is an acclaimed New Zealand actor with a distinguished career spanning more than three decades.-Biography:In 1988, he was awarded an OBE for Services to Theatre...
as Manuel Fluentez - John Leigh as Deputy Rollins
- John Sumner as Neville
- Corbin BernsenCorbin BernsenCorbin Dean Bernsen is an American actor and director, known for his work on television. He is best known for his roles as divorce attorney Arnold Becker on the NBC drama series L.A. Law, and as retired police detective Henry Spencer on the USA Network comedy-drama series Psych...
as Sheriff C.B. Bishop - David AstonDavid AstonDavid Aston is an actor from Auckland, New Zealand who played the character Rhineheart in the 1999 Hollywood movie The Matrix. He also works as presenter for non-broadcast in-house videos, televisions commercials, voiceover artist and singer.-Early life:...
as Man at Cliff - Paul BarrettPaul BarrettPaul Franklyn "Legs" Barrett is the UK's best known agent and manager of 1950s style Rock and Roll artistes, an author and previously a singer and film actor...
as Fuel Tanker Driver - Grant Bridger as Maguire's Neighbor
- Katrina DevineKatrina DevineKatrina Devine is a New Zealand actress.-Biography:During school, Devine acted in various amateur and school productions...
as Gloria - Peter Feeney as Fireman
Location
Scenes depicting the fictional power plant were filmed at Huntly Power StationHuntly power station
The Huntly Power Station is the largest thermal power station in New Zealand and is located in the town of Huntly in the Waikato. It is operated by Genesis Power, a state-owned enterprise, and supplies around 17% of the country's power.-Generation:...
and Meremere Power Station
Meremere Power Station
Meremere Power Station is a former coal-fired power station on the Waikato River at Meremere, approximately south of Auckland, New Zealand. Meremere was the first major coal-fired power station in New Zealand, and was commissioned to help meet the increasing electricity demands of New Zealand, and...
, both in New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
.