STORYLINE

Man In Custody After Entering Thorcon Control Room To Charge Phone

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All of Lahaina will be able to sleep easier tonight after officials released more details about a frightening incident at the Thorcon Power Plant yesterday. 31-year-old Gary Puniwale was taken into custody after entering one of the plant’s control rooms, causing a partial shutdown, and panic across the island. While rumors of a possible terror attack caused understandable concern to nearby residents, authorities now say the reason for Puniwale’s unauthorized access was much more benign. According to their report, the Lahaina native was simply trying to charge his phone.

The Thorcon Plant has become one of Lahaina’s most popular attractions since being retrofitted to use element 127 (Unbiseptium) last year. Despite the concerns of many, plant officials said the switch to the controversial fuel would make the plant much safer and more efficient. Tours of the facility began soon after to help allay any fears, and demonstrate the safety of the plant. Thorcon’s Resident Site Manager Davis Carnot says Puniwale was part of one such tour.

“I can now confirm that the subject in question was able to slip away from his tour group yesterday, and somehow gained access to a control room on the lower level. Residents around the plant were never in any danger, and we are reviewing video currently to ascertain how Mr. Puniwale was able to wander away unnoticed, and enter the area. We are working closely with federal authorities and investigators to make sure nothing like this happens again, and are installing new safety and security protocols. While we believe that 127 is the key to the future of power production, we’d like to remind the public, and Gary in particular, that it will not charge your electronic devices any faster than traditional charging options. Frankly, I’m amazed that someone with the understanding and insight of Mr. Puniwale is allowed to walk around without a handler.”

Although Puniwale’s unauthorized entrance into a sensitive area seems to be a result of profound stupidity instead of malicious intent, it is little relief to some who remain concerned about the safety of the plant. Tim Durney, former investigator for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, and founder of the watchdog group VeilWatch, was one of the most vocal critics of the plants move to 127. He says that the incident highlights some of the security concerns he has been warning the public about, and hopes that this incident serves as a wake-up call for those still on the fence about the safety of 127.

He says, “I’m the first to admit that it is highly unlikely anyone else as witless as Gary exists, let alone could navigate the ticket purchasing process necessary to take a tour of the plant, but there are those who wish to do harm to as many as possible out there. It’s those people gaining access to controls at the Thorcon that keep me up at night. I’ve seen firsthand the devastating effect a 127 accident can have. I hate to think about what someone with evil intent could have done in Gary’s position. If the plant had a 127 release half as big as the Veilcorp breach in Iowa, it would destroy virtually all of Lahaina. The public deserves to know just how deadly this plant in their backyard is, and we are launching a new campaign to do just that. I hope Gary’s bumbling can lead to a greater awareness in the public, and make everyone in Lahaina think about what they are living next to.”

While Durney says that more public awareness would lead to a plant shutdown, it is public announcements and news stories about the plant that Puniwale says made him interested in the facility in the first place. Gary says he now understands why his actions caused such a severe response, and apologizes for the trouble he caused.

“My knowledge about the do’s and don’ts while you’re touring a nuclear power plant wasn’t that great, but believe me, I’ve gotten the message loud and clear. I wouldn’t recommend entering a secure location inside a 127 plant to see if it could charge your phone super-fast to anyone, but I will say I’ve learned a lot over the past 24 hours. In fact, if you take away the yelling, and the threats about far away black sites, I think interrogation might be a great way to teach someone about a subject in a very short time. I feel like I have a much better understanding about how serious those “restricted area” signs are, and how the electricity inside a power plant isn’t any “stronger” than what you have at home. I apologize again, and promise not to do anything to trouble my Lahaina neighbors in the future.

STORYLINE

Thorcon Plant Announces Power Via 127 Next Year

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A large countdown clock was unveiled today in front of the Lahaina Thorcon plant. While the year-long timer clicks down to one event, a retrofit to start using element 127 (Unbiseptium) for power production, the implications mean very different things for many Lahaina residents. For some, the modification would be a source of pride, making the island the home of the most cutting edge power plant in the world. The upgrade would provide cheaper, and more efficient energy production. Others see the conversion as unnecessary and potentially dangerous. They contend that the company is risking irreparable harm to the surrounding area simply to improve their bottom line.

Constructing a nuclear power plant in this part of Maui was never an easy sell. Many were concerned that the proposed location was too close to Lahaina and that the potential harm to some of the world’s most pristine forests was not worth the risk. But the project received heavy support from Veilcorp and government officials. A push was made to educate the public of the inherent and passive safety features intrinsic to the Thorcon design. Assured of the plant’s safety, eager for cheaper energy, and keen on having a major Veilcorp hub, public sentiment finally tipped in favor of the plant. It began operations on August 3, 2029.

Now less than five years later, the proposed design changes have many worried. Tim Durney, a former investigator for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, says the plan to switch over to 127 would be a disaster. He says that the Thorcon plants safety features won’t apply if the switch is made to Unbiseptium and calls the installation of the clock something out of a bad scifi movie.

“The locals are calling it the ‘Doomsday clock’ and that’s exactly what it will become if their plans are carried out. I’ve seen the glow that 127 exposure gives everything. People, plants, even some metals, if something bad happened in this facility you’d be able to see Lahiana glowing a light blue at night from space. I was one of the investigators of the Veilcorp 127 breach in 2023. Even though that was considered a small containment failure, the released 127 destroyed acres of Iowa farmland that is still unusable. The explosions had some serious long lasting effects on survivors. We’re talking about horrible growths, deformities, and central nervous system disorders. They don’t even have names for some of the medical issues that people who inhaled 127 are suffering from. I know people who lived on the very edge of the contaminated areas who’ve suffered permanent vision impairments. Imagine always seeing sparkling light even when you close your eyes. We’ve seen huge increases in liver and bone diseases, as well as increases in cervical and testicular cancers in people from the surrounding area. To say that this element is not excessively dangerous is an outright lie.”

Thorcon’s Resident Site Manager Davis Carnot says that nothing could be further from the truth. He says the company has worked closely with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and have been consulting with Veilcorp scientists who have a deep understanding and experience working with 127. He says that the plant conversions will actually make it safer.

“I’ll admit that the messaging behind the clock rollout could have been handled better and we’re discussing moving it inside. Clock issues aside, and with all due respect to Mr. Durney, he is absolutely, 100% incorrect about the increased dangers of 127. The incident in Iowa has nothing at all to do with the technology we plan on using here. The plant will still use a liquid fuel design eliminating the need for fuel rods. In addition, 127 reacts at an extremely low temperature. In fact we’ve been able to achieve near-room-temperature superconductivity in a 127 doped palladium hydride. In layman’s terms, that means we can achieve extraordinary energy production efficiency in a way that is actually safer than our old design. Once you combine the benefits of using 127 with the added guidelines included in the preservation zone expansion, you have yourself the plans for the safest nuclear power plant ever conceived.”

Carnot says that the company understands that people are worried and will work hard to ease their fears. Just as they did when the plant was first proposed, he says the company will spend the next year holding numerous town hall style meetings where residents can learn about the science behind the new design, ask questions, and voice their concerns about the plant, the clock or anything else.