Cherokee Nuclear Power Plant
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The Cherokee Nuclear Power Plant sits just 10 miles outside of Gaffney, South Carolina, United States, in the Cherokee Falls Community. Duke Power owned the site in the 1970s and started construction of a nuclear plant there. Duke originally planned three reactors on the property. One reactor was partially completed when work was halted in 1982 and they scrapped plans for the other two. Duke halted construction at the site in 1983 after spending $633 million (or about $1.2 billion U.S. adjusted for inflation, as of April 11, 2007). An uncertain economy, stringent federal regulations on nuclear plants and a decrease in electrical use caused Duke Power to abandon the site in the early 1980s. Earl Owensby, a Shelby, N.C., businessman, bought the site two years later and converted the complex into a movie studio.
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[edit] The Abyss
During the process of writing his screenplay for The Abyss, James Cameron debated whether to actually film in the ocean or on a film set. Although the logical choice was the actual ocean, weather and natural variables made such a choice a great safety and insurance risk; there would be very little control over the elements. Filming in a tank meant control but no grand scale realism. No existing facility set up for filmmaking was big enough for the kind of filmmaking Cameron had in mind. On invitation from Earl Owensby, a low-budget filmmaker, Cameron traveled to Owensby's newly-acquired site, the never completed Cherokee Nuclear Power plant facility 10 miles outside of Gaffney, South Carolina, which Owensby was planning to turn into a film studio. The site was literally a bunch of warehouses and temporary offices tied together by ribbons of pavement and dotted with weed-strewn concrete pads and rainwater ponds. The turbine pit was a large irregularly-shaped area that could be modified to hold 2.2 million gallons of water. Cameron and cinematographer Al Giddings checked out the site and found the potential tank area impressive but still not quite large enough for the production's needs. Cameron noticed a huge cylindrical concrete structure next to the turbine pit and asked to see what it was. 200 feet across, 55 feet deep in the center, and studded with rebar. It seem to be the perfect size for what Cameron needed. Calculations were made of the main reactor structure, and the containment vessel was found to be capable of holding 7.5 million gallons of water. The containment vessel was christened "A" tank while the smaller turbine pit was called "B" tank. "B" tank was used for all the interior Montana sets, the Sub Bay set, and for the "wet-for-wet" miniature work, while "A" tank would be reserved for the main exterior of Deepcore and for the full-sized exterior Montana missile deck section. The "A" tank was the largest underwater set ever. The depth and length of time spent underwater meant that the cast and crew had to sometimes go through decompression. Interior sets for Deepcore as well as other sets for the production were built inside the nearby H-shaped warehouse, which also contained the production offices.
[edit] Set Layout
[edit] Abandoned
In December of 1988, production moved to Los Angeles. After the completion of filming the set was drained but funding was not available to properly strike the set. As a result all of the set pieces were simply 'left to rot'. Before abandoning the set, warning labels were affixed on the structures warning everyone that the set was still the property of 20th Century Fox and that any recording of them by any means (photographic or video) is not allowed.
[edit] New Nuclear Power Plant
On on December 13, 2007, Duke Power announced that this site had been selected for a new nuclear power plant to be called the William States Lee III Nuclear Generating Station. The site is jointly owned by Duke Power and Southern Company. Duke plans to develop the site for two Westinghouse Electric Company AP1000 (advanced passive) pressurized water reactors. Each reactor is capable of producing approximately 1,117 megawatts. (See Nuclear Power 2010 Program.) Plant construction on the 2,022-acre site could take five years. The property still has cooling ponds and infrastructure in place, making it more attractive than other sites in the region. The property is close to the Broad River, and electricity transmission lines are accessible. This new plant will be built adjacent to the old site. The old site as well as the sets will be demolished to make way for the new construction. The sets were demolished in September of 2007. The Entrance Sign
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- The Abyss Special Edition DVD
[edit] External links
- Google Maps view of area
- Cherokee Nuclear Power Plant Pre-Demolition Shots