Harold Denton

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Harold R. Denton (born February 24, 1936 in Salem, North Carolina) was the Director of the Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation at the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission (USNRC) and is best known for his role as President Carter's personal adviser at the Three Mile Island accident.

After graduating in 1958 with a B.S. in nuclear engineering from North Carolina State University College of Engineering, Denton first worked at DuPont as an engineer for several years before being hired by the USNRC. After ten years, he became the Director of the Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, a position he held until his retirement in 1998.

[edit] At Three Mile Island

Denton was President Carter's personal representative to Harrisburg at the Three Mile Island nuclear power plant. The arrival of Denton seemed to immediately calm the frayed nerves of public officials and stem the anger of a frustrated press corps. Reporter Steve Liddick of WCMB radio explained to writer Mark Stephens that "Harold Denton was trusted because he looked like a regular, down-to-earth kind of guy. And people wanted someone to believe."

It was Denton's task to inform Pennsylvania Governor Dick Thornburgh and the President about the discovery of a possibly explosive hydrogen bubble above the cooling water, at the top of the reactor pressure vessel. That debate over whether or not the bubble would mix with oxygen and set off an explosion fuelled speculation of a meltdown.

At the time of Carter's arrival on Sunday morning, April 1, the question as to whether the bubble would explode was still under debate. Denton informed the President of the risk just as he was preparing to enter the plant. "...I briefed the President on this bubble and the possibility of an explosive mixture and tried to give him the two sides that were out there, but we still didn't have single view on that," Denton remembered.

Denton has won multiple awards for his contribution at Three Mile Island, including the James N. Landis Medal. In an interview with Dick Thornburgh concerning TMI, Thornburg said, "[Denton] proved to be a genuine hero with respect to this event. He was a much needed source of information for those of us who had the ultimate responsibility for the safety of the people in the area and the quality of the environment."