As the predawn hour marking exactly 20 years since the meltdown at Three Mile Island (TMI) approached, more than 100 people gathered in the cold rain at the Pennsylvania nuclear power plant’s gate.

Several local residents and activists spoke to the group, remembering those terrifying and empowering days, the victories won since then and the costs paid, and the dedication required to finish the task of eliminating the menace of nuclear power.
Afterwards, five people - rally organizer Gene Stilp, Tracy Confer and Mike Ewall of the Student Environmental Action Coalition, former area resident Marci Culley, and Michael Mariotte, executive director of the Nuclear Information & Resource Service - walked onto TMI property carrying a banner reading “TMI, Chernobyl, Who’s Next?”

All were arrested and cited for trespass, then the Pennsylvanians were released on their own recognizance.  Out-of-state residents Culley and Mariotte had to post $5000 bail each.  In May, the five offered to plead guilty to a lesser trespass infraction and paid a fine to settle the matter.

For more information, contact No Nukes Pennsylvania at (717)260-0700.