Campus 2 – Main Power Plant

Operations log — Boiler 3

• Time: 14:32
• Location: Boiler 3, east side access platform
• Personnel: L. Engineer (operator), D. Harrison (rover)

Observed intermittent flame leakage at the lower-right edge of the boiler access nameplate/inspection cover. Small blue-orange tongues of flame visible for 2–3 seconds at a time, coinciding with pressure pulses. Light soot halo forming around the plate perimeter. Audible “hiss-pop” noted during pulses. No alarms triggered, but stack O2 trending wobbly and furnace draft slightly unstable.

Immediate actions:

• Notified Control Room and Shift Supervisor.
• Reduced boiler load by ~10% to steady conditions.
• Roped off the area and posted hot-surface warning.
• Requested maintenance to inspect gasket/bolting on the plate and verify furnace negative pressure.
• Gas detectors confirmed normal ambient readings; IR camera shows localized hot spot centered on plate flange.

Assessment:

Likely degraded gasket or uneven torque on the access plate allowing furnace gases to bypass. No visible damage beyond gasket weep. Recommend full isolation at next safe opportunity, depressurize, and replace gasket; retorque in star pattern to spec. Review recent maintenance records for this cover.

Safety note:

Flames should stay on the inside of the boiler—this one appears to be practicing for an external career. Contain its ambitions at earliest convenience.