Trouble at Czech nuclear plant

The reactor at the controversial Temelin nuclear power plant in the Czech republic temporarily stopped operating after equipment malfunctioned and triggered an automatic shut-down.

A plant spokesman said that regulators in the non-nuclear section of the plant sent the signal which set-off the shut-down mechanism.

There were no reports of any leak of radiation.

The safety of the Soviet-designed plant has been a source of major concern in neighbouring Austria and a cause of prolonged friction between the two countries.

The plant lies just fifty-kilometres from the Austrian frontier, and Austrian protestors blocked border crossings in October when the Czech authorities activated the nuclear part of the power station.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service