French nuclear reactor has two small fires

A nuclear reactor automatically shut down in France today after experiencing two small fires, the Associated Foreign Press reported. Crews quickly extinguished the flames. EDF, the operator of the reactor located outside Dieppe, Normandy, told the AFP that there were injuries and "no consequences for the environment."  France's nuclear safety watchdog said it will conduct its own safety inspection at the reactor on Friday.

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EDF said the fires were caused by hot oil leaking from a pump, Reuters reported.

France gets 75 percent of its electricity from nuclear power, BBC News reported. France's 58 nuclear reactors make it the world's most nuclear-dependent nation, France24 reported. 

Several weeks ago, France was one of many countries whose citizens participated in an anti-nuclear energy protest to mark the first anniversary of the Fukushima meltdown in Japan. About 60,000 demonstrators in France's Rhone valley formed a human chain that stretched for 140 miles, France24 reported.

And last December, nine Greenpeace protesters infiltrated the Nogent Sur Seine plant near Paris, France, Platts reported. "This action shows just how vulnerable the French nuclear plants are," Greenpeace said in a public statement.