MIAMI -- A $100,000 reward is now being offered for the identity of whoever damaged a pipe at the Turkey Point Nuclear Power Plant.

An eighth-inch hole was discovered March 31 during an inspection following a shutdown for maintenance.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Miami-Dade Police Department, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, along with the Florida Power & Light Company, are all investigating the incident.

Investigators told Local 10's Rad Berky that they have all but concluded that someone intentionally drilled the hole into the cooling pipe.

The reward is being offered Florida Power & Light Company for information leading to the identification of the person(s) responsible.

Judy Orihuela, with the Miami office of the FBI, said, "We really haven't gotten any good leads at this point so we are still hoping to get the word out about this reward and we are hoping somebody will call us."

Incident Investigated

According to FP&L, the two nuclear units at Turkey Point are shut down once every 18 months for routine refueling and maintenance. Unit 3 was shut down a few weeks ago, according to FPL, and the fueling and maintenance was completed. Inspectors then conducted routine tests and inspections, and FPL said that is when the hole was discovered in a pipe that releases pressure.

FPL spokeswoman Rachel Scott said that other maintenance work had been performed in the area where the hole was found.

Berky said that the damage was in a restricted area to which very few people would have access.

Scott said that there are security cameras around the plant, but she would not say which parts of the plant are monitored.

"We do have very extensive surveillance capabilities at the plant," Scott said.

Scott said she couldn't comment on what if anything was caught on camera.

FPL customers were not affected by the routine shutdown, Scott said. The power plant's second nuclear unit, as well as two other units powered by oil and natural gas, remained fully operational.

Neither the plant nor the public was in danger, according to Scott.

Investigators said they are hoping the $100,000 might be enough of a lure for someone to come forward, even if they were not personally involved in drilling the hole. They say it may yet turn out that it was made by accident, but with every passing day, it appears to be more sinister.

"We really don't know what their intention was and I don't really want to speculate, but we do want to get to the bottom of it," Orihuela said.

If you have any information, you are asked to call the FBI at (305) 944-9101.