Nerves

This is a well paced story about a radioactive crisis at a nuclear research facility. It vaguely resembles a nuclear power plant, but the emphasis on the research being done implies it is more a large, complex laboratory campus.

As is typical of these shorter works, some things happen faster than can be reasonably expected, such as deliveries of emergency equipment, construction, development of complex solutions and the like. This does have the effect of giving the story a sense of crisis and the feeling that events are pressing quickly on the characters.

The story focusses on the crisis which arises when a research project goes explosively awry and the resulting nuclear reaction threatens a world-altering explosion. The main characters are researcher and doctors, who at various times use whatever skills they have or can call on to deal with the growing crisis.

It is a high quality work, so the nomination for the Retro Hugo is easy to understand. It has aged well and is still well worth reading.