Staff were drug tested and sniffer dogs were deployed after a bag of suspected drugs was found at a nuclear power station.

The package, believed to have contained powdered drugs thought to be cocaine, was discovered by a worker at Dungeness Power Station last month.

It is understood to have been located inside a control room at the Romney Marsh facility on November 4.

EDF Energy conducted an internal investigation, which has since ended, and the suspected drugs have been destroyed.

A spokesman for the company, which owns and runs the site, said: “We can confirm a packet of what we believe were drugs, was discovered in the power station.

“Staff working in the area underwent drug and alcohol testing immediately and all tested negative.”

The incident was reported to police, but officers are reportedly not investigating because the substance was not found in a person’s possession.

It has also been referred to the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR).

‘Sniffer dogs have been deployed all over the power station and no further suspect material was found…’

The spokesman continued: “Sniffer dogs have been deployed all over the power station and no further suspect material was found.

“We will continue our rolling programme of random drug and alcohol testing of our staff.”

While dogs identified the powder as a drug, it has not been chemically analysed.

EDF will now continue its already planned site sweeps with sniffer dogs as part of normal operations.

Only last month, EDF and its contractor Trillium Flow Services were fined £633,333 over a health and safety breach when a worker lost two toes and suffered life-changing injuries when his foot was crushed under a two-tonne weight for more than 20 minutes.

In another incident, another contractor’s leg was crushed when a vending machine fell on him.

An investigation was launched after the incident at Dungeness B when ‘unsuitable’ equipment was being used to move the heavy machine.

Northamptonshire-based company XPO Transport Solutions UK was served an improvement notice by the ONR.