A US state has blamed the federal government for the fire accident and radiation leak at a nuclear waste management plant located in the state. The accidents took place in February. In a press release dated December 6, New Mexico, situated in southwestern part of the US, has blamed the Department of Energy for 37 violations of hazardous waste permits at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) near Carlsbad and the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) at Santa Fe. The state has demanded $54 million in fine for safety violations. Workers were evacuated, and the underground portion of WIPP was shut down.