A lightning strike forced the nuclear reactor at Indian Point 3 to shut down Monday night.

Officials at the nuclear plant say lightning hit a Con Edison station across the street at around 8:30 p.m., acting as a circuit breaker that caused the plant to shut down automatically.

Indian Point spokesperson Jerry Nappi says there has been no danger to the public, and service was not interrupted.

Nuclear Regulatory Commission officials say the plant's automatic shutdown is not likely to change the performance indicators that require upgrading their oversight of Indian Point, unless the plant experiences another disturbance in the near future.