US energy department says less than 50 purged from nuclear security office

FILE PHOTO: The Savannah River Site (SRS), a 310 square mile (198,046 acres) Department of Energy site, located in the sand-hills region of South Carolina, U.S. shown in this aerial photo made available on July 27, 2012. Courtesy National Nuclear Security Administration/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump and his adviser Elon Musk purged less than 50 workers from the agency that maintains the country's nuclear weapons arsenal, the Department of Energy said on Sunday, after far wider layoffs there were suddenly rescinded, causing chaos among staff.

On Friday, sources told Reuters that 325 workers had been sent notice that they had been laid off from the National Nuclear Security Administration, part of the department which employs about 2,000 people and works around the world to secure dangerous nuclear materials, including in Ukraine as Russia's war continues.