I received the following email yesterday from my brother who is a civil engineer for Dodson-Stilson, Inc,,,,In Columbus Ohio ,,,,

K:

The firm that I work for is designing a facility which will contain several diesel powered generators that can produce electricity. There will be three large storage tanks that will hold diesel fuel. The facility is supposed to be built before the end of this year. The purpose of this facility is to produce 15% of the electricity for the City of Columbus in case the nuclear power plants in Ohio are shut down on Jan 1, 2000. Apparently, Columbus gets 15 % of its power from Nuclear power plants (probably the Davis - Besse plant in Cleveland). The other 85% comes from coal burning power plants. The cost of the facility is going to be about $1.5 million.

EJT Feb 15, 1999

-- ScaredyCat (KLT@DittosRush.com), February 16, 1999

Answers

Great - hope they finish it - in time to test it, and the power distribution "downstream" of the generators.

-- Robert A. Cook, P.E. (Kennesaw, GA) (cook.r@csaatl.com), February 16, 1999.

Also, the Columbus Dispatch printed an honest, factual article on February 15, 1999 (follows). I was glad to see this type of article being printed....

Ohio's Greatest Home Newspaper THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH Feb 15, 1999

Y2K emergencies may last up to 72 hours, experts say

February 15, 1999

By David Lore Dispatch Science Reporter

Ohioans should prepare to get along without outside help for as long as 72 hours after the start of the year 2000, according to state emergency- management officials.

Preparations for the so-called Y2K crisis -- the inability of computers to adapt to the year 2000 without extensive reprogramming -- are far enough along that most state and federal agencies, large corporations and utilities should be able to keep their systems running, said James Williams, acting director of the Ohio Emergency Management Agency.

How well local governments and small businesses will be able to make the transition is more uncertain, Williams said.

"We're telling local governments that you need to be prepared for up to a 72-hour delay before state government will be able to get there to help out,'' he said.

State officials are trying to promote self- reliance among Ohio residents without stirring up panic, Williams said.

"The key message people have to understand is the 72 hours,'' said Nancy Dragani, a spokeswoman for the Emergency Management Agency. "Prepare as you would for a winter storm. Fill up your car, make sure you have a manual can- opener. It's obvious that next January, if there are electric failures during the first 72 hours, you would need to be able to prepare yourself and your family.''

Last week, state emergency-management directors met in Washington with John Koskinen, chairman of the White House Year 2000 Conversion Council.

The federal government is focusing on avoiding any interruption in federal services such as Social Security checks and other benefits, and officials are confident that goal will be met, Williams said.

Local readiness is another story.

Delays of up to three months in getting all systems fixed could result because of the demand for programmers, Williams said.

Williams and a spokesman for the Ohio National Guard said their agencies are prepared.

Jan. 1 falls on a Saturday, when most businesses are closed and people are at home. Companies and government officials will have two days to deal with computer-related breakdowns before the start of business on Monday.

Representatives of some 54 state agencies will begin staffing the state's Emergency Operations Center on W. Dublin-Granville Road on Dec. 29, Williams said. Round-the- clock operations will begin on New Year's Eve.

A cadre of Ohio National Guard officials will monitor the situation on New Year's Eve, but the current plan is that units will not be called unless they are needed, said Capt. Neal O'Brien, a spokesman.

Williams and O'Brien said their agencies will react to computer-related breakdowns in public services as they would for a major storm.

The differences are that planners know about this problem in advance and that problems might be statewide rather than localized, as with a storm in one region.

Gov. Bob Taft has announced a campaign to alert citizens to potential problems and to state plans. Details of the program aren't final but will include advisories on preparations to make at home, Dragani said.

"We're not opposed to any level of family preparation,'' Williams said. "It's what every family thinks they need.''

-- ScaredyCat (KLT@DittosRush.com), February 16, 1999.

Darn, this was just posted here a few days ago. Anybody remember the thread...
-- Sysman (y2kboard@yahoo.com), February 16, 1999.

Yeah, I saw it. It was either yesterday or earlier today. I didn't believe it then, and I dont believe it now.

-- dave (wootendave@hotmail.com), February 17, 1999.

If anyone wishes to pursue verification, Dodson Stilson Inc. is a major architectural/engineering and construction firm in Columbus, Ohio, and they do list the City of Columbus as one of their "Recent Clients". There's a contact number at their web site:

http://www.dlzcorp.com/dsi.html

-- Bonnie Camp (bonniec@mail.odyssey.net), February 17, 1999.