This can't be correct:

"What brought the problem home to her, Wheatley said, was when she learned that nuclear power plants have to shut down if the 911 system isn't working."

from: http://www.kcstar.com/item/pages/business.pat,business/30dac128.216,.html

-- Anonymous, February 18, 1999

Answers

Check with your local emergency management coordinator.

It is my understanding that if local evacuation warnings can not be dipatched through 911 channels, our nuclear generation plant (Brunswick in North Carolina) is required to shut down.

I will check my local officials in Wilmington. I suggest you do the same.

~C~

-- Anonymous, February 18, 1999

Conditions requiring the near-term shutdown of nuclear power plants are contained in the Technical Specifications for each plant. These represent requirements necessary to meet the plant's license from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and are public documents. So anyone who is willing to take the time can look them up. Each plant will also have an Emergency Plan, which provides concepts and protective actions necessary to limit consequences of an emergency. Again, a public document which is available to anyone wanting to look it up.

Regarding the nuclear plant where I work, failure of a 911 system is not a shutdown requirement (Ref. Technical Specifications for WPPSS Nuclear Project No. 2) nor is the 911 system wired directly into the plant's off button (Ref. Final Safety Analysis Report for same). Emergency notification to the public is the responsibility of the County Emergency Chairman for the affected local counties. Members of the public are advised in public information material to monitor the Emergency Broadcast System (aside: remember the annoying test tone?) for emergency announcements. (Ref. Washington Public Power Supply System Emergency Plan - except for the part about the test tone).

To anyone who thinks that a shift manager in the control room of a nuclear power plant would respond to a plant emergency by calling 911 (Help! We've fallen and we can't get up!), please be advised that this is not the case.

And something that is just my opinion: When you read a statement on the internet that goes something like "I heard from x who heard from y who read somewhere ...", you can generally disregard it.

Respectfully,

-- Anonymous, February 18, 1999

Here's a response I posted to the CPSR Y2k mail list yesterday, to the same question:

It's not 911; it's offsite local and state emergency response capabilities - back a few years ago, the Cooper Nuclear Station had to shut down because of flooding in the local area, and local/state authorities could not have properly responded, in the judgement of Cooper plant management, in the event of an emergency. 911 capability has little to do with this, as there are many means of communications for nuclear plant emergencies.

-- Anonymous, February 18, 1999

I forgot to mention one other thing in my previous post.

Emergency reponse capabilities of offsite organizations (local / state / federal) is absolutely essential to the continued operation of nuclear facilities. As an example of this, recall that in the mid-1980's, the Shoreham facility on Long Island was built, but never made a commercial watt of power. Local and county officials would not approve or participate in the emergency planning process for Shoreham. As a result, Long Island Lighting was forced to abandon a finished, completely operable nuclear power facility simply due to the protracted legal battles surrounding offsite emergency response.

Short sighted? Perhaps. But the bottom line is that a $4 billion plant never operated, Long Island Lighting went bankrupt, and the State of New York had to bail out the company - all because of lack of offiste emergency preparedness.

Links to relevant NRC documentation on offsite emergency response provided upon request...

-- Anonymous, February 18, 1999

The real question is whether "standard protocol" including emergency communications will be tabled just like many Federal laws during a declared state of emergency by the President of the United States. However, the early necessity of NRC action (July, August) will, in my opinion, certainly precede a declaration of emergency (November, December).

-- Anonymous, February 18, 1999

To JC, what early action are you thinking the NRC will be involved in during July or August?

-- Anonymous, February 18, 1999