4) Big Glitch at Nuclear Plant Shows Perils of Y2K Tests -------------------------------------------------------- Rajiv Chandrasekaran Washington Post Staff Writer

PEACH BOTTOM, Pa.: In a sterile room filled with rows of hulking 1960s-era mainframes, complete with panels of blinking red and green lights, a half-dozen technicians at the massive nuclear power plant here set out early last month to test whether one of the facility's critical computer units would understand the year 2000.

It was supposed to be a prosaic affair. The unit in question had been pored over by programmers, it had been analyzed for a week in a simulator, and it was being hooked up to a backup version of the facility's central operations monitoring system.

But when the computer's clock was turned ahead to Jan. 1, 2000, something went drastically awry at the Peach Bottom Atomic Power Station. In what experts say was one of the more serious computer glitches in recent memory at a nuclear plant, the facility's primary and backup operations monitoring systems--which provide control-room technicians with vital data about temperature, pressure and water levels in the reactor's core--crashed. Every computer screen in the plant's control room blacked out and froze, forcing technicians to rely on antiquated gauges.

Plant managers say the incident posed no risk to the public, but they nevertheless began planning to shut down the facility, which supplies electricity to the Philadelphia area. They eventually scotched those efforts after the computer specialists determined the source of the problem--a technician had improperly set the test clock--and restored the systems seven hours later.

Although the cause was human error, technology specialists say the glitch here illustrates an unanticipated peril of the Year 2000 problem: As computer systems that have been repaired are now being tested in live conditions, inadvertent mistakes and undiscovered bugs can bring the machines--and the organizations that rely on them--to a grinding halt.

"When you perform tests, you inevitably create some errors," said John C. Ballock, a Year 2000 manager for Computer Sciences Corp. With intensive Year 2000 testing taking place at almost every business and government agency around the world, such glitches are "something that we're definitely going to see more of," he said.

In Missouri, for instance, about 50,000 residential customers of the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District received incorrect bills last month--each was charged for consuming exactly 800 cubic feet of water in January--after a programmer failed to remove Year 2000 test data from a billing system.

In Texas, 2,013 customers of Bank One Texas received erroneous notices in December saying they had bounced checks after an employee accidentally mailed out overdraft notices that had been printed for a date-related test.

And in Illinois, the village of Oswego got a monthly electric bill late last year for $7 million--about $6,989,000 more than the town normally is charged each month--because of software "bugs" in a new computer system purchased by Commonwealth Edison Co. to address the Year 2000 issue.

Despite the glitches that have been cropping up, technology analysts say testing is a critical part of the repair effort. It makes sense, they say, to discover bugs and to deal with any instances of human error now instead of later this fall or on Jan. 1.

"The fact that people are having problems now is a good thing because it at least shows they're testing," said James Woodward, a senior vice president at Cap Gemini America, an information technology firm that provides date-related repair services.

To that end, 400 U.S. banks, brokerage firms and stock exchanges embarked yesterday on the first stage of a seven-week program to test their ability to trade stocks and other securities in the new millennium. The test is being closely watched by technology analysts because the securities industry has long been viewed as a leader in addressing the Y2K issue and any problem could presage difficulties in other sectors of the economy.

Some industry consultants have expressed worries that conducting broad tests late in the year will give companies little time to fix the problems they uncover, but they say they are encouraged by the pace of individual efforts in places like Peach Bottom.

"It's good that these problems are happening now," said David Lochbaum, a nuclear safety engineer with the Union of Concerned Scientists. "You don't want this to occur on Dec. 31."

The whole task took seven hours. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which said the Peach Bottom incident was the first Y2K problem at a nuclear plant.

5) Y2K bug could cause problems at U.S. nuclear power -------------------------------------------------- Michael Kahn

WASHINGTON, March 8 - The U.S. nuclear power industry is ill-prepared for the year 2000 computer bug, which could disrupt the delivery of electricity needed to cool reactors and avoid meltdowns, experts warned on Monday.

The warning came amid concern that the nuclear sector may not be as far along as other U.S. industries in preparing its computerized operations for the turn of the century.

U.S. Rep. Edward Markey said the Nuclear Regulatory Commission needed to be more aggressive in dealing with the computer problem's potential effect on the nation's electricity grid and its nuclear power-plant infrastructure.

"The NRC needs to ensure that reliable backup power sources will be available for all of the reactors that are operating when the millennium arrives," the Massachusetts Democrat told a Congressional symposium on Y2K nuclear threats.

Normally, reactors are connected to the larger electrical grid, which brings in the necessary power for cooling. The NRC requires every reactor to have on site at least two diesel-powered generators to provide emergency power in case of failure.

But some experts at the symposium questioned the reliability of the backup generators in the face of Y2K-induced power shortages.

"It is imperative that this issue is addressed at this very critical time frame," Paul Gunter, director of the Nuclear Information and Resource Service's Reactor Watchdog Project, told reporters at a news conference.

He added the NRC should be more stringent in setting Y2K standards, especially in light of a November audit of the Seabrook, New Hampshire, reactor, which found 12 safety-related systems affected by the Y2K bug.

"They have to draw a line of nuclear safety and shut down any plant that crosses the line," Gunter said.

However, Steven Unglesbee, a spokesman for the Nuclear Energy Institute, said nuclear power plants have been working with the NRC on a standard industry approach to potential Y2K problems for the past three years.

Plants have multiple safety systems, in addition to the diesel generators, and reactor controls respond to conditions within the reactor itself that have nothing to do with the computer, Unglesbee said.

"We're confident that the power plants will enter the next century generating electricity at the same safe levels they do today," he said. "When the clock strikes midnight, they will be as safe as they are now."

Western analysts have been more concerned about Russia's nuclear plants, which have lagged behind the United States in Y2K preparations.

Last week, an independent Ukraine power expert said that all five of the Ukraine's aging nuclear power plants could be paralyzed when the clock ticks into the next century.

The world's worst nuclear accident occurred in 1986 when Ukraine's Chernobyl nuclear power plant exploded, spewing a cloud of radioactive dust over Russia and parts of Western Europe.

6) U.S., Russia form Y2K nuke center ------------------------------------ BOB BREWIN ( antenna@fcw.com )

The Pentagon has reached an agreement to set up a joint warning center with Russia to help avoid an accidental launch of nuclear weapons that could result from system malfunctions caused by Year 2000-related computer problems.

The Defense Department intends to provide Russians working in that facility with the kind of data that was closely guarded by the former adversaries during the Cold War and much of the post-Cold War era: real-time tracks of potential missile launches derived from a global system of satellites and sensors.

The plan is aimed at providing Russia with missile launch data in case its critical systems fail because of Year 2000 date code problems, said John Hamre, deputy secretary of Defense, testifying last week at a joint hearing of the House Subcommittee on Government Management, Information and Technology and the Subcommittee on Technology.

While the Pentagon is not concerned that Russia will launch missiles if its computer systems malfunction because of Year 2000 problems, "we are less than optimistic that Russian early-warning systems will function" because of Year 2000 problems, Hamre said. "It is possible that Russian computer screens could go blank."

DOD plans to locate the new Center for Year 2000 Strategic Stability within a facility in Colorado Springs, Colo., home of the U.S. Space Command and the North American Air Defense Command, which can track missile launches worldwide.

Hamre said the new strategic stability center would provide Russian officials at the Colorado Springs center with missile launch data from highly classified U.S. early-warning systems that provide a global view of possible launches of missiles. Russian personnel will be given access to computer screens "that will allow them to look at our data," Hamre said during an ad hoc press briefing after the hearing.

7) 2000 tips ------------ Guy Halverson

The year 2000 may start a new decade, but for investors, it's just another chapter. Some tips from the experts as we near the end of 1999:

*Stocks should continue bringing the highest returns, says investment expert Peggy Farley. And investors have more ways than ever to invest in them - mutual funds, traditional brokerage houses, Internet brokerages, a variety of IRAs, and company retirement plans such as 401(k) and 403(b) plans.

*Save key records, especially during the last half of the year, in case of record-keeping problems associated with Y2K. Keep account numbers, ownership and beneficiary listings, statements, and quarterly account totals.

*Invest similar amounts of money on a regular basis - dollar-cost averaging. It evens out down and up years.

*Be wary of manias, says mutual-fund expert Tim Schlindwein. In the early 1980s, biotechnology was hot; now it's the Internet. They don't last.

*Think long term. The pros can buy low and sell high, but the rest of us usually wind up doing the opposite.

8) State may urge Y2K kit in homes ---------------------------------- DAVE MC KINNEY, Chicago Sun Times

SPRINGFIELD--Only one in four agencies in Illinois is fully prepared for the Year 2000 computer bug, and the state may encourage residents to put together Y2K ``preparedness kits'' later this year.

The developments came as Gov. Ryan moved to get a tighter grip on the state's efforts to ready itself for potential computer problems linked to the turn of the millennium nine months away.

A report released by Ryan's office Friday said only 16 of 64 state agencies are fully Y2K-compliant. Thirty-one agencies reported having their most critical computer systems in compliance.

``This report covers the last three months of 1998 and shows that most state agencies still have a long way to go,'' Ryan said in a statement.

The Illinois Emergency Services Agency is preparing a response plan to present to Ryan May 1 that may include a proposal for residents to have short-term ``preparedness kits'' on hand as 2000 approaches.

The kits Chamness envisions would include 72 hours' worth of ``nonperishable food, bottled water, a flashlight, a battery-operated radio, necessary medications.''

As for the state's effort to be prepared, the Department of Children and Family Services is among those lagging furthest behind. DCFS has only 45 percent of its critical computer equipment ready for 2000, the report said.

Other major agencies and their level of readiness include: * The Department of Human Services, 65 percent. * Department of Corrections, 53 percent. * Department of Public Aid, 74 percent. * Department of Central Management Services, 90 percent.

9) Nearly 20% US Banks Behind Y2K Schedule ------------------------------------------ Ian Stokell, Newsbytes.

In the latest of an ongoing string of Y2K preparedness surveys and reports, nearly one fifth of US banks received a "below average" grade from bank rating agency Weiss Ratings Inc.

The new survey said 247 of 1,128 banks and Savings and Loans (S&Ls) "reported completion dates that were deemed to be inadequate."

In defense of its numbers, Weiss says, "By evaluating the banks' actual or expected completion dates for critical tasks, the Weiss Y2K survey separates those that have truly made good progress from those that appear to be lagging behind."

Just this past weekend, an estimated 400 Wall Street brokers at various securities firms tested their IT systems for Y2K compatibility. The event will be repeated each weekend for the next two months or, presumably, until any problems are ironed out.

For those dealing with the international markets, though, Wall Street may just be the tip of the proverbial iceberg, as it comes to grips with what could be belated efforts by foreign exchanges, and companies to test their own systems.

For businesses in general, the main problems may not involve their own internal computer systems, but instead the ability for in-house computers to communicate and do business with computer systems that are not Y2K compliant.

In Japan, for example, a survey by the Tokyo Stock Exchange of its member companies indicated many of the big companies there believe they won't be finished with Y2K system testing by the end of the year. In the survey, only 12 percent actually have completed Y2K preparedness testing and feel confident they will be ready for the date change. Half of those left think they will also be ready by the end of the year. That number may change though as the new Japanese fiscal year for many companies begins in a month or so.

The US government has held hearings and committees to continually address the Y2K problem, with warnings coming from a variety of sources concerning an equally varied array of problem areas.

Just last week Newsbytes reported on State and Commerce Department officials telling the Senate Special Committee on the Year 2000 Technology Problem that Millennium Bug problems could result in travel and terrorism warnings for overseas Americans, and could also cripple the US oil import infrastructure. US Undersecretary of State Bonnie Cohen told the committee last week, "We're looking at a world situation where we face unknown and unintended consequences. We focus on power, telecommunications and water systems...the kinds of things you need to keep the infrastructure of a company running."

10) U.S. May Issue travel Warnings due to Y2K --------------------------------------------- Reuters

WASHINGTON The State Department has told lawmakers it might issue travel warnings and draw up evacuation plans for Americans living abroad should the year 2000 computer bug cause widespread problems.

State Department officials told the Senate's special committee on the so-called millennium bug Friday that contingency plans may be needed to safeguard Americans abroad because many other countries were nowhere near ready for the change to the year 2000, and computer glitches could cause trouble for computers running power, transportation and telephone systems.

An official with the Central Intelligence Agency also warned the committee some Soviet-designed nuclear power plants were vulnerable to computer crashes and the Russian gas monopoly Gazprom could experience Y2K outages that could cut off supplies to former Soviet republics.

The millennium problem arises because many older computers record dates using only the last two digits of the year. If left uncorrected, such systems could treat the year 2000 as the year 1900, generating errors or system crashes next Jan. 1.

In its report on the computer problem, the Senate committee said Y2K computer glitches could set off civil unrest in poor countries and undermine economic growth in Asia, Latin America and Africa.

The Y2K responses of many governments around the world were "inadequate, belated, and uneven," said Bonnie Cohen, the State Department's undersecretary for management.

Jacquelyn Williams-Bridgers, inspector general at the State Department, said that telephone systems in Russia could fail, and that Ukraine's power grid was particularly fragile.

She said ship traffic through the Panama and Suez Canals could be disrupted, but said the State Department and other U.S. agencies were still evaluating these and other risks.

"Based on these analyses the (State) Department will determine whether it needs to issue travel warnings concerning particular countries or develop draw-down or evacuation plans for areas where the Y2K problem may pose a risk to Americans living abroad," Williams-Bridgers said.

CIA national intelligence officer Lawrence Gershwin told the committee Soviet-designed nuclear power plants in Russia and Central and Eastern Europe were vulnerable.

"We believe that Western Europe can survive a Gazprom shutdown for over 30 days," he said. "Of greater concern are Eastern Europe, Russia itself and the other states of the former Soviet Union should Russia's ability to transport and export natural gas be interrupted in midwinter."

China may also experience major disruptions, made worse because many government computer systems rely on pirated software, Gershwin told the committee.

"China's late start in addressing Y2K issues suggests Beijing will solve some, but not many, of its Y2K problems in the limited time remaining, and will probably experience failures in key sectors," he said.

Gershwin said missile systems in Russia and China could also experience Y2K problems, but he saw no danger nuclear weapons would go off because of computer crashes.

-- Marcel Bruckner (Marcel@planetm.com), March 11, 1999