From: Jon Arnold
To: EEI Public Information List for Y2K Information
Sent: Tuesday, December 14, 1999 3:03 PM
Subject: Couple of Y2K Notes...
The URL for the Y2K Updates from the White House's Information
Coordination Center (ICC) will be:
www.Y2K.GOV
NERC will be releasing electric Y2K press releases/updates from their
Web Site (www.NERC.COM) as well.
All the major networks will be located at the joint public
information center (JPIC) located at the ICC. The NERC Y2K team will
be there for continuous updates and on camera interviews. On Dec 28 &
29 we will be working the ICC/JPIC from 9am - 5pm and starting Dec
30 - Jan 7 we will be working 24 hours. Hopefully that Jan 7 day will
get shorted!
Also, please be aware of a false rumor concerning the electric
utility industry advancing all its clocks on Dec 31 by 5 hours so the
rollover would occur at 7:00PM eastern time rather than midnight.
There has been at least two cases of this rumor reported to me in the
past two hours. One came from a private company, the other came from
a government agency. - Jon
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Visit www.eei.org/y2k or www.aga.org/naturalgas/y2k/index.html
for that latest electric and gas utility y2k information!
**This is a Year 2000 disclosure pursuant to the "Year 2000
Information and Readiness Disclosure Act"**
And the second...
From: Jon Arnold
To: EEI Public Information List for Y2K Information
Sent: Monday, December 13, 1999 2:13 PM
Subject: Y2K Global Situation Report
For Immediate Release Contact: Lisa Pellegrin
December 13, 1999 Telephone: (202) 466-5464, ext. 11
Fax: (202) 466-5451
E-mail: pellegrin@iy2kcc.org
Web: www.iy2kcc.org
Many Errors, Moderate Impact Expected From Y2K Globally
International Y2K Center Releases Final Global Situation Report for
1999
WASHINGTON, D.C. - The international center created by the United
Nations to combat the Y2K bug today released its final global
situation report for 1999 predicting many Y2K errors, but only
moderate impact.
"Around the world, the great majority of organizations - including
businesses and governments - will experience only limited damage from
the Y2K bug," said Bruce W. McConnell, director of the International
Y2K Cooperation Center (IY2KCC). "The combination of a great deal of
dedicated effort, the limited use of digital controls in most
infrastructures, and society's general resilience mean that, although
there will be many Y2K-caused errors, the combined negative effect of
these errors will be moderate."
The 16-page report provides a global Y2K overview. It surveys Y2K
preparations in major infrastructure sectors and the worlds' regions,
and discusses arrangements to monitor and respond to potential Y2K
emergencies and economic problems, should they occur.
The Center's report predicts few serious Y2K-caused effects in energy,
telecommunications, finance, transportation, customs and immigration,
food, and water infrastructures. However it cautions that, in health
and hospitals and in government services, there "remains a medium to
high risk that localized Y2K-caused errors could adversely affect
public health and safety in the early days of January. This risk is
most pronounced in developing countries and in smaller organizations
world wide."
Arrangements to monitor the Y2K date change include an internet based
reporting system called the Global Status Watch (GSW), where national
Y2K coordinators from each national government will input Y2K status
information for eight sectors in virtually real-time. These results
can be accessed by the general public at the center website,
www.iy2kcc.org starting December 29, 1999. A test of the GSW was
successfully conducted December 8-9.
Seventy-eight (78) countries participated in the test.
The report details several international, regional public and private
sector networks designed to respond to requests for assistance.
Additionally, the center website provides results of the center*s
global readiness survey under Country Information, Global Readiness
Survey. Currently, 126 nations have submitted surveys. Also, 124
countries have workingY2K websites available to the public, which can
be accessed on the center website under Country Information, National
Coordinators. Some 190 nations have Y2K coordinators working with
the IY2KCC.
The report ends on a positive note, stating, that while, "in an
abundance of caution, nations and international institutions are
preparing as they would for a serious emergency, the IYCC is both
hopeful and confident that Y2K will instead prove to be an example of
the best traits of human cooperation and hard work to address an
important global problem."
Y2K refers to possible computer and automated control system
malfunctions when the year changes from 1999 to 2000. Many computers
and automated systems are engineered to handle only two-digit year
formats, and could make mistakes or stop working when they encounter
*00* in the date field.
The IY2KCC was established in February 1999 under United Nations
auspices with World Bank funding in response to the need to
coordinate efforts to update computer and automated control systems
around the world to smoothly transition to the year 2000.
# # #
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**This is a Year 2000 disclosure pursuant to the Year 2000
Information and Readiness Disclosure Act''**
-- Anonymous, December 15, 1999