ML20071C600

Comments on Inadequacy of Radiological Emergency Response Planning for Areas Surrounding Facility

ML20071C600
Person / Time
Site:	Susquehanna
Issue date:	01/20/1983
From:	Nemethy E AFFILIATION NOT ASSIGNED
To:	Asselstine J NRC COMMISSION (OCM)
Shared Package
ML20071C597	List: ML20071C600
References
NUDOCS 8303030191
Download: ML20071C600 (5)

Text

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1 p. Jan 20 -83

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Sir -

I'm writing to you because you're in a position to draw national - or state - attention to a miserably inadequate program called " radiological emergency planning". Also be-cause you're in a position to do something about it.

In times past, Great Tninkers pondered the problem of how many ang&ls could dance on the nead of a pin. Today, the conclusions of the Experts at tne NRC and EEMA are just about as silly and unreal.

With all our computers, satellites, lasers and wnat-have-you, our weather forecasters still nave trbable making accu-rate predications.

Yet the NRS and FEMA are able to predict that the most severe accident at an atomic reactor would be contained within a 10-mile radius of the plant.

Of course, they have to ignore such details as - How much radiation is being released? And which way is the wind blowing?

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Result: The 10-mile evacuation zone is now set in concrete, as a matter of national policy. Oh, almost as an afterthought, s

they do allow there may be anThis "inge64&nn pathway" zone out to

• is where the crops, livestock, 50 miles from the reactor.

water and milk may be contaminated. But nothing's said abou t getting people out of this area. Apparently, that's to be left to last-minu te improvisation.

Following these " guidelines", the Penna Emergency Management Agency has thrown together plans for the region around Penna Power & Light's Sus uehanna " Steam Electric" Station (a pair of 1000 MW reactors near Berwick PA.

Here are a few details of the plan - which ignore or conflict.

with a number of real-life, human concerns:

1 - Penna is the only state, we're told, that has ghosen to pattern.

evacuate people from the 10-mile area in a 360 COMMENT: PEMA has been told more than once that this scheme will put some evacuees directly under the radioactive plume. To If it rained, they'd be drenched with liquid fallout.

d6te, no comment from PEMA.

8303030191 830209 PDR COMMS NRCC H PDR

T' 2 - Only residents within the 10-mile radius will be notified by sirens (inaudible in some locations) in event of a Gen-eral Emergency a t the plant.

COMMENT: If you want to create mass confusion and panic, there's no better way to do it than keep people in the dark until the last minute, then spring this little surprise on them.

3 - School children are to be kept in school until a General Emergency is declared - by which time the entire area could be bathed in radiation - then bussed to outlying " pick-up pointa" where their parents may go to find them.

C0KMENT: Please see enclosed letter from a Berwick mother.

If you'd like to see instant hysteria, and possible violence, just try to stop parents from going to schools to get their children.

4 - The plan assumes that in a General Emergency, 4 or 5 out-lying school districts will send taeir buses to Berwick to pick up children and take them to pick-up points between 11 and 40 miles away.

COMMENT: While tnis is a nice, altruistic notion, see en-closed news clips for the reactions of a couple of the school districts involved. .

5 - Finally, the only protection being offered for emergency workers will be an issue of three radiation-reading dosi-meters, and some potassium iodide tablets.

COMMENT: These workers (police, volunteer firement, Na tional Guard etc) would be expected to spend hours in a radioactive /

ahea - directing traffic, warning residents, fighting fires etc. While dosimeters would show how much radiation they've absorbed, they don $t prevent workers from inhaling the stuff, -

or being contaminated by it. Still, there's no pr6 vision in the plan for filtered respirators or special protective clo-thing!

What's more, the plan calmly assumes the workers may absorb a once-in-a-lifetime dose of 25,000 millirems in property-saving operations, and three times that much in life-saving operations!

Can you imagine yourself in their shoes? Would you be eager' to do emergency work under these conditions?

PP&L has already had one real-life Alert. Every few weeks, we're informed of plant shut-downs due to sticking valves, one radioactive spill so far, and faulty pressure readings. People around here are getting a little nervous - especially since we don't have a realistic emergency plan.

Would you agree we have some serious, legitimate concerns?

AND ARE YOU WjldING f0pDO SOMETHING ABOUT IT? May I hear from

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3ren at 2d SIaW' .1 By not blowing the sirens untH the general

_ emergency stage has been reached PEMA is .

'h adding problems to the evacuation process. They

' According to tho radiological emergency plan aren't giving the citizens enough warning to act -

~ the public is to be alerted by the stren system in an orderly and helpful fashion. PEMA's plan when a nuclear incident has reached the amM is creating chaos should a nuclear accident  ;

emergency stage. occur. Who are they really trying to protect? It 1 I wonder how many people understand what wtainly doesn't seem it is those of us who lhe '

, the generr.1 emergency stage is? For those who i around the power plant. ~, .  !

" don't,I wouldlike to quote from the emergent ' Parents and citizens - please - should take f information pamphlet received in the mail ~ ' three or four minutes of their time and let the

~ recenny: " Events are in process or have

• commissioners know they do not want the

. ' ioccurred which involve actual or imminent evacuation plans adopted as proposed by PEMA.

substantial core degradation or melting with We want the sirens blown at the 2nd stage. We '

3 1 ~ want our children sent home then! We, the , ,

. j . can potential Insaexpected of can+= lamentEPA integrity. Releases 5 --

h be masonably to exceed

_ exposure levels offsite,for more than the

' parents, want to know of a problem so we can be /

home with our children. This will allow us - .

' immediate plant area. 1 sufficient time to prepare should the situation d : .

7 '. On Dec. 8 I discussed this with at least 15 + worsen and the general emergency stage be + .

reached.,*

'N active firemen in the Berwick area. Thirteen of 3 them said they would not respond at the general

. What person stays in a bur $1ng buildirig when- '

emergency stage. One said he wculd, but he it is on fire, waiting for the fire to reach the .H) worked out of town. The other said he would- ' room they're in? They get out at the first sign of ;

. respond.TheDerwickAmbulance Association

• smoke! - -

also says it will not respond to a nuclear , ELIZABETH EDWARDS accident - -

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-y, -I I find it hard to believe that buses and

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ambulances contracted with to come in from , 3 _

--outside will be able to come because they too

_ ,; wul find themselves without adequate personnel.

Most people realize this and they know chaos will result if the strens are not blown, until the

DM M emergency stage. -

{y v natis why every parent I've discussed this ,7

" wkh say they win go directly to the schools to g- ~ pick g their chudren. Well, parents, just how do

( . you espect to do this when you're not going to

( know at a nuclear incident until the 4th stage has

. been reached? And, Aw.L.to the pamphie we received, events are already in process or -

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s. have occurred before we, the ciHwns, are even . s

" going to know anything is wrong. Don't you think ,

m. thatis a bitlate? 't-  ;-

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i Couimissioner Janies. lissels tine NRC 1717 H 6t, n'.1 Wash, DC 20555

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. Centmbdebates eac pian: g

'We owe commpinity our pledge to get these kids home' x, I e ??

y According to this plan, all Central which remain unanswered: N

.--What if bus drivers refuse to}

By KIM McNAll.Y PrenEnterprise Stoll Q ,

students who live within the zone would then stay at the school, wait- drive or are unavailable during a-Ing for their parents to pick them nuclear emergency? e .

-What about younger students ;

? Confusion'is the only thing area up. All students who live outside the

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tes idents can be sure of right now in gone would be taken home as soon 'getting on the wrong bus during the ll,#

' ' case of an emergency at the nuclear as buses became available- confusion, who may have and what~unfami!!ar to drive about drivers f -

The problem, as made evident by  !

r power plant north of flerwicl6, direc. superintendent llorace B. " Jim" children on unfamiliar routes? l tors on the Central Columbia school Reynolds last night, is that accord. -What if there is no first warn-i board agreed last. night. ing to the current county plan, most ing, and what if an immediate l

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3 "Somebody should do something," of the ' district's buses would be evacuation is ordered that includes J i

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-i said - district" resident ' Kirk Miller

- 'during a discussion on Columbia _ pressedinto service evacuatingIbr- residents The directors, outside the in suggesting the 10-mile limit?

1 Coemtfs unfinished emergency plan ' wick students to Danville, leaving at iand Centrat school district's part in most .elght buses to take Central new plan to the county, agreed it would answer parents' first concern

/ It. "somebody shouhl tell-the com. students home. -

"What is the correct thing to do?" about their children, which would be

?; do,missioners asked middle school principal "Where are they?"

now you tell'Here's us yes orwhatr!p '.".we want to{.

t Robert Thomas. "We own the com- The board will also suggest to tne ~ I ri ~'; decided The Central board members unity'our pledge to get these kids ounty that all area school districts -

to do:jttst that, voting to >c represented at all future discus-1 write the county commissioners and Aml.- ds agreed, reasoning that !!. ons of the county's emergency lleynol suggest that all Central students - all students are taken home at_the lan. T

. including those who live within the Urst sign of trouble, parents would One obstacle, as pointed out by

, > 10-mile evacuation zono established be certain where their childrenard president John D. Klinger-by the Nuclear Itegulatory Commit. were. and could make their owtl nun, is that senool districts yere

D tee - be bused to their homes at the arrangements for evacuation. The sked to come up with their own .

first sign of trouble at the nuclear immediate action would mean Cen- mergency plan before the commis-

plant.  : tral students would all get home and oners had established a county- {

g Existing district plans call for a de plan. "

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! students at the Mifflinville Elemen . the buses would be free

..What to have should eve.cuate been done.

t tary School (which is within the 10. Berwick students,if necessary.'The board agreed, however, that Klingerman noted, "is -

mile zone)e to be bused to the the problems of emergency plan- county plan first, then have us work b around it. As itis now, any plan we

, ) Central Columbia Middle -School, ning are far .* rom being settled.

f which is.just outside the 10 mile Among the board's questions t Hmit. in .

1'_[. have' t,could<abe completely [. chang [ed.".

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