High praise after Millstone exercise
Agencies laud those involved with simulated emergency response
New London — When the federal government runs simulated emergency exercises at Millstone Power Station every other year, there are typically one or two initial findings leading to corrective actions for emergency teams or plant staff. Not this year. On Friday, emergency management leaders, first responders and Millstone staff gathered at Fort Trumbull’s conference center and received high praise from oversight agencies for a well-coordinated response to this week’s simulation of a radiological release.
“To make the demonstration of capability and preparedness a reality for the people of the community is not an easy thing to do,” said Steve Colman, a Federal Emergency Management Agency branch chief. “We put a lot of challenges out there for the communities and the state to live up to, and they did.”
Colman added that “it’s not common at all” to wrap up an exercise without any initial findings of concern to the government.
Millstone spokesman Ken Holt said the “players” in the emergency scenario never know what it’s going to be until the simulation begins. Nuclear staff complete the exercise in a variety of locations, including an exact duplicate of a plant control room.
“You’re constantly responding” during the scenario, Holt said. “It’s all simulated, but things break that are going to take eight hours to repair, so all the sudden this piece of equipment you were counting on is not there, and you have to do something else.”
On-site personnel are evaluated by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which said Millstone staff adequately responded to the simulated radiological release.
Players throughout the community also must grapple with simulated fires or other disasters simultaneously, stretching manpower and testing communication streams, Holt said.
Holt added the simulation’s success was largely “a testament to the towns.”
FEMA applauded emergency teams and municipal leaders in New London, Old Lyme, East Lyme, Lyme, Ledyard, Montville, Groton, Water-
ford and Fishers Island for completing the exercise in a commendable fashion.
“Southeastern Connecticut is lucky to have this crew,” said Joe Sastre, Groton’s Emergency Management director. “Not just for Millstone, but for anything that can happen.”
Sastre also thanked the government because “the scenarios are getting a lot more interesting.”
Mike O’Connor, director of nuclear station safety and licensing at Millstone owner Dominion Energy, thanked everyone in the room for their dedication. He noted that while no issues were found during the exercise, “it doesn’t mean we didn’t learn anything.”
Millstone has an emergency operations facility in Norwich that would quickly distribute information to local teams during a real event. And crews also would coordinate with the Central Office Emergency Operations Center in Hartford, which would deliver information to the public and the media.
The NRC and FEMA will release final reports on the exercise this spring.