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| Real life drill held at Georgia Nuclear Plant |
| 2003-07-18 |
| The paper does not have a website, so this was copied from the dead tree edition... By Max Gardner The Baxley News-Banner July 16, 2003 Large helicopters popped from the sky Saturday, July 12 at Plant Hatch, located on U. S. 1 North at the Altamaha River. Hatch is Georgia’s first nuclear power plant, and has two units. Also some Army trucks containing National Guard soldiers arrived. This was part of an inter-agency exercise held at the plant to evaluate procedures and interagency plans in case of an emergency at the plant, such as a terrorist attack. The mission involved QRF, Quick Response Forces, testing all the coordination involved. The occasion was a simulated threat, and they worked with about 20 agencies throughout the state. It was not a Georgia Power drill; everyone was working with the National Guard. Southern [Company] has more than 100 units and a web network integrates all, and this is true throughout the Southeast with other companies. If a plant should be lost, the other units could make up any power loss. "web" is a misnomer: Friends who work at the plant who live in Vidalia tell me this is referring to the POWER network, not the Company’s Information network. Lt. Col. Jim Driscoll, spokesman for the National Guard, arrived in the first helicopter, along with some state officials. He stated the program had lasted six days, deploying National Guard troops on the ground here, Savannah port and Votgel, another nuclear power plant in Waynesboro. The same friends cringed at the typo: It’s plant Votgle, not Votgel "The National Guard plays a role in responding to emergencies in the U. S.," Col. Driscolll said. "If the government calls us, we would like to respond in rapid manner. There are many plans in Georgia, and the purpose is to test those plans. It also gives us an opportunity to work with other agencies." Some filler: Before I-95, the normal route from the Northeast to Florida was U. S. 1. If you want to go from Vidalia to Sea Island (the future site of next year’s G-8 meeting referred to yesterday), you drive right past this nuclear plant. The same friends told me this is just a security refresher: The two Georgia Nuclear plants were the first to implement the toughened NRC Security regulations to prepare for the Atlanta Olympic Games. As paramilitaries go, the security staffs at Nuclear Plants are near the top, paying enough to hire the cream of the local law enforcement personnel. Anyone "visiting" the plant under cover of the Crazies visiting the G-8 site next year for nefarious purposes will receive a very nasty surprise, I am assured. |
| Posted by:Ptah |