Manitowoc County…in conjunction with Point Beach Nuclear Plant is participating in an ‘ingestion pathway emergency response exercise today & tomorrow. The ‘drill’ is going to be evaluated off-site by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Federal regulations ‘require local & state government agencies, in whose jurisdiction a nuclear power plant is located, to biennially demonstrate they can protect the health & safety of those potentially at risk in a 10-mile radius of the plant. Manitowoc County Emergency Management Director, Jamie Aulik, says “it is highly unlikely we will ever have to implement the complex procedures in our emergency operations plan for a nuclear plant accident. However, practicing the principles we would apply to respond to such an accident pays-dividends in our overall preparedness for all hazards.”
Aulik said more than ‘75’-state and local government employees & volunteers will take-part in the exercise, while similar staff operations will occur simultaneously in ‘Kewaunee’ County by emergency management officials, as well as Madison…where state government response is coordinated. Jamie Aulik explains that during this drill, the general public may hear a test of the siren system & emergency government pagers..and see emergency response teams or federal governmental vehicles in the area.
