A simulated radiation leak at a nuclear facility Jaslovské Bohunice on
Wednesday and Thursday, October 17 and 18, will determine the preparedness and response of emergency crews, police, fire fighters, paramedics, state and local governments and municipalities in Trnava, Nitra and Trenčín, regions closest to the facility.
The exercise, which according to the SITA newswire has been dubbed Havran 2012 [Raven], will focus specifically on information flow from the nuclear facility all the way to the level of government departments and the media. Sirens warning of a radiation leak will sound only inside the Jaslovské Bohunice nuclear power plant. Elsewhere, they will be tested in silent mode. Journalists were informed about the planned exercise on Monday by officials of the Interior Ministry, power utility Slovenské Elektrárne, and the Nuclear Regulatory Authority. The simulated incident is scheduled to take place in the early morning hours of Wednesday as a result of a seismic event with an epicentre near Jaslovské Bohunice.
The exercise will involve all nuclear and power facilities and authorities, security forces, rescue system and civil defence, up to district offices of the selected counties and municipalities. The last exercise on this scale in Slovakia took place at the end of the 1990s, SITA wrote. Observers at the exercise will come from Austria, the Czech Republic, Poland, Ukraine and Hungary. After the results of the exercise are processed and evaluated, proposals for action will be formulated.
(Source: SITA)
Compiled by Zuzana Vilikovská from press reports
The Slovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the information presented in its Flash News postings.
