Preston Xanthopoulos: Seabrook Station false alarm reveals useless emergency alert system
NextEra Energy has a lot of explaining to do.
NextEra operates Seabrook Station, the nuclear power plant.
As we all know, on Tuesday, a message went out across Rye, Hampton and Seabrook beaches through speakers placed across the Seacoast that said: "Attention. Attention. There is a problem at Seabrook Nuclear Power Station. The beaches are closed. Please leave the beach area at once and turn on your radio for more information.”
For those that could actually hear the muffled alert, panic obviously ensued. The message, however, was not true, there was no emergency. A signal was sent in “error,” according to the company. I can’t quite fathom how such an error could take place, and I suspect there are some big dogs in a federal government agency or two that are looking into it.
'People panicked': False alarm triggered at Seabrook nuclear power plant
However, far more egregious than having an internal technical failure (allegedly) of this extreme, is what happened after and what we’ve learned about the emergency response system if something real were to happen at the nuclear plant, and the abject communications failures — multiple of them — that came in the following hours.
Let’s take the alert message itself. “Turn on your radio for more information.” Seriously? What, are we all walking around the beach with our boom boxes listening to the latest cassette tape release form Van Halen? When on earth was the last time that obviously pre-recorded message was updated? In 2022 you think that majority of people get their vital emergency information from radio? A lot of people don’t even have a radio.
We have cell phones, computers, and all kinds of technology. So does the media. Alert them and they’ll put it across social media platforms. In an emergency, tell us to use the resources that we actually use. This is not a criticism of radio. I’m a radio listener, participant and fan. However, the reality is, I’m not the majority.
How it happened: Details of human error at Seabrook nuclear plant are revealed.
Next, response time. Why did it take so long for you to correct the error? You don’t have protocols in place for something like this? Over an hour and a half passed before an official public safety alert-statement that there was no emergency and that didn’t even come from NextEra. It came from New Hampshire Homeland Security and Emergency Management. That’s sheer incompetence. Or, worse. (P.S. I didn’t hear the “no emergency” notification on that radio we were all listening to, I go it on my phone.)
For NextEra's part, a long time later they used that loud speaker system to tell us there was no emergency. Then sent out one of the worst crisis management press statements I’ve ever read.
"We are aware of the sirens calling for an evacuation near Seabrook Station. The sirens’ activation was sent in error during testing of the system. Local authorities have told the public there is no need to evacuate. Seabrook Station is currently operating with no issues that impact the nearby community. We apologize for the inconvenience this may have caused," Doug Andrews, lead communications specialist for NextEra Energy Nuclear Communications -- Southern Region.
Let’s break this down. “Evacuation near Seabrook Station.” What do you define as “near”? When that alert went off, I was in Hampton Falls. There was no notification. How is this alert system set up such that there would ever be a scenario where I have to leave my beach blanket, but I can be perfectly safe picking fruit a couple miles away? The only notification I received was from worried friends and family trying to figure out if I was OK.
“During testing”. Aren’t you supposed to notify regional communities if you’re doing testing? I’ve heard the excuse — it wasn’t supposed to be something the public would hear, it was internal testing. OK, if you are testing a system that could “inadvertently” tell me I’m going to die from radiation, I kinda think it should be in the category of letting us know.
“Local authorities have told the public there is no need to evacuate.” Local authorities? Great, why not you as well? In 2020 (most recent I could find), your company brought in $18 billion. Your ability to reach people is far greater. Your resources are just a bit more than my local police department, who did a fantastic job in the midst of an outrageous situation. Spend some of that $18 billion on a new notification system — both for real problems and for errors.
“No issues that impact the nearby community. We apologize for the inconvenience this may have caused.” Oh, we’re impacted quite significantly and this is much more than an “inconvenience.” What you did was let us look under the hood, and that engine is rusted out and broken.
You undermined any confidence for our own safety if an incident truly did occur. That reality impacts me and I assure you that knowledge is far more than an “inconvenience.”
This was a complete and utter communication failure in response. NextEra get’s an “F." That is not a grade I want a nuclear power plant that I can see out my window getting in any subject.
Some questions for NextEra
So, I want answers.
What the hell happened to send this message out in the first place?
Why would any message only target beaches and not the rest of the region?
Why were most people unable to hear or understand the messages?
Why did it take you so long to respond and correct the misinformation?
Why did you not immediately notify the emergency broadcast system and media (which goes to our phones)?
I have many more, but, most importantly, what are you going to do to update and fix your technology, your communications, your sheer incompetence and complete lack of comprehension and empathy of the severity of this situation?
As a proponent of nuclear power in general and supporter of Seabrook Station, you certainly have made it hard for me to convince people how safe your industry is.
Alicia Preston Xanthopoulos is a former political consultant and member of the media. She’s a native of Hampton Beach where she lives with her family and three poodles. Write to her at PrestonPerspective@gmail.com.
This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Preston Xanthopoulos: Seabrook nuclear plant alert system a disaster
