TVA plans emergency drill at Sequoyah

photo Tennessee Valley Authority headquarters and TVA logo

Nearly 1,000 police, fire, ambulance and TVA workers will surround the Sequoyah Nuclear Power Plant on Tuesday as warning sirens are sounded within a 10-mile radius of the Soddy-Daisy plant.

Officials caution area residents not to be alarmed by the emergency response. The activity is simply part of TVA's annual drill of its emergency response to a potential nuclear accident or radioactive release and is not part of any real terrorist threat or nuclear accident.

TVA nuclear communications director Ray Golden said Friday that residents in north Hamilton County and parts of Bradley County may see radiological monitoring teams or hear some of the 108 off-site sirens around Sequoyah sound as part of the all-day test of TVA's response to a simulated emergency.

TVA and other nuclear utilities are required to conduct such tests once a year. Every other year the drills are evaluated by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

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