This morning, the Vandellós II nuclear power plant conducted its annual Internal Emergency Plan ( PEI ) drill. This vitally important exercise for maintaining preparedness for risk situations was supervised by inspectors from the Nuclear Safety Council ( CSN ) and independent auditors from ANAV, with the aim of evaluating the response to a major earthquake .
Safety protocols at the Vandellós II nuclear power plant
The simulated scenario represented an earthquake that affected various areas of the plant, causing a fire in several facilities. In response to this simulated disaster, both the plant’s fire department and the Catalan Fire Brigade acted together to control and extinguish the fire, ensuring the safety of the site.
This rapid and coordinated response has been essential to activate the Internal Emergency Plan , which declared a Category III Emergency , which represents a serious situation within the nuclear site .
Throughout the simulation, various units at the plant tested their emergency response protocols . Radiation protection was activated with the implementation of the Emergency Radiological Surveillance Plan ( ERSP ), while the Chemistry and Radiochemistry department took samples under extreme conditions, which is key to ensuring radiation safety in an emergency.
In addition, the plant’s Medical Service conducted rescue, first aid, and decontamination drills, ensuring that personnel were ready to respond to possible radioactive contamination. This phase of the drill was essential for strengthening the teams’ training in medical and safety protocols.
Finally, the orderly evacuation of personnel not directly involved in emergency management was carried out . This action allowed all personnel not involved in the emergency response to safely leave the site, ensuring that critical operations could be carried out without interference.
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