Oswego County launches an online survey to help improve evacuation plan
Fitzpatrick Nuclear Power Plant Credit: U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (CC)
OSWEGO, N.Y. — An online public survey has been launched to improve the response plan in case of emergencies. The Oswego County Emergency Management Office is asking residents who live within a ten-mile radius of the nuclear plant to answer 16 questions.
Oswego County Emergency Program Services Coordinator, Terry Bennett, says that the survey, “will help to increase the right number of resources,” such as how many buses or personnel would be necessary in case of an emergency occurs.
She has also mentioned that the survey will help them to indicate how much time, “it might take to evacuate,” and to estimate the number of people who should be evacuated. There are a lot of factors that must be considered during an evacuation, for instance, traffic, control points, or the available number of vehicles.
Some questions seek information such as “How many vehicles would your household use during an evacuation?” or “Approximately how much time would it take Commuter #1 to complete preparation for leaving work or college prior to starting the trip home?”.
“The information will be shared with anybody who lives in the ten-mile planning zone,” Bennet said. Therefore, students and residents will be able to access such data. The survey can be filled out at https://NMPsurvey.kld.engineering.
The survey has always been taken when national censuses are done, but this is the first time the Emergency Office offers this new online modality, as previously it was conducted by phone. Bennett hopes this survey will reach more people as a result.