KAWARTHA LAKES-The Solicitor General is apologizing after an Emergency Alert was issued thin morning warning of an “incident” at the Pickering Nuclear Plant.
In a statement issued by the Honourable Sylvia Jones, Solicitor General, the government says the Alert was sent out accidentally during a training exercise.
“Earlier today, an emergency alert was issued by the Province of Ontario stating there was a situation at the Pickering Nuclear Generating Station. The alert was issued in error to the public during a routine training exercise being conducted by the Provincial Emergency Operations Centre (PEOC).” Jones says. “There was no incident at the Pickering Nuclear Generating Station that should have triggered public notification. Nor was there ever any danger to the public or environment.”
Shortly after 7:20 am a mass alert was issued to residents across the province.
Jones went on to explain emergency exercises are a critical component of ensuring preparedness for emergency management and response agencies. The PEOC conducts training exercises regularly and there was no intention to notify the public in this instance.
“The Government of Ontario sincerely apologizes for raising public concern and has begun a full investigation to determine how this error happened and will take the appropriate steps to ensure this doesn’t happen again.” Jones said.
