The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Region VII office announced today (Tuesday) that the Fort Calhoun Nuclear Station public meeting and emergency response exercise, scheduled to take place this week near Fort Calhoun, Nebraska has been postponed until further notice. High wind speeds reaching approximately 90 mph were reported during a severe thunderstorm this morning, and power was lost. The power has since been restored and there are no safety concerns.

The states of Nebraska and Iowa along with Washington County in Nebraska and Pottawattamie and Harrison Counties in Iowa will work with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), FEMA and the Omaha Public Power District to reschedule the exercise for a future date to be determined. The exercise is a biennial requirement to determine the adequacy of the state and local radiological emergency preparedness and response plans. It tests the abilities of the state, the utility company, and participating counties to protect the health and safety of the public living and working in the vicinity of the Fort Calhoun Nuclear Station.

The exercise requires the activation of emergency facilities operated by state, county and local units of government, all of which generating response activities that are evaluated by the FEMA Region VII Radiological Emergency Preparedness (REP) Program. Concurrently, the Fort Calhoun Nuclear Station on-site performance is evaluated by officials from the NRC.

Members of the public will be informed when the exercise and the public meeting outlining the full-scale response exercise process, has been rescheduled.