On November 21, a regular emergency response drill took place at the Chornobyl NPP. Its goal was to check the preparedness and to practice emergency actions of personnel.
Such drills are scheduled and conducted four times a year. In particular, this drill is considered as stress-test that summarizes skills of personnel received over a year. Stress-tests were developed following the analysis of the accident running at Fukushima NPP. Their distinctive feature is simultaneous failure of several systems of a plant at different facilities.
“According to the legend, as a result of a high power earthquake – higher than a magnitude 6 maximum design earthquake – we suffered a destruction of structures and a storage pool for nuclear fuel at ISF-1. The earthquake also affected the safety of the Shelter Object, in which fuel-containing masses changed their position. To what extent this part is real, no one can say, but we hypothetically assumed it during the drill. Moreover, there was a complete loss of power supply that resulted in the plant blackout and mass failure of equipment” — Borys Spektor, Leading Instructor of the ChNPP Training Center, commented the drill legend.
Almost all operating departments of ChNPP, as well as staff of Military Unit No. 3041 and Fire Brigade of ChNPP, took part in this drill. In total, about 50 participants were involved.
“We have some general working remarks, and this is absolutely normal! For example, under the conditions the fire unit must use a short cut. But the operating personnel led it over the usual working path. One may open another door, and the path would have been shorter. Obviously, we will work on such remarks, so that such situations would never repeat again.
In general, the actions of personnel were assessed as satisfactory. Issues, connected with addressing and escape from the critical situation, were drilled”, — summarized Mr. Spektor.
