SALEM TOWNSHIP, LUZERNE COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — It's a sound all too familiar to many who live in NEPA: The alert siren at the Steam Electric Plant, but that loud shrill will soon be replaced by a "ding," a simple notification on your cell phone.
The Susquehanna Steam Electric Station in Berwick has been using sirens as its primary emergency alert system, for decades. Now, that's about to change, but not everyone we spoke to likes the new system.
The sound of sirens is something residents living near the Susquehanna nuclear facility are all too familiar with.
"It's a little loud, not gonna lie. I have two kids. I have one, two-year-old, gonna be, and a 10-year-old. They wake up in the middle of the night because the sirens go off at random," Nikki Swisher from Wapwallopen.
The sirens are currently used as the primary emergency alert system at the facility, but soon, they'll be a thing of the past.
The Luzerne County Department of Emergency Services Emergency Management Agency (EMA) recently announced that the facility would do away with the sirens starting April 1, switching to FEMA's ipaws Wireless Emergency Alert System as its primary method for emergency alerts.
The system will automatically send cell phone alerts without the need to subscribe or download an app.
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Talen Energy, majority owner of the plant, said in a public information release in part:
This decision is not driven by cost, but rather how we can best protect the public. IPAWS and CodeRED are established systems that have been successfully used in our community for a number of years. They offer greater functionality and reach because they can notify and provide instructions at the same time.
Talen Energy
Some people who live near the plant say cell technology is so common it's a perfect way to send an alert. Others say it could be a problem for seniors.
"Everybody's got a phone nowadays. So if you do an alert, everybody, they do AMBER Alerts, so why not do it with the power plant?" Berwick resident Justin Weaver asked.
"I think my concern would be what about our elderly? Our elderly, a lot of them don't have cell phones, don't have technology, and they're a more vulnerable population," Allison Smith from Berwick said.
"The more people that are aware, the better, because disasters, like I said, can happen any time and you're not always by your TV. So if you have your cell phone on you or your smartwatch, whatever, perfect. You're good to go," Swisher added.
Now, Luzerne and Columbia County residents can also sign up for code red emergency alerts to their cell phones and landlines
You can find a fact sheet about the emergency alerts and notifications below:
Susquehanna-Emergency-Notification-Fact-Sheet-and-FAQs_vFDownload
