Health Dept. Has New Plan for Nuclear Events

By WYDaily Staff Monday, June 14, 2010

The Virginia Department of Health is asking families to discard potassium iodide, also known as KI, distributed in 2002.

People and households living within 10 miles of the Surry nuclear power station were given KI in 2002 in a pre-issue authorized by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. KI protects the thyroid of children and young people from the effects of radioactive iodine, which could be released
in the event of a nuclear power plant accident.

The KI provided in 2002 has expired and can be discarded in regular trash; a new supply will not be issued. In the event of an accident at the power plant, KI will now be distributed at Evacuation Assembly Centers outside of the evacuated areas. In a release, the Peninsula Health Department stated the best protective measure against radiation is evacuation or sheltering.

Response plans for a nuclear power plant accident now focus on evacuation, especially for children and pregnant women, from areas affected by the release of radioactive contaminants. A release from the health department says Evacuation Assembly Centers have “more than adequate” supplies of potassium iodide.

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