Indian Point owner says reactor in Buchanan is safe

Buchanan - The owner of New York’s Indian Point nuclear power plant says the facility is not susceptible to the kind of earthquake and tsunami that rocked Japan. Entergy’s vice president, John McCann, told Westchester County legislators on Monday that the earthquake in Japan was much more powerful than any recorded in the region of Indian Point. McCann said he expected changes to be made in response to the events in Japan, but he didn’t say what they would be. Entergy on Monday took out a one-page ad in The New York Times reassuring the public that the facility is designed to withstand the strongest earthquake anticipated in the area. The plant is located in Buchanan, 35 miles north of New York City. It’s 10-mile evacuation zone includes parts of Orange County towns of Tuxedo, Woodbury and Highlands. - The Associated Press

What can you do to prepare?
Tune in. Know your Emergency Alert System radio and TV station (listed in the Indian Point Emergency Guide at safesecurevital.com). Add your cell phone number or unlisted number to the phone alert system at nyalert.gov.
Find your Reception Center and study the route there, listed in the Emergency Guide.
Get potassium iodide pills free at the Orange County Department of Health (Newburgh: 845-568-5333; Goshen: 845-291-5333). It reduces the risk of thyroid cancer from exposure to radioactive iodine.
Assemble a “go-bag,” including water and food for three days, a battery powered or hand-crank radio, a first-aid kit and prescription medications, money, a change of clothes, ID, health cards and copies of important family documents, photos of family members, flashlights with extra batteries, change of clothes, a blanket or sleeping bag.
For more: www.security.state.ny.us/BeReady/emergency_supplies.htm