This Thursday, April 30, residents of Lantarón and Valdegovía, two municipalities in Álava within the influence area of the Garoña nuclear plant, will receive an alert message on their mobile phones. The approximate time of reception will be around 11:00 AM, and the transmission will last approximately 15-20 minutes, during which repeater antennas will relay the message.
This action is a drill in response to a hypothetical radioactive leak from the complex. The message received on mobile phones will indicate that it is a test, so there will be no need to contact the 112 emergency centers or take any other action.
The alert will reach all mobile phones connected to antennas located in Zone I of the External Emergency Plans for nuclear power plants, which covers a radius of 0 to 10 kilometers around the facilities. In the case of Garoña, in addition to Lantarón and Valdegovía, it will also reach numerous municipalities in Burgos, such as Bozoo, Cascajares de Bureba, Encío, Frías, Jurisdicción de San Zadornil, Merindad de Cuesta Urría, Miraveche, Oña, Pancorbo, Partido de la Sierra, Santa Gadea del Cid, and Valle de Tobalina. Furthermore, due to proximity to telephone antennas, it may also reach Miranda de Ebro, Trespaderne, or Busto de Bureba. In total, over 5,000 people will receive the SMS, which will arrive in Álava in both Basque and Spanish.
“"This exercise has a dual objective: to demonstrate that the ES-Alert system works and to train citizens for a possible emergency. A responsible society is a trained and prepared society."
The purpose of this drill is to verify the functionality and coverage of the ES-Alert system. As it is a drill for a nuclear risk scenario, the National Emergency Monitoring and Coordination Center (CENEM) is responsible for notifying the alert, at the request of the Government Sub-delegation and in coordination with the General Directorate of Civil Protection and Emergencies. Burgos is not the only nuclear province undergoing this drill this week; it is also being carried out in four others: Guadalajara, Cáceres, Tarragona, and Valencia, covering a total of 61 municipalities and 75,728 people.
