Ontario Says Emergency Alert About Nuclear Power Plant Was 'Sent in Error'

Residents in Ontario, Canada were alerted early Sunday of an unspecified "incident" at one of Canada's oldest nuclear plants located east of Toronto, with officials later reporting the message had been sent in error.

The initial emergency message was sent to cellphones of people living within 10 kilometers of the nuclear plant at around 7:20 a.m. local time by the government.

"There has been NO abnormal release of radioactivity from the station and emergency staff are responding to the situation. People near the Pickering Nuclear Generating Station DO NOT need to take any protective actions at this time," the mobile alert said.

A second follow-up message sought to calm fears and relay that a mistake had been made by officials in sending out the initial bulletin.

"Important update: the alert regarding #Pickering Nuclear was sent in error. There is no danger to the public or environment," a tweet from Ontario Power Generation read.

"Like many of you, I was very troubled to have received that emergency alert this morning. While I am relieved that there was no actual emergency, I am upset that an error such as this occurred. I have spoken to the Province, and am demanding that a full investigation take place," Pickering Mayor Dave Ryan said by Twitter.

The Pickering Nuclear Generating Station features six nuclear reactors and is one of the oldest nuclear power stations in the world and Canada's third-largest. The power plant produces around 14% of Ontario's energy and employs around 4,500 workers, its website states. The power station is expected to remain in service through 2024.

The inadvertant alert is similar to another mistaken message sent out by Hawaiian officials in 2018, who warned that a ballistic missile was inbound to the state. The alert triggered panic until a second message was sent by officials nearly 40 minutes later that said there was no threat.

While this incident alert was sent in error, Pickering has been the site of several accidents - including in 2011, when a pump seal failed, causing more than 19,200 gallons of demineralized water to spill into Lake Ontario. In 1994, the plant went into automatic shutdown after a faulty valve caused 132 tons of heavy water to spill.

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