Emergency Action Level

The specific events or symptoms that would signal to station personnel that an emergency is taking place are called Emergency Action Levels (EALs). Once a particular EAL has been reached, the Emergency Plan and related procedures specify what kinds of responses are necessary. The level of this response is based on how seriously the condition threatens plant and public safety, so it is called a graded response. Unusual Event: A low level event which poses no threat to public safety but which warrant an increased awareness on the part of plant and off-site agency personnel. Degradation of plant conditions is not expected. Alert: Also a low level condition which poses no threat to public safety, but for which precautionary staffing of the Emergency Facilities is appropriate in case conditions degrade. Site Area Emergency (SAE): Actual or likely failure of plant functions needed to mitigate events. Conditions have degraded to a point beyond those expected for plant design. General Emergency: Conditions have degraded to a point threatening public safety and for which some form of protective actions will likely be initiated.