Annually, Danish Decommissioning's emergency response team conducts exercises to secure the lowest-lying storage facility against flooding during high water events.

Seven personnel were ready at 7:00 AM when Danish Decommissioning's emergency response team for high water was scheduled to test the numerous elements that collectively constitute the flood protection for Danish Decommissioning's lowest-lying storage facility.

A storage facility that routinely houses more than 5,000 drums of low-level waste.

Watertubes, Floodsax, and More
During today's exercise, both Watertubes – large plastic hoses designed to act as a barrier in case of flooding – and Floodsax – a type of sandbag – were deployed, and various pumps and other equipment were tested. All of this was to ensure that both material and personnel can respond effectively in a situation where potential high water and subsequent flooding are reported at Risø.

In addition to the seven employees from Danish Decommissioning who collectively form the emergency response team, there were also visitors from The Danish Emergency Management Agency and The Danish Health Authority's Institute of Radiation Protection (SIS), two organisations that together constitute the nuclear regulatory authorities.

Effective Exercise Yields Valuable Experience
Today's exercise proceeded as planned, and by 11:30 AM, the final items were packed away. Valuable experience was gained during the exercise, and combined with the warnings that will be issued in the event of an impending flood, the low-level waste in the storage facility will also be well-secured in the future.

Bjarne Damsgaard, who is responsible for the high-water emergency preparedness and therefore also led today's exercise, sees great value in the annual exercise.

“We conduct exercises annually, both to ensure that the equipment is in proper working order and to ensure that the personnel who would need to act in such a situation are confident in their tasks. Today's exercise also provided valuable experience that we will continue to incorporate into our emergency preparedness efforts.”

Throughout Danish Decommissioning's 19-year existence, the emergency response team has not yet been required.

The closest it came was during Storm Bodil in 2013, when an elevated water level of 2.06 m was recorded in Roskilde. This water level was still well below the floor level of the low-level storage facility.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]