Photo: Micha Pawlitzki / Corbis Documentary / Getty Images
Monroe County, FL - Residents in Key Largo's Ocean Reef area received an alarming emergency notification regarding the Turkey Point Nuclear Power Plant on Tuesday morning.
At approximately 10:45 a.m., Monroe County Emergency Management mistakenly sent an alert stating, "Turkey Point NUCLEAR POWER PLANT SITE AREA EMERGENCY."
The message advised individuals in Ocean Reef, Key Largo Anglers Club, and along Card Sound Road to monitor local media for further information and instructions.
About ten minutes later, a follow-up email clarified the situation: "FALSE ALARM. There is NO EMERGENCY AT TURKEY POINT NUCLEAR POWER PLANT or danger to Monroe County. No further action is required. FALSE ALARM."
Officials explained that the false alert occurred during a large-scale, multi-agency drill at the Miami-Dade power plant.
Monroe County’s Emergency Operations Center in Marathon was activated in test mode for the exercise.
A county spokesperson noted that the alert was drafted in "test mode" but was inadvertently sent to Ocean Reef residents.
"Two corrective messages to clarify the error and false alarm were immediately sent to Ocean Reef residents," the spokesperson stated.
"Monroe County Emergency Management officials apologize for the accidental transmission of the message and have discussed the error with their partner agencies to avoid mistakes in the future."
A meeting is planned to determine the cause of the false alert and to implement measures to prevent similar incidents.
The Turkey Point Nuclear Power Plant, located near Homestead, has been operational since 1972.
Federal, state, and local agencies maintain emergency response programs to manage resources and protect the public in the unlikely event of a radiological incident.
Residents are encouraged to sign up for Alert!Monroe, an Everbridge mass notification system used by Monroe County Emergency Management to share emergency notifications quickly.
Notifications can include severe weather, evacuation information, fires, and other emergencies, as well as general important routine County information and announcements.