Hatch Outage Tee Shirts

03/18/2014

Hatch Sirens Operational (Tuesday, March 18, 2014) --After a couple of years of planning, installation and testing, officials at Plant Hatch issued the following statement regarding a new emergency alert siren system for residents who live within ten miles of the plant. "On Tuesday, April 1, the new siren system at the Edwin I. Hatch Nuclear Plant will be fully operational. "Residents are encouraged to keep their tone alert radio for use with weather alerts and other notices from the local emergency management agency. "Plant Hatch recently partnered with the local emergency management agency and the Georgia Emergency Management Agency to enhance the emergency notification system for the surrounding area. This enhancement included the installation of a new siren system within the emergency planning zone. The new system has been thoroughly tested for the past year and will now serve as the primary source for public emergency notification. “At Plant Hatch, safety is the number one priority,” said David Vineyard, site vice president. “Of all the things we do, we are first and foremost committed to ensuring the safety and health of our plant employees and neighbors. One way we work to keep you safe is by making sure that you are contacted in the unlikely event of a plant emergency.” "For information on public safety, access the 2014 Hatch Emergency Information Calendar athttp://www.SouthernCompany.com/about-us/our-business/southernnuclear/pdfs/Emergency_Info_Hatch.pdf "For questions about information in the 2014 Hatch Emergency Information Calendar or the enhancements to the emergency notification system, please call Plant Hatch Emergency Planning at 1-855-880-2058 during normal business hours."
http://www.SoutheastGeorgiaToday.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=12595&Itemid=117

12/07/2013

Don't Be Alarmed, It's Only a Test (Friday, December 06th, 2013) -- Plant Hatch will test its new emergency siren system next week. The test will be conducted about noon on Thursday, December 12th and will consist of several varying siren sounds. The sirens are located in Appling, Jeff Davis, Tattnall and Toombs Counties. In the event of a real emergency at the plant, the sirens would be activated to notify people in the area.
http://www.SoutheastGeorgiaToday.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=11983&Itemid=117

11/27/2013

New Bosses at Hatch Plant (Tuesday, November 26th, 2013) -– Last Friday Southern Nuclear Chairman, President and CEO Stephen Kuczynski announced a new site vice president and plant manager at the Edwin I. Hatch Nuclear Plant near Baxley, Ga. David Vineyard, current plant manager at Plant Hatch, was named the new site vice president. “I am pleased with the opportunity to serve as Plant Hatch site vice president as we continue our mission of sustaining high levels of plant performance and community service,” said Vineyard. “Our top priority is the safety and health of the public and our employees, and I appreciate the support of the Plant Hatch community.” Prior to his work at Plant Hatch, Vineyard served as the fleet operations manager at the Southern Nuclear headquarters in Birmingham, Ala., where he functioned as the governance and oversight authority for all nuclear plant operations. Vineyard joined Southern Company in 1985 at Plant Vogtle near Waynesboro, Ga., after serving eight years in the U.S. Navy submarine force. He holds a degree in computer science from Augusta State University and completed post graduate work in computer engineering at North Carolina State University. He has maintained a senior reactor operator’s license at Vogtle for 23 years. Vineyard and his wife, Beverly, live in Vidalia. They have twin sons, Andrew and Matthew, both employed with Southern Nuclear and stationed at Plant Vogtle. Tony Spring has assumed the role of plant manager at Plant Hatch. Spring began his career at Plant Hatch in the engineering department in 1991, serving in modifications engineering, work controls, system engineering and operations. He moved to the corporate headquarters and worked in strategic analysis. He returns to Plant Hatch after most recently serving at Plant Vogtle 3 and 4 as the operations director, then as the initial test program director. “I am excited to return to Plant Hatch, where I served for most of my career,” said Spring. “Rejoining the Plant Hatch team feels like I’m returning home, and my family and I are glad to be back in this warm and welcoming community.” Spring, from Sylvester, Ga., attended Mercer University in Macon, where he met his wife, Lynn, and earned a degree in electrical engineering. Spring and his wife have two daughters – Samantha, 11, and Alexa, 10 – who will be transferring to Vidalia Heritage Academy at the end of the school year.
http://www.SoutheastGeorgiaToday.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=11909&Itemid=117

11/23/2013

Leadership Changes at Hatch Plant (Saturday, November 23, 2013) -- Southern Nuclear Chairman, President and CEO Stephen Kuczynski announced today that Dennis Madison, current site vice president of the Edwin I. Hatch Nuclear Plant near Baxley, has been named fleet operations vice president at the company’s Birmingham, Ala., headquarters. Madison, who joined Southern Company in 1982, has been a leader in various nuclear engineering roles.He has served as Plant Hatch’s site vice president since 2007. David Vineyard, current plant manager at Plant Hatch, will assume the role of site vice president. He joined Plant Vogtle near Waynesboro, Ga., in 1985 and served in various supervisory roles and operations leadership positions until 2010, when he was named fleet operations manager at Southern Nuclear’s corporate office. He moved to Plant Hatch as plant manager in 2012. Tony Spring has been selected as plant manager of Plant Hatch. He started working at Plant Hatch in 1991 and served in several engineering and operations roles. He was named initial test program director for the construction of Vogtle units 3 and 4 earlier this year. “The leadership and experience of these individuals in the operation of nuclear facilities will ensure Southern Nuclear’s overall fleet success,” said Kuczynski. “With a proven track record of setting and reinforcing high operational standards, each of them clearly has the ability to lead our fleet and the Hatch team to achieve industry-leading performance.”
http://www.SoutheastGeorgiaToday.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=11894&Itemid=117

11/12/2013

Hostile Action Drill at Hatch Plant (Tuesday, November 12, 2013) -- On the afternoon of Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2013 employees at the Edwin I. Hatch Nuclear Plant near Baxley, Ga. will conduct a mock hostile action-based exercise in coordination with federal, state and local emergency officials. “We want to notify the community that this is only a drill and there is no cause for concern,” said Dennis Madison, site vice president for Plant Hatch. “Georgia Power and Southern Nuclear’s top priority is the safety and health of its employees and the public. We work closely with our local and state emergency response partners to ensure we are all fully prepared to act quickly in the unlikely event of an emergency.” The Nuclear Regulatory Commission requires nuclear power plants to conduct a hostile action- based emergency exercise at least once every eight years. The primary objective is for the nuclear power plant to demonstrate its ability to protect employees, plant operations and the public through the coordination of onsite security with offsite federal, state and local emergency responders and agencies. Several hundred federal, state and local officials will participate in this fictitious hostile action-based scenario. During the exercise, numerous law enforcement and emergency responders will be onsite and emergency response vehicles may be observed entering and exiting the facility. Law enforcement may also use helicopters and other large equipment to support the response effort. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Federal Emergency Management Agency regulators will be on hand to evaluate the demonstration.
http://www.SoutheastGeorgiaToday.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=11814&Itemid=117

10/07/2013

Plant Hatch United Way Golf Tourny (Monday, 07 October 2013) - The Plant Hatch United Way Golf Tournament was held at Hawk's Point Golf Club on Saturday, October 5, 2013. The tournament was won by the team of (L to R): Paxton Shuman, Andy Belcher, Alex Szabo and Justin McCloud with a score of 56.
http://www.SoutheastGeorgiaToday.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=11592&Itemid=118

10/05/2013

Drill Next Week at Hatch Plant (Friday, October 04, 2013) -- On the afternoon of Wednesday, Oct. 9, employees at the Edwin I. Hatch Nuclear Plant will conduct a hostile action-based practice exercise in coordination with federal, state and local emergency officials. “We want to inform the community that this is only a drill and there is no cause for concern,” said Dennis Madison, Hatch site vice president. “Southern Nuclear’s top priority is the safety and health of its employees and the public. We work closely with our emergency response partners to ensure we are fully prepared to act quickly in the unlikely event of an emergency.” The Nuclear Regulatory Commission requires nuclear power plants to conduct a hostile action-based emergency exercise at least once every eight years. The primary objective of this emergency exercise is for a nuclear power plant to demonstrate its ability to protect the public, plant operations and employees through the coordination of onsite security and emergency response with offsite federal, state and local emergency responders and agencies. During the hostile action-based practice exercise, numerous law enforcement and emergency responders may be onsite and around the community. Emergency response vehicles may be observed entering and exiting the facility. Law enforcement may also utilize helicopters to support the response effort. The final evaluated hostile action-based emergency exercise will be conducted on Wednesday, Nov. 13. If you have questions regarding this emergency exercise, you may contact 1-855-880-2058.
http://www.SoutheastGeorgiaToday.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=11577&Itemid=117

09/24/2013

Plant Hatch Back at Full Power (Tuesday, September 24, 2013) -- Officials at the Edwin I. Plant Hatch Nuclear Plant report unit 2 has been returned to service following a maintenance outage to repair a valve in the steam supply system. The unit was safely and manually taken offline on Sept. 15 at 9:15 a.m. ET to make the necessary valve repairs. During the shutdown, unit 1 continued operating at 100 percent power. Both units at Plant Hatch are now operating safely at full power.
http://www.SoutheastGeorgiaToday.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=11516&Itemid=117

09/16/2013

Plant Hatch Unit Down for Maintenance (Monday, September 16, 2013) -- Southern Nuclear issued the following news release regarding maintenance of Unit 2 at Plant Hatch. "On Sept. 15 at 9:15 a.m. ET, Plant Hatch’s highly trained operators safely shut down unit 2 to conduct maintenance on a valve in the steam supply system. In accordance with procedures and guidelines, in order to thoroughly investigate the issue and make necessary valve repairs, it is required to safely and manually take the unit offline. “Southern Nuclear’s top priority is the safety and health of the public and our employees,” said DennisMadison, site vice president. “We are committed to the safe operation of our nuclear generating facilities with equipment and systems that meet strict NRC safety and design regulations.” All plant systems operated as designed, and unit 1 continues to operate safely at 100 percent power. Once repairs are made, Plant Hatch employees will focus on bringing the unit safely back online.
http://www.SoutheastGeorgiaToday.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=11459&Itemid=117

08/29/2013

Plant Hatch Adopts Toombs Central (Wednesday, August 28, 2013) -- The Edwin I. Hatch Nuclear Plant has adopted Altamaha Elementary and Toombs Central Elementary School, both located inside the plant’s ten mile emergency planning zone, as they focus community support efforts on education. "Education is vital to our communities," said Site Vice President Dennis Madison. "Hatch employees are working together to meet some of the student, educator and school needs in the surrounding area." As they begin to prepare for the school year to begin, Toombs Central Elementary School Principal Tonawanda Irie (center) joins Secretary/SIS Clerk Kim McCoy (left) and Counselor Marissa Morris (right) to accept school supplies from Hatch employees. Plant Hatch held a "Back to School Supply Drive" to support students and teachers as they return to school. Employees donated items such as notebook paper, pencils, notebooks, crayons and glue to give to the schools to share with teachers and students. “During a time of significant budget cuts, our faculty and staff appreciate the partnership we have formed with Plant Hatch to provide resources that will enhance the quality of education for our students," said TCES Principal Tonawanda Irie. Additionally, Plant Hatch sponsored a faculty meal at each school during their pre-planning period. AES faculty and staff were servedlunch on open house day and TCES faculty and staff enjoyed a pre-planning breakfast on their first day back to school. “We look forward to continuing support throughout the school year,” said Madison. “We wish all of the students and teachers the best as they begin the new school year and hope they reach great new heights this year.”
http://www.SoutheastGeorgiaToday.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=11357&Itemid=117

11/14/2012

Siren Test Set For Plant Hatch Thursday, November 15, 2012 Between 11 & 11:30 AM (Wednesday, November 14, 2012) -- If you live within a ten-mile radius of Plant Hatch, don't be alarmed when you hear sirens Thursday morning. The nuclear power plant is cooperating with local and state emergency management officials to test a network of 80 emergency sirens which have been installed in Toombs, Appling, Tattnall and Jeff Davis Counties in the past two years. The sirens are scheduled to be set off between eleven and eleven-thirty a.m. Thursday morning, according to Southern Nuclear which operates Plant Hatch.
http://www.SoutheastGeorgiaToday.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=9652&Itemid=117

11/05/2012

Disputed Costs Now at More Than $950 Million for Nuclear Project at Plant Vogtle By JONATHAN SHAPIRO. Another $50 million has been added to a set of disputed cost overruns for the nuclear construction project at Plant Vogtle. That brings the total amount to nearly a billion dollars, some of which Georgia Power ratepayers could be on the hook for. The overruns are related to a delay in federal licensing. The project’s primary contractors - Westinghouse and the Shaw Group – say Georgia Power and its partners should absorb the $950 million or so in extra costs. Georgia Power spokesman Mark Williams says negotiations have entered formal dispute resolution and may take several months to settle. “We’re still in discussions with the contractors over the disputed amount.” The disagreement surfaced shortly after the Nuclear Regulatory Commission okayed the project in February. Since then, the project has faced a series of problems involving the construction of the nuclear site foundation. Ratepayer advocates say those issues – which are separate from the $950 million currently in dispute - threaten to drive up costs and delay the project further. Williams, however, insists the two new reactors remain on schedule. “There’s no change, we’re still on target for 2016 and 2017.” Williams says if Georgia Power is deemed responsible for additional costs beyond the project’s originally approved $14 billion, the company may go to state regulators and ask to recover those costs from ratepayers.
http://www.wabe.org/post/disputed-costs-now-more-950-million-nuclear-project-plant-vogtle

Another $50 million has been added to a set of disputed cost overruns for the nuclear construction project at Plant Vogtle. That brings the total amount to