Radiological emergency management - Feedback and post-accident management

The crisis management system described in dossier [BN 3 870] only makes sense if it is regularly tested. For many years now, the crisis organization and operations provided for in France in the event of a radiological emergency have been tested during simulation exercises, enabling them to be improved on an ongoing basis.

Past serious accidents are also a fundamental source of feedback and have led to far-reaching organizational changes. The accident at the Three Mile Island power plant in 1979 was at the origin of the development of crisis management organizations in the main nuclear countries.

While the management of the emergency phase of crisis situations has for many years been the subject of well-established, tried-and-tested organization and doctrine, the strategy for managing the post-accident phase, given the many aspects involved, is still being considered by the public authorities in consultation with the various stakeholders.

In this dossier, we present the nuclear crisis exercises organized in France, the feedback from past accidents and exercises, and finally the main aspects to be addressed in the post-accident management of such events.