Sellafield programme

The_Minister

My Granny flicked onto RTE's Sellafield programme and thought it was for real. She phoned us, because she wanted to know what we were going to do and where we would go.
They should have ways of stopping this kind of thing happening:mad:

muletide

already a thread on this in TV section

The_Minister

Oooops. They still should have taken precautions though, there could have been a panic.

Karoma

There's a war of the worlds too apaprently... *dives into bombshelter*

SpAcEd OuT

I was just saying that situations like these are why Ireland need to have a bigger army, people always say ah sure what would Ireland need an army for always thinking in regards to war but this programme shows why a decent army is essential to any country

Mossy Monk

how can someone think the programme is for real

muletide

They did, before it started they announced that it would contain RTE news reports so tell your granny its ok

Karoma

SpAcEd OuT wrote:

I was just saying that situations like these are why Ireland need to have a bigger army, people always say ah sure what would Ireland need an army for always thinking in regards to war but this programme shows why a decent army is essential to any country

Not a civil defence, garda force, or anything else... an army... riiiight.
Rather, a "bigger army" at that....

All of you: I hope it hurts on your end.

The_Minister

muletide wrote:

They did, before it started they announced that it would contain RTE news reports so tell your granny its ok

Thats what got her. She flicked it on and BAM!! there were people telling her to leave Dublin.

Ruu_Old

And I was giving out about yer man who posted about old people being a nuisance earlier, 'cha I take it back now after reading this! :rolleyes:

Wertz

They could at least have had some sort of scrolling banner every few minutes to avoid juust this type of thing...I imagine it would take away from the "immersion" though.

Wait till they all start calling into Joe Duffy tomorrow crying about ahving to use their iodine tablets

I missed this...anyone know if they plan to repeat it? Figure if I'm gonna have a hand dip in my pocket for 155 notes, I may as well get to see what imaginary bullsh*t they're spending it on...

The_Minister

Ruu wrote:

And I was giving out about yer man who posted about old people being a nuisance earlier, 'cha I take it back now after reading this! :rolleyes:

If you were old and lived alone, had been told about the threat of Sellafield for years and watched RTE news religiously would you not get even a little worried. Especially with some of the clips shown.

SpAcEd OuT

Karoma wrote:

Not a civil defence, garda force, or anything else... an army... riiiight.
Rather, a "bigger army" at that....

I honestly don't think the gardai could restore order in a time like that do ??

I also didnt know the gardai had trucks capable of transporting massive groups of people at any one time like an army would

In a situation like that it would be close to anarchy on the streets of Dublin thats where the army would need to come in, do you believe the army right now in their current size would be able to handle that sort of situation?

Karoma

Firespinner wrote:

If you were old and lived alone, had been told about the threat of Sellafield for years and watched RTE news religiously would you not get even a little worried. Especially with some of the clips shown.

What were the clips depicting?
Did she consider looking out the window?
Did she not consider it a bit odd that it wasn't on the radio or other Irish or English TV channels?

The_Minister

Karoma wrote:

What were the clips depicting?
Did she consider looking out the window?
Did she not consider it a bit odd that it wasn't on the radio or other Irish or English TV channels?

What happened to Dave McG's post?


I didn't watch the show. She always watchs (and trusts) RTE. She saw it and phoned us immediately. She was in bed at the time.

Sparky

I can just hear the complaints Joe Duffy will get tomorrow.

muletide

Wertz wrote:

They could at least have had some sort of scrolling banner every few minutes to avoid juust this type of thing...I imagine it would take away from the "immersion" though.

Wait till they all start calling into Joe Duffy tomorrow crying about ahving to use their iodine tablets

I missed this...anyone know if they plan to repeat it? Figure if I'm gonna have a hand dip in my pocket for 155 notes, I may as well get to see what imaginary bullsh*t they're spending it on...

jesus any chance to complain give it a break - it was a decent programme

pm.

Wertz wrote:

They could at least have had some sort of scrolling banner every few minutes to avoid juust this type of thing...I imagine it would take away from the "immersion" though.

Wait till they all start calling into Joe Duffy tomorrow crying about ahving to use their iodine tablets

I missed this...anyone know if they plan to repeat it? Figure if I'm gonna have a hand dip in my pocket for 155 notes, I may as well get to see what imaginary bullsh*t they're spending it on...

The funny thing is the iodine tablets are out of date

Karoma

Firespinner wrote:

Especially with some of the clips shown.

I didn't watch the show.

Fill in the blanks.

She always watchs (and trusts) RTE. She saw it and phoned us immediately.

Too many things wrong with that to even try.

Heyes

Just caught the end of it, all i was kinda thinking was what if ?!... its a scary thought, but the chances are always there...

The_Minister

Karoma wrote:

Fill in the blanks.

I saw some of it after she called but had missed too much to keep watching

Karoma wrote:

Too many things wrong with that to even try.

She saw a small bit and got scared.

Wertz

muletide wrote:

jesus any chance to complain give it a break - it was a decent programme

I didn't see it, I asked a legitimate question about whther it's getting repeated or not.
I'll complain about the license fee any chance I get; I see it as my civic duty.

...and my point about some sort of rolling banner to avoid just what Firespinner's pertaining to, stands.

pm. wrote:

The funny thing is the iodine tablets are out of date

The funnier thing is that there is no longer a danger from radioactive iodine being released in any accident, and that the tablets were basically useless anyways. There's not too much you can take to avoid Tc-99 or plutonium poisoning, apart from a long haul flight

andrew163

Didn't see the programme but from what I've heard about it it seems a bit like that supervolcano documentary that was done by discovery and BBC (I think) a while ago..

That and war of the worlds..

Ardent

Wertz wrote:

They could at least have had some sort of scrolling banner every few minutes to avoid juust this type of thing...

Spot on.

My heart rate has finally returned to normal. My stupid as f*ck sister rang me and the conversation went like this:

Sister: "Are you watching the news?!"
Me: "No, why?"
Sister: "Did you not hear about the explosion? Turn on the RTE news".
Me: "What explosion?" *walking over to the TV*
Sister: "Sellafield. It's just exploded."
*I turn on TV and there's a banner in the top right corner saying Ireland has declared a national emergency and there's a news reader just going to a report where we see pictures of people on a ferry or something crawling around in agony.*

The girlfriend and I were almost out the door before we got the second call from my sister.

muletide

Wertz wrote:

I didn't see it, I asked a legitimate question about whther it's getting repeated or not.
I'll complain about the license fee any chance I get; I see it as my civic duty.

...and my point about some sort of rolling banner to avoid just what Firespinner's pertaining to, stands.



The funnier thing is that there is no longer a danger from radioactive iodine being released in any accident, and that the tablets were basically useless anyways. There's not too much you can take to avoid Tc-99 or plutonium poisoning, apart from a long haul flight

and how many other civic duties do you fulfill on a daily basis ...... some people are never happy

and for someone who didnt see it you are very quick to call it imaginary sh1te

Baggly

SpAcEd OuT wrote:

I honestly don't think the gardai could restore order in a time like that do ??

I also didnt know the gardai had trucks capable of transporting massive groups of people at any one time like an army would

In a situation like that it would be close to anarchy on the streets of Dublin thats where the army would need to come in, do you believe the army right now in their current size would be able to handle that sort of situation?

maybe not, but enlarging the civil defence would make more sense. are you suggesting in that situation we should instil martial law?

civdef

You'd pretty much have to get the army on the streets, not martial law though, they'd be acting as Aid to the Civil power.

As the show showed, more people would be at risk from panic than from the radiation.

The roles of the Civil Defence in a nuclear accident are to monitor radiation levels, assist with control measures, and provide public information. If the situation escalated to a major disaster, other roles would include backing up the Gardai, ambulance and fire services, couordinating refugee relief and housing - in accordance with the local major emrgency plans. Public order type roles aren't within CD remit, which is where the army would come in.

Wertz

muletide wrote:

and for someone who didnt see it you are very quick to call it imaginary sh1te

Oh wait, so it was real?

*ducks and covers*

Imaginary BS, like any docudrama...the BBC and ITV have been doing these on and off about various topics for a few years now, in some sort of effort to stir up public debate and raise awareness of issues...usually they end up with the same kind of thing that happened the OP's gran.

Like I say, I didn't see it and will reserve judgement. At least it wasn't the usual RTÉ sunday night disaster that involves some variety of "talent", a text vote and sh*tty sound production...

Heyes

i feel in a situation like this there is absolutaly nothing the army can do apart from trying to keep the nation calm. i dont think its nessessary at the moment to try and increase the man power involved with in the army, however i do feel that a what if situation should be addressed in reality rather than just a tv doc ( if it has nt been done already) , such as the english did in relation to an attack.

Baggly

i agree with you there on the remit of the CD, but would you not think that instead of recruiting large numbers for the army, who, lets not forget, would be there in case this happened, increase the remit and numbers of the CD on a part time volunteer basis perhaps.

perhaps im wrong, but an increase in the size of the army outside of a national emergency state, ie now, has other considerations, like the political situation in the north etc.

im not saying that this is a major consideration but it is certainly one

Wertz wrote:

in some sort of effort to stir up public debate and raise awareness of issues

thats not nessessarily a bad motive for airing it

civdef

however i do feel that a what if situation should be addressed in reality rather than just a tv doc ( if it has nt been done already)

It has:

http://www.rpii.ie/radiation/emergencyplanning.aspx

muletide

Wertz wrote:

Oh wait, so it was real?

*ducks and covers*

Imaginary BS, like any docudrama...the BBC and ITV have been doing these on and off about various topics for a few years now, in some sort of effort to stir up public debate and raise awareness of issues...usually they end up with the same kind of thing that happened the OP's gran.

Like I say, I didn't see it and will reserve judgement. At least it wasn't the usual RTÉ sunday night disaster that involves some variety of "talent", a text vote and sh*tty sound production...

i give up there is no talking to some people. Can you not accept that you called it sh1te without seeing it. I am sorry if i am going off topic or being pedantic but people like you who use every chance to knock things just annoy the fu[k out of me

billy the squid

My own opinion on this is that after the Stardust drama, and the Fallout programme, RTE Drama should be given more money. what little they get went to great use for both these programmes. I think it was well done, and I would like to see more programmes of this quality on our national broadcaster.

Only managed to get one or two screen caps of it here one anyway.

Baggly

billy the squid wrote:

My own opinion on this is that after the Stardust drama, and the Fallout programme, RTE Drama should be given more money.

agreed.

Heyes

civdef wrote:

It has:

http://www.rpii.ie/radiation/emergencyplanning.aspx

thanks,however on quick glance of it, I dont think that kind of information is passed around enough. Im sure most people wouldnt have a clue what to do in a state of emergency. The only people who would probable have the knowledge etc, would be those who may have to react speedily from a jobs perspective.
In my opinion this information needs to be made readily availble and PUBLICISED on an on going basis if they feel that it is a major risk.

civdef

i agree with you there on the remit of the CD, but would you not think that instead of recruiting large numbers for the army, who, lets not forget, would be there in case this happened, increase the remit and numbers of the CD on a part time volunteer basis perhaps.

CD is almost totally part time and voluntary. As my username indicates, I'm a member, and one of my roles in the organisation involves developing and implementing emergency response plans for just such an incident at local level in my county. We're always looking for more members, currently membership stands at around 6000 people, and people with scientific/technical backgrounds are particularly welcome in this role.

civdef

In my opinion this information needs to be made readily availble and PUBLICISED on an on going basis if they feel that it is a major risk.

If I remember right, a copy of the information booklet was sent out to every household in the country around the same time as the iodine tablets were issued. In all honesty, there's not a lot in it the general public needs to know, other than don't panic, and to follow the instructions they are given if anything happens.

civdef

http://www.civildefence.ie/cdweb.nsf/Documents/BE95B121ECA17C6D80256E8B0040E8E1

Some information about CD and all this.

Heyes

civdef wrote:

If I remember right, a copy of the information booklet was sent out to every household in the country around the same time as the iodine tablets were issued. In all honesty, there's not a lot in it the general public needs to know, other than don't panic, and to follow the instructions they are given if anything happens.

yep your absolutaly right information was given out and how the public should behave etc is correct. I just feel that information should be on going rather than once off.

Wertz

muletide wrote:

i give up there is no talking to some people. Can you not accept that you called it sh1te without seeing it. I am sorry if i am going off topic or being pedantic but people like you who use every chance to knock things just annoy the fu[k out of me

Wertz wrote:

I may as well get to see what imaginary bullsh*t they're spending it on...

Where did I call it sh*te? At the risk of sounding pedantic myself, bullsh*t ≠ sh*te. People like me? Knock things? WTF? I've never been a fan of RTÉ's licensing fee, nor the way it is usually squandered...if this show breaks that mould then well and good...

So does anyone know if it will be repeated, which was my original question?

petermonaghan wrote:

thats not nessessarily a bad motive for airing it

No, I never said it was. But you could also argue that it's a tad sensationalist...I suppose it all hangs on how you execute it.

To put my posts back on topic and stop the pointless bickering with muletide, what could we do in a situation like this?
Even people like the cops, CD, army even though some of them have sworn oaths etc. to do their jobs, wouldn't it be very hard not to consider their own safety and that of their family in a situation like this?
How exactly do you control a panicking populace? Start shooting people?
Do we all head for Malin head with a lot of tents? Waht do we eat? What about the long term? (yes I know there's the 2nd part next week that delas with this, which is why I'd like to see part 1)...

civdef

Public interest in this area is very cyclical in nature. The last time it reached popular awareness was after 9/11 - when Joe Jacob did his thing and reassured everyone! Since then there has been very little in public, though the various agencies have been working away in the background. This drama probably will bring things back in focus for a while.

Duffman

Did anyone happen to get a digital copy of this?* It sounds interesting. Can't get RTE in the States.


*Disclaimer: I am simply curious about whether anyone decided that it was worth recording. I would never suggest that someone transmit RTE's valuable intellectual property without permission. That would be wrong and bad and wrong and bad..

OMcGovern

If the TV programme "Stargate" has thought me anything, it's how to save people with crazy ideas....

Those Windfarms off the coast of Arklow can logically work in reverse....
A electric generator can be turned into an electric motor by just reversing the flow of electricity.

So we simply swap a wire cables, point the huge wind turbines back to Wales/England, and blow the radiative dust back to the Brits

Hopefully this won't start a "Wind Turbine arms race" between our two countries...

civdef

Sellafield gets the publicity, but have a look at where Wylfa is, 60 miles or so from Dublin. Most of the exercises for an emergency in Ireland use that as the starting point.

http://www.insc.anl.gov/pwrmaps/map/united_kingdom.html

cooperguy

It was a great show and and well worth watching. That scrolling banner suggestion would ruin the show and there is no need for it. For one that show had been advertised all week and most people knew about it. Second if you watched it for more than 10 seconds you would realise it wasnt real as they kept flicking between different stations (BBC & RTE) and between interviews and other bits and pieces. The overall style of the show was not the style of a news report.

The second part is on tomorrow night I think

Wertz

civdef wrote:

Sellafield gets the publicity, but have a look at where Wylfa is, 60 miles or so from Dublin. Most of the exercises for an emergency in Ireland use that as the starting point.

http://www.insc.anl.gov/pwrmaps/map/united_kingdom.html

Is that the one in anglesey? Always wondered about that place, when I was a kid going on holidays. Didn't know it was a power station.

Ruu_Old

I too am looking for a copy of it, think id be able to get a copy from RTE?

aidan_walsh

My view: Interesting, entertaining and a little scary. Very well put together for the most part, and I'm looking forward to seeing it tomorrow night. Pity they didn't get actual RTE personalities involved since they felt the need to carry them off though.

ninebeanrows

the show was an embarrassment

Absolutely brutal.

Good idea but terrible acting and terrible execution..

I felt like throwing up watching it and couldnt help but laugh at
how awfully made it was..

a .0001/10 for me or not even........ its 10 times worse than Fair city and
thats saying alot:o

civdef

Weathercheck, would the Northeasterly winds portrayed bring much snow along with the invisible dangerous stuff? No clould without a silver (or caesium in this case) lining and all that....

pork99

muletide wrote:

and for someone who didnt see it you are very quick to call it imaginary sh1te

I saw it and I tend to agree with the CEO of the Radiological Protection Institute of Ireland (RPII) (I imagine she should know a bit more than the average punter)

Although Fallout director David Caffrey last week described the scenario in the drama as "scientifically absolutely possible", the Radiological Protection Institute of Ireland (RPII) last night said it was "unrealistic and exaggerated".

Ireland's prevailing winds are south-westerly and, in reality, kerosene is stored a long way from the waste tanks at Sellafield and no sewer connects them.

RPII CEO Ann McGarry said: "The scenario in the programme could not happen. We have looked in great detail at the worst possible accident at Sellafield and even that was not nearly as bad as they portray. The programme is completely unrealistic and exaggerated in terms of the consequences in Ireland."

http://www.unison.ie/irish_independent/stories.php3?ca=9&si=1603393&issue_id=13959

The area affected in this program - the Eastern seaboard - has roughly half the country's population and yet they seem to have been able to evacuate everyone to the Midlands/West? Surely if that part of the country is affected most of the rest of the country would be also? Are 4,000,000 people going to decamp to Dingle and Westport? An attempted evacuation on that scale would fall into chaos in half a day.

Also given that the Greater Dublin area generates two thirds maybe more of the country's GDP, surely it's cheaper in the long run to put up with a few extra cancer deaths than to have the economy collapse? Probably evacuate children and pregnant women but with everyone else having to take their chances like in London in the Blitz simply in order to keep things going.

What I've never seen adaquately answered anywhere is how come Hiroshima and Nagasaki where there were nuclear explosions are now thriving cities with 100,000s of inhabitants apparently living normal healthy lives. Surely those cities should have remained radioactive wastelands for centuries at least?

I think this scenario is based on the belief that we have another Chernobyl in our back yard. However that plant was built in the Soviet era under a political system notorious for shoddy construction and disasterous mismanagement in every sphere of life. There must be a couple of hundred nuclear plants in Europe how many blow up annually?