Emergency Preparedness

Well-developed emergency response plans are in place at all our facilities worldwide. Describing the roles and responsibilities of our employees, these plans help our plant managers to respond quickly to natural and man-made emergencies. We also carry out regular emergency response exercises that test our procedures, and provide opportunities to continually strengthen the emergency readiness of our people and facilities.

In 2004, we carried out two table top emergency exercises. One of these exercises, simulating a bomb threat, was conducted at our Calgary head office. Focusing on notification and search procedures, the exercise validated the emergency preparedness and knowledge of our frontline employees.

The Alberta government, through Emergency Management Alberta, has developed an emergency plan to deal with terrorist threats for critical infrastructure in the province, including power plants. In consultation with this agency, we wrote an emergency response plan, using the threat levels defined by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, to deal with the potential of terrorist threats at our Alberta facilities.

We also conducted internal security vulnerability assessments at our Calgary head office, our gas plants in Ottawa and Mexico, and our coal plant in Centralia, Washington. As part of these reviews, we provided security training, covering security risks and procedures, to employees responsible for local plant security.

Sundance team

Case study

Rapid response to Sundance fire

At TransAlta, we have employees, backed by strong procedures and constant training, that believe a safe working environment is a top priority and can react quickly and effectively in the unfortunate case when emergency incidents do occur.

On July 8, 2004, our Operations team evacuated the Sundance plant as a result of a fire detected in a boiler house wall. The team immediately realized that additional firefighting help would be required and contacted local fire departments, who responded quickly to the situation, sending fire trucks and personnel to the site. The team also switched the generating units to minimum production levels until the extent of the damage could be determined.

Once the fire was completely extinguished, Operations staff carefully assessed damage to electrical cables and our options for bringing the generating units back to full load production. Our repair crews then worked around the clock to restore power supplies and electrical cabling. Throughout, the Operations team stayed calm, stuck to their training and drills to quickly resolve the situation.

“The Sundance team’s first priority was to keep employees safe,” says Martin van Huyssteen, director, Alberta Thermal Operations. “I’m proud to say there were no injuries. They responded in a very professional manner, following all procedures and drills.”