False Nuclear Emergency Warning Issued in New Jersey

Residents in two New Jersey counties were watching television Tuesday night only to suddenly be warned of an emergency at the nation's second-largest nuclear generating facility. The warning, sent out via the state's emergency broadcast system, was a false alarm, albeit one that was—in the words of the Daily Journal—"sobering, if not terrifying." According to the New Jersey Office of Emergency Management, the false emergency alert read: "A civil authority has issued a NUCLEAR POWER PLANT WARNING." It was sent to residents in Cumberland and Salem counties, WNBC reports.

Officials at PSEG Nuclear, which runs the Salem/Hope Creek nuclear complex, say there was no emergency at the facility. A spokesperson says state police were conducting a "worst case scenario" drill Tuesday night. It appears one of the messages for the drill was accidentally made public via the emergency broadcast system. The Office of Emergency Management, which issued the false alarm, apologized "for any inconvenience." (More false alarm stories.)