Residents near the Catawba Nuclear Station in York County will hear outdoor warning sirens on Wednesday, Oct. 7, during an annual full-volume test.
Duke Energy and county emergency management officials plan to sound 89 pole-mounted sirens between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m., according to the company's emergency planning page. Each siren will blare for about three minutes. No public action is required.
The sirens sit within a 10-mile Emergency Planning Zone (EPZ) around the plant, which is in York, S.C. The zone covers a 10-mile radius in York County, where Fort Mill, Tega Cay and the Lake Wylie area are located.
Some sirens may be tested more than once, and follow-up testing after maintenance could continue past 1 p.m., YoCo News reported.
Because this is a test, local TV and radio stations will not interrupt regular programming with Emergency Alert System (EAS) messages. In an actual emergency, those stations would broadcast instructions. Duke Energy lists AM 1340/FM 94.3 WRHI in Rock Hill and FM 107.1 WRHM in York County as the designated EAS stations for the Catawba area.
Hearing a siren does not mean evacuate. It means tune to a local radio or television station for information, according to Duke Energy.
York County emergency management officials coordinate the test alongside counterparts in several North Carolina counties near Duke Energy's McGuire Nuclear Station in Huntersville, N.C., where 67 sirens will also be tested the same day.
The Oct. 7 test is the only annual full-volume, three-minute sounding scheduled for 2026. Full-volume tests lasting five to 30 seconds were conducted Jan. 7, April 1 and July 1.
Residents who want advance reminders of future siren tests can text "CATAWBA" to 71729 to sign up for Duke Energy's nuclear preparedness text alerts. Duke Energy notes the text service sends preparedness information only and will not alert subscribers to actual emergencies.
More information on nuclear emergency preparedness is available on Duke Energy's website.
