Oak Ridge Emergency Response Guide
Categorizing and classifying events
Operational emergencies that are not classified are events that do not involve the release of harmful levels of hazardous materials but require significant response by the site, such as the fire department.
The chart below describes how emergencies are classified at DOE sites. Events resulting in the airborne release of hazardous materials are classified into one of three levels in order of increasing severity based on their potential reach and impact (alert, site area emergency, and general emergency).You will hear these terms used during public announcements.
Emergency classification
Alert
Harmful airborne release that extends up to 100 meters from the incident.
Site Area Emergency
Harmful airborne release that extends more than 100 meters or up to the site boundary from the incident.
General Emergency
Harmful airborne release that has the potential to or has gone offsite.
Site is defined as the boundaries of ORNL.