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‘Does my family need to take the iodine pills:’ mistaken Pickering nuclear alert sparked panic, confusion: emails

Last January’s emergency alert sent in error about an incident at the Pickering Generating Station sparked a flurry of panicked messages from nearby residents wondering if they should swallow their radiation-blocking iodide pills and a lengthy game of hot potato among energy workers about what happened and who would correct it.

Hundreds of pages of email exchanges from that morning obtained by CTV News Toronto through access to information legislation show mass confusion over who sent the errant alert, which lasted through the morning and involved cabinet ministers and the Secretary of Cabinet.

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