San Onofre

An information booklet covering what to do if an emergency occurs at the San Onofre nuclear power plant is being mailed this month to 150,000 homes and businesses that are withing 10 to 20 miles of the facility.

The booklet is designed to provide information about emergency communications and protective actions that should be taken if radiation is released from the plant.

According to David Barron, a spokesman for Southern California Edison Co., operator of the plant, the only protective action that residents 10 to 20 miles of the plant would be asked to take in a nuclear emergency is to remain indoors.

The brochure, which is distributed every two years and is in its third printing, also describes how a nuclear power plant works and gives information about radiation. “It’s very basic,” Barron said.

Communities slated to receive the booklet in San Diego County include Oceanside, Fallbrook, Bonsall, Carlsbad and Vista. If residents do not receive the pamphlet by the end of March, they should contact the county’s Office of Disaster Preparedness, 3201 Ruffin Road, Suite Q, San Diego, 92123.

In Orange County, residents of Laguna Beach, Laguna Hills, Laguna Niguel, South Laguna, El Toro and Mission Viejo along with portions of the Cleveland National Forest will receive the pamphlet.

Barron said a much more detailed booklet is distributed to residents and businesses within 10 miles of the plant. That booklet, which goes out annually, was most recently released late last year, he said.

It provides detailed maps of escape routes and lists places to go for shelter in a nuclear emergency, Barron said. The only San Diego County area within 10 miles of the plant is on Camp Pendleton.