To: efg@nerc.com Enclosure: 9-99-Y2k-Drill.pdf Hi, I just received this thru email. I found it rather interesting that they say that ,"This drill will not affect delivery of electricity to any customers." Why test?

NERC has issued a press release saying that electric utilities will conduct a North American-wide Year 2000 (Y2k) readiness drill on September 8-9, 1999 as a rehearsal for the transition from December 31, 1999 to January 1, 2000. The drill is intended to simulate as realistically as possible the exercise of operating, communications, administrative, and contingency plans for the Y2k transition. This drill will not affect delivery of electricity to any customers.

A copy of the press release announcing the Y2k drill is attached in Acrobat 4.0 format. This press release also is available from the NERC web site at http://www.nerc.com/y2k.

Please share this information with others in your organization.

If you have any questions, please contact me.

Sincerely,

Gene Gorzelnik

-- Al K. Lloyd (al@ready.now), August 31, 1999

Answers

I suppose they are going to pretend that it's happening, sorta like a fire drill when I was in grade school. We heard the bell, we got out of our seats and walked outside for a few minutes, then walked back to the class room. Never saw smoke!

-- tk smith (tksmith@tksmithh.com), August 31, 1999.

Of course they can guarantee that it won't affect the delivery of electricity---the drill is not testing delivery! I will bet a 50# bag of rice that every single utility passes this test with absolutely no problem found. Wonder if they have one of those form letters again that tell the utilities how to test only those functions that have been previously tested and known to have no failures, along with the statement about the predetermined result and how to work backwards from there to guarantee a successful outcome.

Will also bet a Baygen that the press release after the test will tell America that all utilities have successfully passed a nation-wide Y2K test and are good to go.

-- RUOK (RUOK@yesiam.com), August 31, 1999.

Perhaps it will coincide with the emergency doughnut delivery drill.

We can only pray, after all, you can never be too prepared.

:)

-- Will continue (farming@home.com), August 31, 1999.

I work for a major utility, and I have not been told of a "drill" next week. You would think if a drill is schedualed, the employees would know about it. Could the "drill" be operated and deemed a success from the board room?

-- LL Bean (est@mdfo.com), August 31, 1999.

OT...I find it moe than a little interesting that this test is occuring on the same date that the Comet Lee will be the closest to the earth...Some scientists have speculated that there could be a energy discharge from the comet to the earth's magnetic feilds.

But of more interest is the information that Lee is composed of HNC (hydrogen cyanide) a compound which is combustable when in contact with oxygen. And what of the two trailer (objects) known to be following Lee, what is their composition? And why was it stated that the earth might feel the effects of Lee's passing on the 11th-13th of September? Thhis information was/is on the Milliumin Group's site amoung others.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Shakey~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

-- Shakey (in_a_bunker@forty.feet), September 01, 1999.

This DRILL (read their own terms) will of COURSE not impact delivery. It COULD be done as a table top, as are half of the Nuke Drills for the Nuke plants. Though, there are probably going to be people at nexuses all over the country, with radios in hand providing the data needed to vary the output to balance the load, just like the computers do, only in about 300 times the time.

C

-- Chuck, a night driver (rienzoo@en.com), September 01, 1999.

Al, be careful don't call it a test or Flint will freak out on you too! (see NERC thread just a little below this one)

Hey Flint, I got this one, just relax, breathe slowly, think happy thoughts, get that blood pressure down. Better? Good.

-- Bill (tinfoil@deserthat.com), September 01, 1999.

From page 3 of NERC's "September 8-9, 1999 Y2K Drill Guide"

"The September 8-9 drill is NOT a "Y2K TEST" in the sense that digital systems and devices are being tested for their ability to handle certain date manipulations. While date changes on some devices or systems could be appropriate during the drill, it is not a primary purpose of the drill to test Y2K-related date manipulations on individual components or integrated systems ..."

Y2K Operating Plan Deployment Rehearsal: Focuses on deployment and performance of procedures without the insertion of artificial failures, contingency scenarios, or testing - in essense participants are standing in a heightened readiness posture as they would on December 31. This portion of the exercise accomplishes two results: deployment of readiness plans can be effectively practiced and lessons learned without added complexity from simulated failures; and systems will be in a true heightened state of readiness during the rollover into September 9 without the possible confusion of artificially injected problems ...

ftp://www.nerc.com/pub/sys/all_updl/docs/y2k/September-Drill-Guide.pdf MORE: http://www.nerc.com/y2k/drills.html

-- Cheryl (Transplant@Oregon.com), September 01, 1999.

So they are (again) deliberately NOT looking for problems, but rather are testing "procedures" in response to pretend "this is a drill" problems....

-- Robert A. Cook, PE (Kennesaw, GA) (cook.r@csaatl.com), September 01, 1999.

By the way, these means such problems are still out there, waiting to be discovered .....

-- Robert A. Cook, PE (Kennesaw, GA) (cook.r@csaatl.com), September 01, 1999.

Robert:

Absolutely. Let's not discover any problems that could lead us to re- examine our conclusions, OK?

With your background in power, this whole NERC situation has to have you quite annoyed, moving up to occasionally livid. [G]

-- Jon Williamson (jwilliamson003@sprintmail.com), September 01, 1999.

April drill: Practice changing the battery in cell phone.

Sept drill: Actually use cell phone to order pizza from Dominoes.

-- a (a@a.a), September 01, 1999.

I read the NERC's agenda/ideas for the drill on their FTP site... very comprehensive but seems mainly tooled for logistically supporting intense FOF operations......

-- lisa (lisa@work.now), September 01, 1999.

The scary thing here-- You know it, I know it, is that the News Media will portray it as : NERC TEST WENT OFF WITHOUT ANY PROBLEMS.

leading the public once again to believe.... it's all okay.

i think "a" said characterized it best, a couple posts above mine...

-- Super (slfsl@yahoo.com), September 01, 1999.