OCONEE, SC - Residents of 13 counties who live within the 10-mile Emergency Planning Zones, of the five (5) nuclear power plants affecting South Carolina, may now pick up new Potassium Iodide tablets, the state Department of Health and Environmental Control reported Thursday, November 15.

"The availability of these tablets is the continuation of a program first opened up to residents back in 2002," said Sandra Threatt, manager of DHEC's Nuclear Response and Emergency Environmental Surveillance section.

The new tablet supply expiration dates are May 2013; however residents in possession of the tablets with November 2007 expiration dates are not required to dispose of those tablets yet.

"After additional research and product testing, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission approved an expiration extension of the previously distributed tablets for an additional two years" Threatt said.

That extension now makes any tablets distributed, with an expiration stamp of November 2007, safe to take through November 2009. Threatt said some 1,302,120 Potassium Iodide tablets, or 651,060 adult doses, have been delivered throughout the state for distribution to residents.

Potassium Iodide, also known as KI, is similar to table salt. It is routinely added to table salt to make it "iodized." If taken in time and in the appropriate dosage, KI blocks the thyroid gland's intake of radioactive iodine. That could reduce the risk of thyroid cancers and other diseases that could result from exposure to radioactive iodine; one of the possible radioactive materials that could be disbursed in a severe nuclear incident.

"This is part of our ongoing effort to protect the public, still KI should not be taken needlessly," Threatt said. "It's important to remember that there is no substitution for following emergency instructions, such as an evacuation order, in case of a nuclear emergency. KI is not a magic bullet and will not protect you from all forms of radiation associated with a possible incident or release at a nuclear facility."

Threatt said the tablets are now available, without appointment, at the following county public health departments: Aiken, Allendale, Barnwell, Chesterfield, Darlington, Fairfield, Lee, Lexington, Newberry, Oconee, Pickens, Richland and York. Please consult the following page for the appropriate clinic locations and hours of operation.

Four commercial nuclear facilities operate within the state of South Carolina, one plant in Georgia that affect several communities in the counties of Aiken, Allendale and Barnwell. The South Carolina facilities include the Catawba Nuclear Station, the H.B. Robinson Nuclear Plant, the Oconee Nuclear Station and the V.C. Summer Nuclear Plants. The Vogtle nuclear plant, south of Augusta, Ga., has part of its 10-mile Emergency Planning Zone in South Carolina.

Hours of operation for county public health departments: 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

• South Carolina Potassium Iodide Distribution
  County Public Health Departments
• Aiken County Public Health Department
  828 Richland Avenue, West; Aiken, S.C. 29801
• Allendale County Public Health Department
  571 Memorial Avenue, North; Allendale, S.C. 29810
• Barnwell County Public Health Department
  164 Calhoun Street; Barnwell, S.C. 29812
• Chesterfield County Public Health Department
  203 North Page Street; Chesterfield, S.C. 29709
• Darlington County Public Health Department
  305 Russell Street; Darlington, S.C. 29532
• Hartsville Public Health Department (Darlington County)
  130 Camden Avenue; Hartsville, S.C. 29550
• Fairfield County Public Health Department
  1136 Kincaid Bridge Road; Winnsboro, S.C. 29180
• Lee County Public Health Department
  810 Brown Street; Bishopville, S.C. 29010
• Lexington County Public Health Department
  112 West Hospital Drive; West Columbia, S.C. 29169
• Newberry County Public Health Department
  2111 Wilson Road; Newberry, S.C. 29108
• Oconee County Public Health Department
  609 N. Townsville Street; Seneca, S.C. 29679
• Walhalla Public Health Department (Oconee County)
  200 Booker Drive; Walhalla, S.C. 29691
• Pickens County Public Health Department
  200 McDaniel Avenue; Pickens, S.C. 29671
• Richland County Public Health Department
  2000 Hampton Street; Columbia, S.C. 29201
• York County Public Health Department
  N. Congress Street; York, S.C. 29745
• Rock Hill Public Health Center (York County)
  1070 Heckle Blvd; Rock Hill, S.C. 29732

* - All new doses are 65mg KI tablets. The doses are for emergency workers and the general public. Previous doses with the November 2007 expiration date are 130mg KI tablets.

For additional information about KI and how you can protect yourself from harmful radiation, call your county public health department or the Nuclear Response and Emergency Environmental Surveillance Section at 1-800-476-9677. You can also find information at http://www.scdhec.gov.