October 16, 2006 NOTE TO EDITORS: During this siren test, a Southern California Edison (SCE) spokesperson will be available for interviews from 9:30 a.m. until 11 a.m. in the San Clemente Municipal Parking Lot on Del Mar Street above the San Clemente Municipal Fishing Pier.

SAN CLEMENTE, Calif.,—The annual test of the community alert siren system operated by the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS) will be conducted Wednesday, Oct.18, 2006, by Southern California Edison; California Park Service; Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton; the cities of Dana Point, San Clemente, San Juan Capistrano; and Orange and San Diego counties.

Between 10 a.m. and noon, 51 community alert sirens located within the 10-mile emergency planning zone will be sounded several times for approximately 3 minutes each time.

Flyers and other educational materials announcing the scheduled test are being distributed to inform residents, businesses, and schools located within 10 miles of SONGS.  Before and during the Oct. 18 siren test, broadcasts on the primary Emergency Alert System (EAS) radio station in Orange County, KWVE 107.9, will state: "This is only a test.” 

Community alert siren tests are required by federal regulations and would be used in the unlikely event of an emergency at the nuclear plant.  They are intended to alert residents to turn on their radios or televisions and await emergency instructions that would be aired over the EAS. 

Additional emergency response information can be found in the south Orange County and north San Diego County coastal ATT telephone directory customer guide White Pages.  The community alert siren system also can be used by local governments to inform residents of other non-nuclear emergency conditions.

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An Edison International (NYSE:EIX) company, Southern California Edison is one of the nation’s largest electric utilities, serving a population of more than 13 million via 4.7 million customer accounts in a 50,000-square-mile service area within central, coastal and Southern California.  Located in northern San Diego County, SONGS is operated by SCE and jointly owned by San Diego Gas & Electric (20%), the cities of Anaheim and Riverside (5%) and SCE (75%).  The two reactors produce more than 2,200 megawatts of electricity - enough power for 1.4 million homes and businesses.