Posted on 11/09/2009 8:00:55 AM PST by TaraP
LAKE IN THE HILLS – Citizens infected with a fictitious pneumonic plague will line up outside Lincoln Prairie Elementary School on Saturday to help test the site as a medication dispensary in case of an emergency.
The Lake in the Hills Police Department is carrying out the test as part of a grant from the McHenry County Department of Health for its emergency health plan. In case of a biological terrorist attack or widespread disease outbreak, the site would be able get medicine to the community, Lake in the Hills Chief of Patrol Services David Brey said.
“This is just a functional test of the site,” he said.
The event will use volunteers pretending to have been stricken by the plague to help test the flow of the site, from initial triage through receiving proof of being medicated.
“We picked the plague on purpose so it would have nothing to do with the swine flu,” Brey said.
The test will start at 9 a.m. Saturday at Lincoln Prairie, 500 Harvest Gate, across from Lake in the Hills Village Hall.
After they line up will all the students be told that Islam is definitely NOT to blame?
October 21st, 2009
Smallpox, botulism and the bubonic plague struck Cape Coral Tuesday - all part of a training exercise to help local fire and EMS crews learn how to deal with biological attacks.
The Emergency Medicine Learning and Resource Center’s mobile simulation lab brought together Cape fire and Lee County EMS personnel at the old public safety building, putting the first responders through intense drills to help them recognize uncommon afflictions that could be the result of terrorist attacks
http://www.cape-coral-daily-breeze.com/page/content.detail/id/511458.html?nav=5011
Considering the fear that the ‘swine flu’ in the Ukraine is actually the pnuemonic plague, this is a little eery.
I know that docs have said “no no no, it’s swine flu that’s killed dozens of people out of the blue’, but still. I don’t like the idea of it. Once you show symptoms, you are pretty much screwed.
Santee Cooper to hold terror drill
Monday, November 9, 2009
MONCKS CORNER — Santee Cooper will test its law enforcement and security response and action plan for the Pinopolis Dam at 8:30 a.m. Tuesday during a drill involving a fake terrorist strike.
Santee Cooper to hold terror drill
Monday, November 9, 2009
MONCKS CORNER — Santee Cooper will test its law enforcement and security response and action plan for the Pinopolis Dam at 8:30 a.m. Tuesday during a drill involving a fake terrorist strike.
The incident is meant to evaluate response and communication regarding a major incident at the dam.
Participating agencies include the Berkeley County Sheriffs Office, State Law Enforcement Division, Joint Terrorism Task Force, Moncks Corner Police Department, S.C. Department of Natural Resources, S.C. Highway Patrol, Berkeley County Emergency Management, Moncks Corner Rural Fire Department and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
Sounds like a repeat of the “duck and cover” stuff from the early 60’s; and just about as useful!
I know- Wonder what is really going on in the Ukraine...
Here is this from Nov 7th..
Ukraine: Influenza or Pneumonic Plague?
Ukrainian News Agency “Fraza” reported that, according to informed sources, “it has been confirmed 100 % Pneumonic Plague in Ukraine”.
http://www.nowpublic.com/world/ukraine-influenza-or-pneumonic-plague
The Agency asserts that “the head physician of the medical institutions has sent out an informal disposal - not to sow panic, to refute the information about the plague, and to speak only of swine influenza”.
According to the “Fraza” agency, “today in Ukraine pneumonic plague is going in parallel with swine flu. The plague has killed over 60 people, and about 14 from the flu.
Next week, the “duck under the desk atomic bomb” drill
IMO- The condition of the world, anything is possible especially if it’s strange, bizarre and un-american...
SANTA FE, N.M., June 5 (UPI) -- An 8-year-old boy from Santa Fe County, N.M., has died from the bubonic plague and his 10-year-old sister is undergoing treatment, health officials say.The New Mexico Department of Health says these are the first human plague cases this year in the United States. New Mexico's last plague death was in Bernalillo County, which includes Albuquerque, in 2007.
In the latest case, the boy, whose name was withheld, died within the past few days, Deborah Busemeyer, health department communications director, told the Albuquerque Journal.
Bubonic plague is not contagious, Busemeyer said, but rather a bacterial disease of rodents generally transmitted to humans through the bites of infected fleas. But, she said, it can also be transmitted by direct contact with infected animals, including pets, rodents and wildlife.
(FR pet peeve: Local stories without identifying state. You can check the state as a topic in the news forum or add it as a keyword in the others. Due to interest in the topic, I looked up the source and added Illinois to the list.)
PING - Curious that this is just a test over here while the Ukranian news reports that pneumonic plague is running rampant over there.
Also, keep up with other H1N1 update stories on this thread: H1N1 flu victim collapsed on way to hospital [Latest H1N1 updates downthread] thanks to DvdMom and others.
Mock drills like this one serve the purpose of conditioning the citizenry and have become an everyday sort of adopting to our changing social climate; from reality TV shows like COPS and dramatic raw reenactments of justice-based shows like Law and Order to cameras on every street corner and inside every shop.
We feel the heavy presence of impending doom and the soft-gloved hand of the omnipresent and all-powerful government poised overhead to snatch us from our nests and cast us all about.
The hot breath of oppression blows away the comforting cool breezes of freedom sinking slowly under the shifting sands of reason, in search of the shelter of inaction.
And so, we slink and sulk, sucking in the darkness that smothers our will as we await the passing of the lumbering hulk with soot-covered faces toward the inky sky — and dream a new day will bring relief, rushing in upon the puff of a freshly-washed spring morning made brilliant by the cleansing dawn.
I've participated in more than one of these exercises. They do have their uses. Remember the anthrax debacle after 9-11?
This is one thing I expect Government to take damned seriously. If they don't practice the plan, how are they supposed to find the flaws in it?
Biological, curious that is; what are the capture, containment procedures involved or detection, confirmation protocols?
Are these exercices disruptive or subtle?
Have you noticed any residual character/role-model changes among participants?
Value?
The exercises that I've helped to plan and carry out involved the distribution of prophylactic medications and the assumption was that the agent had already been identified. My part started after the bio-alarms had been sounded. So I'm afraid I can't give you much information about that. Sorry.
I can tell you that there are some rather sophisticated monitoring devices already in place which can make an initial identification. Once that happens things move pretty fast.
Are these exercices disruptive or subtle?
The ones I was involved in I wouldn't say were 'disruptive' nor were they 'subtle'. My County has a cadre of trained 'professional victims' who are put in place (almost 100 in the exercises I was involved in) were thoroughly briefed on the scenario.
Representatives from the Feds, State, and local governments are on hand, exercise 'controllers' and evaluators are on hand to critique things, cops, firemen, OEM types, and the press was informed. It's kind of hard to keep that quiet.
Two major Postal facilities were involved albeit on a Sunday when they were normally closed.
Have you noticed any residual character/role-model changes among participants?
Not really. As I said I've been involved in several aspects from planning and execution to a participant and have had a fairly unique opportunity to evaluate it from several angles.
Value?
I'd say they're worth the time and effort. I'd rather they have some sort of plan that had actually been exercised a few times so at least we've got something that we know is workable in the event of a bio-event. Were they perfect? Nope. Did they need some tweaking? Absolutely.
But that's the point of exercises. You formulate a plan, then you exercise it to see what does and doesn't work, then you refine the plan, then you exercise it, and the cycle repeats.
Let me know if you'd like to know anything more. I'll give you what information I can.
Best,
L
Much better on-the-ground type exposition than that which emanates from the mass-media mouthwash mishmash usually thrown out there every morning.
It does distress one to think we may wake up one morning and find ourselves trapped within our doors and not even know how or why.
It has always struck me that one of the great efficacies of terrorism is the silent but omnipresent threat instilled through relentless intimidation and the enervation that often results.
In the end, terror is a crippling emotion.
How does one avoid encouraging the terrorist when practicing public preparations for reaction to such perceived threats?
I'm pleased to be of service to you, sir.
It does distress one to think we may wake up one morning and find ourselves trapped within our doors and not even know how or why.
Let me just say that if you're ever in a major Postal distribution hub and an alarm sounds and the doors are locked with you inside just relax. The procedures are pretty well practiced (at least in my area) and you're in for a bit of a wait followed by a long refreshing cold shower (one of the problems we repeatedly identified btw), a free Tyvex suit, and some complimentary prophylactic meds. They may even throw in a box lunch. If the folks running things are any good you'll be out in less than 4 or 5 hours.
Not bad, considering.
It has always struck me that one of the great efficacies of terrorism is the silent but omnipresent threat instilled through relentless intimidation and the enervation that often results.
Most perceptive of you. The reason I got involved first as a 'trained victim' and then an OEM type was to learn the procedures from the inside so to speak. Knowledge is power after all. If something happens I know the protocols and procedures as well as the lingo. I've even got some snappy ID cards which may help to open a few doors.
If you're so inclined I'd recommend you look up your local Citizens Corps Council and get involved. You'll be suprised at some of the folks you'll meet. I've been involved in exercise planning and execution, participating as a 'controller' and as a 'victim'. You'll learn a lot, meet some other like-minded folks, and gain some valuable information IMO. You may find it a worthwhile use of your time.
How does one avoid encouraging the terrorist when practicing public preparations for reaction to such perceived threats?
There's the rub and it's a difficult problem to deal with. One wants to be well practiced and have the publics cooperation. One also wants the 'public' to see that 'something' is being done but this opens the process up to prying eyes you might not necessarily want looking in.
But the plans must be in place and they must be practiced regularly or their just words on paper. It's one of the prices we pay for living in a relatively open society I'm afraid.
Once again I'm pleased to be able to pass along what I hope to be some useful information.
L
Oddly, this reminds of a droll old joke about a professor who teaches a frog to jump on command.
Curious, the professor cuts off one leg and commands the frog to jump.
Hop hop.
The second leg is removed.
“Jump!”
HOP hop.
No. 3.
“Jump,?”
HOp.
One more slice.
“JUMP!!!!”
“JUMPP!!!!!”
Writing furiously, the grizzled old professor scribbles, “It has been shown, that by diligent and deliberate successive amputation that the removal of all of an amphibian’s limbs conclusively results in a state of total deafness.”
Also, keep up with other H1N1 update stories on this thread: H1N1 flu victim collapsed on way to hospital [Latest H1N1 updates downthread] thanks to DvdMom and others.
Looks like someone is thinking the Ukraine was hit with a biological weapon or two.
Thanks for the ping!
“Bring out your dead!”
“But I’m not dead yet!”
Blame San Francisco.
In the 1850’s there was a small plague outbreak in San Francisco’s Chinatown. A doctor detected this outbreak in plenty of time to contain an eradicate it. He proposed a public health exercise to do just that.
The city fathers insisted that there was no plague in their fair city, and not only blocked any efforts to contain the outbreak, but tried to ruin the doctor’s reputation.
They delayed the response long enough to allow plague to spread to the local ground squirrel population, and escape to infect the country side.
Any parallels to a more recent “gay plague” are left to the reader as an exercise...
Off topic ping to post #14, simply because it’s superb.
Good one, Prof.
Agreed.
But a drill can have more than one purpose. While recognizing the necessity of being prepared, sometimes I can’t help but wonder just exactly what we are being prepared for.
The possibility of a terrorist attack, or the near certainty of an oppressive and all over-reaching government?
Different Germany.
History repeats somehow.
Different Germany.
Afraid to know you now.
...
Who turned the clock? (Moved on or back)
and what dark chill
is gathering still
before the storm.
Will do.
I certainly can't speak to 'high level' motives for these things, but I can tell you that on the ground these things were done for only one reason and that was to save lives and mitigage as far as possible economic and property damage.
I didn't like a lot of what I saw, and by that I mean standard government worker incompetence, bureaucratic infighting and turf wars, and the usual obscene waste of taxpayer monies. Those are largely the reasons I'm back in the private sector.
I never once heard or even suspected that there was any kind of 'conditioning' of the public going on for any nefarious purpose. Had that occured I would have shouted it from the rooftops.
Best,
L
I disagree. For the general public, this is educational, and for the workers and their supervisors/managers who would carry out the tasks in a real emergency, this is a chance to identify serious gaps in the system before a real emergency arises.
A friend of mine participated in one of these during medical school, at a hospital emergency room (it was done simultaneously at several emergency rooms around the city). It exposed some mind-boggling incompetence on the part of certain staffers who were supposed to be acting in a supervisory/management capacity, major gaps in the communication chain (took over half and hour for the supervisor to reach someone with authority to call off the drill, but at least that person got wind that the reason the drill needed to be called off was the combination of incompetence and concrete unpreparedness of the staff and facility). One of the specific concrete problems was that there were only a handful of chemical hazard suits and nobody seemed to know who should don them, and who should retreat out of the hazard area for lack of suits — not that it mattered much, since the oxygen supply that accompanied the long-stored suits was so low that anybody wearing them would have run out of oxygen in about 5 minutes (my friend had the pleasure of pointing this out to the suited supervisor, who had been oblivious to this and many other issues).
ONE of the several hospitals participating in the drill was found to have performed competently, and that fact was well-publicized with the medical/emergency management community, neutralizing the “impossible” excuse that the other hospitals tried to use. This was a realistic drill, involving a very plausible toxic gas scenario that could have resulted from either an industrial accident or terrorism.
When you compare drills like the one described in this article, with the routine nuclear attack drills that schoolchildren were put through in the 1960s, this pales by comparison, as far a “conditioning the citizenry” effect or intent is concerned.
True that. Duck-and-cover was an especially real drill for me. Marine Corps brat, in an elementary school, on the base, in the south east, during the Cuban missile crisis...
Or you could pick a small responsible group, figure out a simple, reliable way for them to contact each other, develop evacuation and other response plans, then give out simple instructions and herd up the rest in a real emergency.
It exposed some mind-boggling incompetence on the part of certain staffers who were supposed to be acting in a supervisory/management capacity, major gaps in the communication chain
It is pretty easy to tell who the mind-boggling incompetents are ahead of time and take them out of the process. It is also easy to establish communications protocols and structure ahead of time that is 100% reliable.
since the oxygen supply that accompanied the long-stored suits was so low
No drill needed to establish monthly checks or whatever procedures are needed. All your drills accomplish is an inefficient way to identify some obvious problems plus the obvious incompetence and second, give the incompetents even more control and a false sense of confidence.
You must not listen to the news. On the news radio station here it is non-stop flu crisis and where to run out to wait fruitlessly in line each day. I wrote an email complaining about their narrow perspective and they answered and agreed with every point I made.
I remember the women in my house going about drawing the shades each night before the lights were lit and later on the ones in my classroom hunkered down under children’s desks as we kids were shown the duck-and-cover move; even as a child they made me feel like a frightened girl but as a boy, I had to laugh it off.
I was struck numb one day when I was but five; while rushing home from the corner store in a sudden, driving rain, lightning hit a pole nearby and flung me to the ground.
For years I cowered, sometimes under the bed until 14 years later, I joined the USAF and became a weather technician — from that day forward, I stood among the flashes and sucked all the fear inside, or so I thought.
I no longer fear the raids or the shockwaves of the bomb nor the burning currents of Thor’s great barbs; government is becoming the smothering hand of comfort come to tie us to our beds.
Your opinion flies in the face of about 3,000 years worth of military experience. By your logic the only people in the Marine Corps who need to be trained are the officers and non-coms.
It is also easy to establish communications protocols and structure ahead of time that is 100% reliable.
I'm in the Communications industry. Nothing is 100% reliable. Nothing.
The best you can hope for is the vaunted "5 9's" and that's a very, very pricey proposition in any large organization.
L
Warfare has gone through 3 or 4 generations in that time and more are on the way.
By your logic the only people in the Marine Corps who need to be trained are the officers and non-coms
I didn't imply no training, just no disaster drills. To use a recent example, a drill with a mock shooter on a base would be dangerous and useless. But training (range time and carry classes) for every responsible adult makes sense.
I'm going to try to be kind here, but really this is about as dumb a statement as I've ever seen posted here. No Fire Drills in schools? No Tornado Drills in schools?
No Disaster Drills for Fire Departments? Why don't you drop by your local Fire Department, ask to see the Chief and run your opinion by him. When he's done laughing at you ask him to explain to you the value of drilling his people.
I don't know what you do for a living but I hope to God it has nothing to do with Public Safety.
They're called "exercises" for a reason. A skill, ANY skill btw, is lost by both individuals AND organizations if it's not regularly exercised.
If you think you can come up with a plan, run 3 or 4 people through it, and then stick it in a filing cabinet and expect it to work with the **** hits the fan you're worse than crazy.
L
If you think you can come up with a plan, run 3 or 4 people through it, and then stick it in a filing cabinet and expect it to work with the **** hits the fan you're worse than crazy
That's not what I said above. I said that the disaster team prepares for the predictable disasters, then organizes their communications and command structure so they can respond to new circumstances. Involving the crowds and the incompetent managers, as was documented in Gov Shrinker's post, accomplishes nothing. But it does produce a certain unease in the air.
You don't read very well. Scroll back on up the thread for a clue as to what I do and a small amount about my background.
The primary reason for drills is discipline of the forces which is inapplicable to civilians.
Ever hear of a "Fire Drill"? How about a "Tornado Drill"? No value in training kids how to secure themselves during a hazardous weather event? No value in training kids how to safely exit a building during a fire?
What kind of nutball are you?
I said that the disaster team prepares for the predictable disasters, then organizes their communications and command structure so they can respond to new circumstances.
And I say that your advice would get people killed in a disaster situation. Ever hear of a little event called "9-11"? Go ask some of the folks who survived it, particularly the ones who drilled under John O'Neill if there's no value in them.
Involving the crowds and the incompetent managers, as was documented in Gov Shrinker's post, accomplishes nothing.
Actually it does. It (now follow along closely here) exposes the incompetence so it can be dealt with. Ever think of that?
Obviously not.
I hope to God you're never in charge of any organization larger than 2 people. You're way of thinking will get people killed.
In fact if your advice were followed and someone was injured they'd be able to sue your Company into bankruptcy for willful negligence. I'd be happy to testify for the Plaintiff in fact.
L
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_P._O%27Neill
Drills? Don't see any evidence of drills. Someone is obsessed with drills and it isn't me.
I hope to God you're never in charge of any organization larger than 2 people. You're way of thinking will get people killed.
Do forest fires count? I help in my HOA to prevent them. We don't drill, we prevent. Does working in a tall building terrorist target count? I am an emergency responder in my company. We have fire drills, those are required by the county. But much more important than those are the training for medical response and fire response. Unfortunately we have no training for a terrorist incident, nor can we drill for explosions, collapse, gases, etc.
We could certainly do more preparation, I would love to have some equipment or some other way to survive. But I have marched down the stairwells enough times to know how useless that is going to be.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.