Anti-terrorist training being conducted at MSU
By TOM BERRY
Staff Writer
Emergency response personnel from Calloway and other Purchase area counties are training this week at Murray State University to sharpen their skills in dealing with potential radiological threats that could be produced as the result of a natural or man-made disaster.
County Emergency Management Director Jeff Steen said Monday that drills under the supervision of federal nuclear response team from Nevada would kick off today at MSU's Industry and Technology Building and continue through Friday.
The drills will focus on providing a coordinated response to a terrorist dirty bomb, a leak of radiological contamination during a natural disaster or similar circumstance where nuclear radiation could become a threat to the public.
“One of the reasons we're concentrating on a radiological threat is because of the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion plant in Paducah and a few other sites in our area that could become a threat; even the possibility of a terrorist dirty bomb or something of that nature,” Steen said. “A group from Nevada-Las Vegas will be here to train any of our emergency responders that want to get involved in that.”
A natural disaster, such as a significant New Madrid earthquake, could cause leaks presenting a radiological threat that would require a fast, concerted response. Any man-made threat could result from use of a “dirty bomb.” A dirty bomb is created by packing conventional explosives with nuclear material, such as power plant waste, that does not result in a nuclear explosion, but does contaminate the area of the blast with radiological contamination.
The training will involve local police, firefighters, paramedics and other medical and emergency response personnel.
Monday night, emergency response personnel from eight counties that form the state's HAZMAT (hazardous materials) One area board of directors in western Kentucky conducted communications drills with assistance from the state's Homeland Security Office HAZMAT One Team.
Mark Garland, a researcher with a program funded by the Department for Homeland Security at MSU, said communications between participating emergency responders is essential in dealing with any crisis situation and repeated practice and the capability of communicating quickly and easily is essential.
“We train once a month and we usually go over whatever we have and lately we've been going over our equipment. Tonight we'll be working with our radios,” Garland said as he demonstrated the use of HAZMAT Ones central communications rig located inside a large mobile trailer; one of two operated by the agency.
Garland explained that the mobile HAZMAT Team has the capability to tie together UHF and VHF radio communications used by law enforcement and other crisis response personnel enabling them to communicate with one another even if the capability is not available locally.
“Murray has inter-operable radios so the police and sheriff's department can talk to each other, but some areas do not so they can't talk to each other,” Garland said. “With this equipment we can go into an area and do that ourselves. Whether we travel anywhere inside the state or even outside the state we'll be able to talk to the locals.”
HAZMAT One area emergency personnel are expected to remain in Murray today to take part in the radiological training.
Story created Jul 24, 2007 - 11:07:11 EDT.
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