TERRORISM and LAUSD

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TERRORISM and LAUSD

• Los Angeles Unified School District
• Office of Environmental Health and Safety
• Robert Kamm

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What is Terrorism?

• The unlawful use of force or violence against
• persons or property to intimidate or coerce a
• government, the civilian population, or any
• segment thereof, in furtherance of political
• and social objectives (FBI).

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Foreign Terrorist Organizations

• The US State Department lists 38 groups as
  Foreign Terrorist Organizations.
• 50 of the groups are Islamist.
• www.state.gov

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Prominent Foreign Terrorist Groups

• Al Qaida
• HAMAS
• Hizbollah
• Jemaah Islamiya (JI)
• Palestine Islamic Jihad
• Revolutionary Armed Forces of Columbia (FARC)
• Real IRA

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Domestic Terrorist Groups

• Right-Wing
• Left-Wing
• Anarchist
• Single Issue

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Madrid March 11, 2004
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Terrorism is Here in Los Angeles!
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Special Interest Groups

• ELF
• ALF
• Anti-Abortion

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What are the threats?

• HAZ MAT
• Chemical
• Biological
• Radiological
• Nuclear
• Bombings
• Suicide
• Vehicle
• Cyber Attack
• Lack of services

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Weapons of Mass Destruction
Biological
Chemical
Nuclear
Radiological
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FBI Threat Spectrum
PROBABILITY OF EVENT
Bio Toxins
Industrial Chemicals
Pathogens
Radioisotopes
Chemical Weapons
Nuclear Weapons
EVENT CONSEQUENCES
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Biological Terrorism Use of biological agents or
toxins to intentionally produce illness in a
susceptible population

• Biological agents easy to obtain, produce
  distribute
• Difficult to detect (invisible, odorless
  delayed onset)
• Can cause mass casualties at low cost
• Potential wide-spread panic / social disruption

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Biological Agents Disease
variola major Smallpox bacillus anthracis
Anthrax yersinia pestis Plague
clostridium botulinum Botulism francisella
tularensis Tularemia Ebola virus Viral
hemorrhagic fevers
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Why Worry About Bioterrorism?
Nations believed to have bio-weapons capabilities
Iraq Iran Libya Syria North Korea South Korea
Taiwan Israel Egypt Vietnam Laos Cuba
Bulgaria India South Africa China Russia
Iraq Russia have large-scale offensive programs
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History of Biowarfaire
1346 - Tartar forces besieging Kaffa catapulted
plague-contaminated corpses over city
walls French and Indian War - British gave
smallpox-laden blankets to Native Americans In
WWI - German agents used anthrax and to infect
livestock and feed for export to allied
forces 1972 - Biological Weapons Treaty ratified
by 140 nations
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Recent Acts of Bioterrorism
2001 - Anthrax incidents following 9/11 1998 -
Nation-wide anthrax hoaxes 1996 -
Shigella-contaminated muffins in Dallas 1994 -
Sarin gas attacks in Tokyo 1991 - Ricin toxin
produced Minnesota 1985 - Cyanide in pickles in
Los Angeles 1984 - Salmonella sprayed on salad
bars in Oregon
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Routes of Exposure

• Inhalation
• Dermal absorption
• Ingestion
• Injection

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Inhalation or Dermal Absorption of Aerosols

• Most likely route for Bio-Terrorism
• Aerosols of most agents produce disease
• Objective is to generate respirable size
  particles
• 0.5 - 10 microns
• remain suspended for long periods
• can reach the alveoli

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Cooperative Efforts in Los Angeles

• LAPD
• LA Sheriff
• Fire/Health Haz-Mat
• FBI
• Terrorism Early Warning Group (TEWG)
• Archangel
• Center for Disease Control (CDC)

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OEHS LAUSD Preparedness

• Education
• Safety Alerts
• Standard Emergency Procedures Safe School Plan
• Safe Schools Inspection Guidebook
• Routine School Safety Inspections
• Drills and Exercises
• Assignment of Duty Officer
• Routine District briefings consultation with
  agencies

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Safe School Plan Vol. 2 Emergency Procedures

• Animal Disturbance
• Armed Assault on campus
• Biological or Chemical Release
• Bomb Threat
• Bus Disaster
• Earthquake
• Explosion or Risk of Explosion

• Fire in Surrounding area
• Fire on School Grounds
• Flooding
• Loss or Failure of Utilities
• Motor Vehicle Crash
• Psychological Trauma
• Suspected Contamination of Food or Water

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Emergency Operations Center
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LAUSD EOC Systems

• 200 KW diesel generator supports EOC and all
  critical communications
• Uninterruptible power supply (UPS) for all data
  and communications
• 14 generic work stations. Supports all 5
  functions of SEMS and ICS
• Multiple fax machines and blast faxing

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LAUSD EOC Systems (cont)

• Direct Email to EOC for situation updates and
  damage assessments
• 3 separate data networks to ensure redundancy
  (LASPD LAUSD LACity)
• Stand alone heating and ventilation system (HVAC)
• Desktop radio communications consuls for LASPD,
  Transportation Emergency Operations

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LAUSD EOC Systems (cont)

• 14 hand held portable radios for emergency
  operations
• Multiple portable cell phone kits for response to
  incidents or command post
• Amateur radio communications (HAM)
• Multiple media monitoring systems
• 14 standalone telephone systems
• User accounts with LA County EOC, EMIS and LA
  City EOC, Web EOC

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Simulator and Training
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What Can I Do?

• Be Aware
• Suspicious persons
• Suspicious activities
• Be Prepared
• Emergency supplies
• Family communications plan
• Shelter in place
• Get away plan
• Plans for school or work
• Be Informed

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References

• WWW.READY.GOV
• U.S. State Department
• Red Cross