NCJ Number
201689
Journal
Security Management Volume: 47 Issue: 7 Dated: July 2003 Pages: 16,18,20
Date Published
July 2003
Length
3 pages
Annotation
This article discusses security responses that address the possibility that a terrorist attack may involve two bombs, one that drives residents out of a building and a second that explodes outside the building near a likely evacuation spot; also discussed are security procedures for water utility facilities.
Abstract
Since a number of recent terrorist attacks -- notably one in Bali, Indonesia last October and one in Beirut, Lebanon last April -- have used secondary explosive devices outside of a building after a first explosive device has been set off inside a building, first responders and security planners must take into account such a scenario in their security procedures. First responders thus have three primary responsibilities at a disaster site: attending to the wounded, dispersing the crowd, and finding a second bomb. Teams should search for a second bomb by working in concentric circles outward from the location of those wounded from the first blast. If personnel resources allow, another team should concurrently identify likely high-threat second-bomb containers outside these circles. Double-bomb emergency protocol should be in place at all work sites. In order to limit the concentration of evacuees from a building in one place outside the building, multiple evacuation sites should be used; and if possible, the evacuation sites should not be easily accessible to passersby or public traffic. Regarding the security of water utilities against terrorist attack, the focus should be on the prevention of poisoning or tainting of water sources by terrorists. The Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act, enacted by Congress last year, mandates certain security actions, including a vulnerability assessment and the development or revision of an emergency plan based on the assessment.