Terrorism is the use of fear, intimidation or violence
by a person or a group, to further their agenda which
is often political, social or religious in nature.
The principle area of concern by counter-terrorism
emergency planners is the use of a weapon of mass
destruction (WMD). A WMD could be made by using chemical,
biological, radiological or explosive materials.
International terrorist groups receive a lot of national
news coverage however they are not our only concern.
There are numerous homegrown hate groups as well as
political, environmental and religious extremists
who could be considering using a WMD (i.e. Oklahoma
City bombing). Many of these groups are located or
have ties to Pennsylvania.
Apathy is a dangerous attitude when it comes to
disaster planning. People who think that it will never
happen here or to them are setting themselves to be
"victims".
Panic occurs when a person lets fear overwhelm them
to the point of becoming mentally paralyzed. When
this happens a person usually becomes part of the
problem, not the solution.
Citizens, should remain vigilant and always aware
of their surroundings. If something occurs that raises
suspicion report it to the proper authority to be
investigated.
When an act of terrorism does occur it immediately
becomes a local problem requiring a local response.
If the event exceeds the capability of local people
to handle, assistance from the county can be requested.
However if state assistance is also required it may
take four hours for resources to begin to arrive and
federal resources will take at least eight hours.
Preparation for a WMD incident share many of the
same characteristics as preparation for any natural
and technological disaster such as the need for:
- Families to have an emergency plan in place with all members familar with its content.
- Consider taking a Red Cross first aid and CPR
class.
- Consider taking a Citizens Emergency Response
Training (CERT) course offered by your County EMA.
This course gives a basic understanding of emergency
scene size-up, triage, first aid, basic firefighting
a rescue techniques and stress management. These
skills may be necessary for individuals if a large
scale event were to occur and emergency services
were overwhelmed and their response was delayed.
- Prepare an emergency survival kit for your home.
- Prepare an emergency kit for you vehicle.
- Prepare an evacuation kit.
- Understand the protective action concepts of "shelter"
& "evacuation".
- Know that the Emergency Alert System (EAS) is
the way officials will pass on important information
to the public via radio or tv.
