Are buildings prepared against bio-terrorism?

Sep 19, 2006 3:02 PM

The anthrax-laden envelopes sent to the American Media Building and the Hart Senate Building in 2001 demonstrated that biological weapons are not only a viable means of inflicting casualties on U.S. soil but also that some groups will not hesitate to use them.
Those envelopes produced five deaths and 13 infections. How vulnerable are U.S. buildings to the bio-threat today? According to a report by Universal Detection Technology, a combination of technology and government awareness can keep the threat at bay, but building owners and managers should be aware of the potential for disaster.
"Federal and state governments must employ high-tech equipment and technologies to monitor ports, airports, mail facilities and courier services," the report says. "The goal is to detect and identify bio-terror agents before they even enter the country."
The report goes on to say that hospitals and emergency rooms need to draft protocols for treatment of victims during such a crisis and they must educate personnel on the necessary protocols.
The first targets of the anthrax attacks of 2001 were two buildings: one commercial and the other government. Despite the evident threat, the only places where early anthrax detection systems have been deployed are main mail sorting facilities belonging to the U.S. Postal Service.
"Most buildings are not equipped to deal with biological attacks, and terrorism insurance policies do not provide sufficient, if any, coverage," the report says. "The cost of adoption and implementation of technologies and procedures for early detection of biological weapons is miniscule compared to the liability, loss of life and business interruption that would result from an unnoticed attack. An anthrax attack, if gone unnoticed, will result in long periods of closure for the building and will result in many deaths. On the other hand, if anthrax is detected early and if medical aid is delivered early and administered effectively, not only casualties can potentially be eliminated but also decontamination can be completed more rapidly."

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