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In the wake of the terrorist events which struck our nation on September 11th, many Moore residents are concerned about international terrorism and how the City has prepared for a potential terrorist attack.
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National Terrorism Alert Level:
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Oklahoma Terrorism Alert Level:
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Personal Preparation |
| Much has been said of late concerning the individual's role in preparing for terrorist attacks.
These precautions are simply good personal planning, and these measures have always been advocated by emergency preparedness personnel. Not only may these measures be suggested during biological or chemical terrorist attack, but they also are essential during the far more likely event of a severe weather incident or (non-terrorist related) hazardous materials spill.
Rather than duplicate information from other sources, we advocate the measures listed by the American Red Cross. These may be found at
http://www.redcross.org/services/disaster/keepsafe/unexpected.html.
Another source of information concerning personal preparedness is
http://www.ready.gov.
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Water Supply |
The City's water production personnel have evaluated the threat to our local water supply. Their conclusion is that the threat to our system is very low:
- The decentralized type of water system that
we operate does not lend itself to successful biological or
chemical attack;
- We have increased the physical security of
each of our sites;
- Water systems in general are difficult to
successfully attack due to the tremendous amount of pollutant
that would be necessary (the pollutant very quickly dilutes in
the amount of water flowed).
Our water system has also been inspected by the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality for potential threats, with only a few very minor problems found.
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Biological Agents |
| There has been a lot of publicity about biological attacks of individuals, particularly high-profile national news anchors and certain Senate and House of Representatives leaders. Indeed, our City's police and fire personnel have responded on numerous calls of individuals who believed that they perhaps had been the victim of an attack.
First, there have been NO instances of anthrax or other biological terrorism found in Oklahoma. The Public Health Laboratory of the Oklahoma State Dept. of Health has tested nearly 800 environmental samples for the presence of anthrax or other biologic agents. All have tested negative for biologic contamination.
Second, it is very difficult in general to cultivate "weapons grade" anthrax or other biological agents, and even more difficult to spread them, particularly in the amounts necessary to affect a large amount of the population. For example, "...the oft-discussed basement terrorist would labor roughly two years to make enought sarin to kill five hundred outdoors and another eighteen years to produce the ton of sarin required to kill ten thousand." (Ataxia: The Chemical and Biological Terrorism Threat and the US Response, Otober 2000. Dr. Amy E. Smithson, The Stimson Center) Therefore, we find it very unlikely that individual Oklahomans (perhaps beyond national high-profile targets) would be targeted to receive biological terrorism.
Finally, there are some precautions that persons can take with their mail. Information about how to recognize and handle a suspicious package or envelope can be found at this page of the
Centers for Disease Control.
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Schools |
| Domestic terrorism, with events such as have occurred at schools in Mississippi, Colorado and Oregon is always a threat in our City. Our schools have taken efforts to increase their physical security, have developed crisis response plans with the City's public-safety responders, and participate in statewide safe school programs.
The Moore Police Department has also planned and prepared for this type of event, including holding practice sessions at our various schools and training with school personnel. Of course, this planning and preparation also serves as a base for response to similar events outside of school grounds.
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Overall Public Safety Preparedness |
| We always maintain vigilance in all areas of emergency management, in all of our public safety departments. We are constantly training, preparing, planning, and monitoring our departments and community for all forms of emergencies - including terrorism.
Since the events of September 11, 2001, many of our leaders have undergone additional training concerning specific threats. We have also revised and updated the Terrorism Annex to our City's Emergency Operations Plan.
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Personal Preparedness |
| What steps residents can take to prepare themselves against terrorist attack? We believe that the best stance that can be taken is to maintain normal personal emergency preparedness.
Situational awareness is the first key to personal preparedness. This means being aware of the environment around you;
Calmness is the next key. Should an emergency arise, perhaps the best first defense is to exhibit calm, rational thinking and action in the event of emergency.
Create a family disaster plan. This includes:
- Establishing emergency points of contact for all family members. As local communications can sometimes be very difficult during a disaster, this should include an out-of-state contact.
- Maintaining a disaster supplies kit, including a day or two's supply of food and water.
Additional help with this can be found in a recently released
American Red Cross brochure, or at
http://www.ready.gov.
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Helpful Links |
| Here are a few links to sites with additional information on terrorism, and agencies with terrorism preparedness responsibility.
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Questions? |
| Please contact the City of Moore
Emergency Management Department
should you have questions or would like more information on
terrorism preparedness. Our office is in City Hall at 301 N.
Broadway, and our office hours are Monday-Friday, 8am-5pm. It's
always wise to call us at 793-5062 before coming though, as we
are on 24-hour call for emergency response, and we also
occasionally work in the field, attend training, etc. |
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