City working on bioterrorism plan
The city is training its employees, taking stock of its equipment and updating its emergency response plan in the wake of terrorist attacks and recent anthrax scares.
The city on Monday ended a series of seminars to educate employees on safety and security issues related to bioterrorism, said City Manager Dave Palmer.
Juneau also will fly one police officer and one firefighter to Anchorage next month for 40 hours of advanced hazardous materials training to learn more about handling substances such as anthrax, a potentially deadly bacterium.
Capital City Fire and Rescue had hoped to send several people to the class but there was room for only two Juneau representatives, said Fire Chief Mike Doyle.
"It's disappointing, but it's quite understandable," Doyle said. "Right now training is hard to come by because there's such high demand."
The city has purchased protective suits and masks for emergency responders, said Palmer. He also is taking an inventory of city-owned gear and other equipment that may be useful in an attack, and hopes to get a list of state and federal resources that would be available in an emergency.
"It might be oil spill booms, boats, pumps, fans; it could be backhoes," Palmer said.
Public officials at a Juneau bioterrorism symposium last week grappled with the question of who would take charge in Juneau in the event of an attack. At the end of the symposium, attended by Palmer, a U.S. Coast Guard spokesman concluded the answer was not clear.
But Palmer on Monday said in most cases Juneau police would take charge of the initial response, which would be coordinated through the State Emergency Coordination Center in Anchorage.
In the event of a confirmed biological outbreak, such as a smallpox contamination, he said the city would take directives from the state center, which reports to the governor.
"We do have a protocol. We do have a procedure, and it's fairly well coordinated with the state," said Palmer.
The city also is updating its emergency response plan because of the attacks, he said.