Wednesday, October 31, 2001
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Wednesday, October 31, 2001 |
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Homefront 'army' vs. new enemy Chief: 'We're spending a lot of time running around on white powder calls' By SALLIE SATTERTHWAITE
Public safety workers police, fire and emergency medical services have become by default the army on the battlefield at home, said Billy Watson, Georgia Department of Human Resources coordinator for District 4 emergency medical services, addressing Peachtree City public safety workers and city officials last week with the latest updates on bioterrorism. "The military has gone off to war on the battlefront, leaving us behind to fight the war that has come to us," he said, preparing to identify the enemy. In introducing Watson, Fire Chief Stony Lohr said that information about biological weapons was first offered to public safety responders and has now been expanded to include all health care providers physicians, nurses, hospital and private practice personnel with the overarching advice that they use common sense and good judgment. "We're spending a lot of time running around on white powder calls," Lohr said, "and this is not an overreaction. The world has changed." Watson said the state public health agency put together a packet of information locally, after waiting for "something to come down" from federal sources. It never did. Acknowledging that "we're not experts," Watson said state health researchers collected findings of respected researchers and put them in booklet form for health workers. Watson emphasized the importance of keeping the anthrax attacks in perspective. "The intent of bioterrorism is to put fear into the country. Up to this time [last week] we had nine confirmed cases, and three people have died. Last year thousands of people died of flu, but there were no headlines about that. "The largest known number of anthrax deaths in one location was the 70 people who died in Russia [in 1992] when spores were released accidentally by the military. People are at a far greater risk of death from smoking, not wearing seat belts, and being overweight." Characterizing EMS, fire and police agencies as "the safety net for the public," Watson said he believes it would be a mistake to try to keep information from the public. At the same time, he said, "With biological weapons, one ill-informed comment can cause panic. Be very careful about what is said. "Public safety responders must reassure the public that we're there for them 24/7. We should do nothing to let down the public's perception of the fire department and EMS," Watson said.
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