Around the nation, they plan, practice and drill.Since Sept. 11, the nation has stood on alert with the realization that any kind of danger can occur at any time. No longer do any Americans ignore the prospect of almost fiction-like scenarios occurring that could kill in ways previously unimagined.
So, emergency agencies everywhere work hard and plan for the unthinkable. Everywhere, that is, except here.
¤ ¤ ¤We all know that one of the world’s most deadly stockpiles of chemical weapons sits stored on a portion of Anniston Army Depot. People in military circles know. People in environmental groups know. And, you can be pretty darn sure that the terrorists do, too.
But take those shoes off for a moment and put on this pair:
The weapons, some of them World War II era, are aging each day into a more serious and threatening state of existence. The Army says it has that under control, but what else would the Army say?
And if those are the ballet shoes, put on these boots:
What about acts of God? I mean, he has been known to do or allow some pretty interesting things over the course of time. Tornadoes, fires, earthquakes, bolts of lightning … any of these could happen on any given day.
Yet, here we sit, still unprepared, as brave crews in the responder ranks remain unprotected and unrehearsed while the decision-makers all point fingers and play the dangerous game of holding hostage our safety.
When will someone be a hero and break the stalemate by providing us a real plan of action should an accident or attack occur today?
¤ ¤ ¤This poor, pathetic lack of planning wouldn’t make a good movie because it is so unbelievable.
Last week, the state Emergency Management Agency said it would not participate in a planned August drill for responders to a chemical weapons disaster because “… we’re not ready to exercise our total plan.”
That’s in large part because the county and federal (FEMA) officials are fighting over money intended for equipment such as respiratory hoods, which some say are useless and more dangerous, and needed protective suits for responders.
The county teaches evacuation despite knowing it can’t possibly work and might actually be more dangerous, and it scoffs at the notion of teaching shelter-in-place techniques. The Army, meanwhile, marches on, with plans to begin burning the weapons late this year. And, should that be delayed, it matters not because the weapons deteriorate and pose threat each day they exist.
So, here we sit, still ignorant and vulnerable after all these years with the weapons.
Uh, excuse me, but … shouldn’t somebody DO something?
