Disclaimer

The event and situations described in this scenario have been fictionalized for instructional and illustrative purposes.

SCENARIO 1: Chemical (Sarin Release)
Introduction

This scenario takes place at a glass-enclosed entertainment and shopping center with over 350 retail stores in the heart of uptown Houston, Texas. The upscale promenade shopping area also contains an ice-skating rink, two hotel towers, and four office towers. More than 6,000 workers are currently employed in the office towers alone. Restaurants line the first floor of the promenade area, with outdoor cafes lining one whole section. At lunchtime, over 20,000 customers and employees frequent the area.

In this scenario, a terrorist group has obtained eight gallons of Sarin nerve agent and puts this liquid nerve agent into four two-gallon pressurized metal containers with aerosol release valves. The mall ventilation system carries the agent throughout the mall and to surrounding parking lots where it will not survive for very long. The release has the potential to affect everyone within the mall and a large number of people in the surrounding area.

The effects of an aerosol Sarin release are instantaneous. They include blurred vision, breathing difficulty, gastrointestinal distress (after severe exposure), skeletal muscle paralysis, seizures, loss of consciousness, and death. Persons exposed to very small amounts of the nerve agent show limited symptoms, and they can be successfully treated if the symptoms are noted in time and the proper antidotes (especially atropine) are available. One should expect, however, countless individuals exhibiting symptoms based on stress and hysteria, rather than actual exposure.

The four Sarin containers are placed inside open-top trash cans inside the mall. The containers are simultaneously released during the height of the lunch hour when the mall experiences its peak daily occupancy. The terrorists placed the containers in the outer perimeter hallways of the first floor of the mall, effectively blocking ground-level entrances. The release disperses the Sarin contained in each container into the atmosphere, directly contaminating many people.

In this scenario, it should be apparent that a nerve agent is involved. However, responders cannot identify the type of agent released. The medics responding to the scene have Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) training and should recognize some of the symptoms. If not, the sequence of events and the massive number of casualties should indicate that a gaseous release occurred.

Vehicular access to the mall is complicated by the fact that the release spawns general panic leading to spontaneous evacuation of the surrounding area. Unaware of the presence of gas upon arrival, many of the first responders are exposed to the Sarin.

 

Ask Yourself:

  1. Although the situation is just now unfolding and most likely you would not even be aware of it at this point, do you have a plan that addresses your organization's role, lines of responsibility, and resources needed in the event of a crisis or emergency?

  2. How does your organization prepare (in advance) its communication team to respond quickly to crises and emergencies?
Step 1. Verify situation.

Houston, Texas - Thursday, October 24. The weather forecast predicts a warm, calm, overcast day. At midday, the temperature is 78° Fahrenheit.

At 12:15 p.m., the mall is filled with lunch-hour shoppers and the surrounding parking areas are congested.

At 12:30 p.m., a 911 dispatcher receives a call from the mall security manager. He reports that hundreds of customers inside the mall are gasping for air and convulsing. Hundreds more are collapsing. He is evacuating the mall and needs help. First responders are immediately dispatched to the scene. Within minutes, other callers report seeing people collapsed outside the mall.

 

Ask Yourself:

  1. What are your priorities at this point?

  2. What sources could be contacted to verify the situation?

  3. What subject-matter experts do you have on hand, or can contact, for clarification?

  4. If the event described in this scenario happened in your community, how would you verify it? List the verification steps you would take.
Step 2. Conduct notifications.

After dispatching emergency units to the site, the 911 center notifies the municipal switchboard. Reports of casualties at the mall follow. Fire and police squads and Medical Emergency Units arrive on site and initiate emergency response operations. The mayor is notified that a crisis of potentially major proportions is unfolding.

 

Ask Yourself:

  1. What are your priorities at this point?

  2. What other organizations, if any, besides those noted here should be notified of this event?

  3. What are the internal and external communications requirements for this response?

  4. If the event described in this scenario happened in your community, how would you verify it? List the verification steps you would take.
Step 3. Assess level of crisis.

Major highways and access roads are congested with traffic and scattered traffic accidents caused by individuals fleeing the mall.

People inside the mall and in the parking lots near the building exits and vents appear to have been exposed to an unidentified substance and are convulsing and asphyxiating. Some are shaking uncontrollably and sweating profusely. Many appear dead and others who are severely incapacitated require immediate medical assistance. Victims are transported to area hospitals.

Many first responders at the response site exhibit similar symptoms and need immediate medical attention. Residential areas in the surrounding areas appear unaffected.

At 1:45 p.m., the State Emergency Operations Center (EOC) in Austin is activated. At 2:15 p.m., a representative from the local television station contacts city officials to report that an unidentified caller claims to have released a nerve agent at the mall this afternoon as part of a coordinated terrorist attack against the United States. The caller makes it clear this is the first of other planned releases. The television station goes live with the story moments later.

By 3:30 p.m., the emergency rooms at two local hospitals report that some of their personnel exhibit the same symptoms as patients from the mall. One of the hospitals reports that its emergency room is operating at full capacity, it has activated its mass casualty disaster plan, and it is unable to care for additional victims. Designated trauma centers request technical information regarding the agent used in the terrorist attack. Another local hospital reports that tissue and blood samples from several of the victims were packaged as extreme biohazards. The samples were sent to the University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston by special courier.

National television broadcasts, linking with local affiliates, show live pictures of the incapacitated and the dead being removed from the mall. Reporters request information regarding the city's response to and preparedness for this type of incident. A major cable news network requests an interview with a representative from the city.

Residents within two miles of the affected mall spontaneously evacuate their homes, frightened by the images on television. Traffic bottlenecks form on all major city transportation arteries, including Interstate 610, further complicating response activities. The combination of spontaneous evacuees and above-normal traffic result in virtual grid lock throughout the area.

At 4:30 p.m., both the George Bush Intercontinental and William Hobby Airports are shut down by the Director of Aviation following the imposition of a widespread "no-fly" area over the city by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The airport will remain closed until further notice.

A preliminary situation report indicates that 400 people are dead and the unidentified hazardous material affected 2,000 at the mall and surrounding area. Residents in the vicinity request directions to shelters as they evacuate. There is mounting concern and fear over the potential for additional chemical agent releases in other areas of the country. Media reports include rumors of widespread panic.

Hospitals in the area report increasing cases of medical personnel exhibiting symptoms of exposure. Medical teams are unsuccessful in identifying a chemical nerve agent, though they are certain that symptoms are caused by organophosphate poisoning. Due to symptoms manifested by its medical personnel, one local hospital closes its ER and discourages people from coming to its facility. Another local hospital director calls the city requesting assistance in evacuating unexposed hospital patients to another medical facility.

Area morgues are overwhelmed. Requests are made for additional resources to manage the number of bodies removed from the incident locations. The Houston EOC requests chemical decontamination assistance from the State and FEMA. Concerned relatives call, desperate for information regarding the fate of their loved ones, and cause the local telephone exchange to overload and fail.

The laboratory at the local university's Health Science Center calls the Texas Emergency Management Agency (EMA) and the city identifying the chemical agent as Sarin, the same substance used by Japanese cult members in their attack on the Tokyo subway.

The number of bodies collected overwhelms the city and surrounding morgues. Shelters are activated and provide emergency services to evacuees and displaced people. Hospitals report a noticeable drop in the number of additional victims arriving at these facilities; however, hysterical patients and asymptomatic victims continue to arrive. Mutual aid from across the country continues, increasing the need for coordination of resource allocation. National FEMA and FBI representatives are on the scene.

Concerned residents overload the phone emergency switchboard with requests for information regarding the whereabouts of family members. Media representatives transmit live interviews from Houston. Residents are reluctant to return to their homes in spite of assurances that designated areas are safe for re-entry. National attention is focused on Houston. The incident sends shock waves through the country. People nationwide avoid public places.

Local business people raise the specter of an economic slowdown because of concerns that their inability to resume normal operations will have a negative impact on their business activity, especially in light of the generalized searches being conducted.

 

Ask Yourself:

  1. What are your priorities at this point?

  2. Based on the information given, what is the level of crisis for this event? (Use the Event Response Matrix and Assessment Worksheet.)

  3. What hours of operation/schedule would you put the communication team on for this event?

  4. What resources and other tools are needed to ensure an effective communication response?

  5. Based on the information presented, what staffing levels do you foresee your organization contributing to the response effort? What problems do you anticipate?

  6. If the event described in this scenario happened in your community, how would you verify it? List the verification steps you would take.
Step 4. Organize and give assignments.

Responders continue to assess protective measures. "Hot spots" are identified inside the mall's ventilation system and other confined spaces. Responders evaluate containment and decontamination strategies at these hot spots and ask if "forced ventilation" is an option. Evacuation of selected areas continues. Other public protective measures are evaluated. Hazardous Materials Team ( HAZMAT) responders debate declaring up-wind areas around the release sites safe for re-entry and they believe vapor or inhalation risk is a threat only in a limited area. Designated shelter locations request food, medicine, and dwelling resources and information on containment actions to prevent the spread of the chemical agent contamination to clean areas.

A FEMA Region VI representative requests that the Texas EMA identify potential locations for the Disaster Field Office (DFO). The DFO coordinates the overall response in accordance with the Federal Response Plan (FRP). The Texas EMA coordinates with the Houston EOC to determine the best sites for DFO establishment. An Emergency Response Team-Advanced (ERT-A) is on its way from the FEMA headquarters in Washington, D.C.

A FBI terrorism team is dispatched to Houston to direct crisis management operations. The team director is scheduled to meet with the Houston EOC and the Texas EMA directors upon arrival. The area FBI representative arrives onsite and takes control of the investigation. FBI officials suspect a terrorist group may be responsible for the incident in Houston.

The FBI directs that general, deliberate bomb searches be conducted for all major public gathering places. While there have been no further calls from the terrorist organization, the FBI remembers the statement that the attack "is the first part of a coordinated terrorist attack against the United States" and takes it seriously.

Planning for site decontamination, remediation, and clean-up is initiated. Coordination of response efforts over the next 48 hours continues. Medical surveillance of response team members and the population at large, the decision to authorize population re-entry, public security issues, long-term medical support services, and implementation of recovery plans are all open for discussion.

 

Ask Yourself:

  1. What are your priorities at this point?

  2. What immediate public relations and media concerns must be anticipated? How will these concerns be addressed? Who will serve as your organization's spokesperson in this incident?

  3. What portion(s) of your communications response team would you activate at this point?

  4. Would your functional team(s) know their roles and immediate tasks? To whom would they report and take direction?

  5. How will your organization's actions be coordinated with the actions of other agencies? What conflicts could arise from the need to simultaneously conduct extensive criminal investigation and response functions? What conflicts may be anticipated between the overlapping federal/State/local jurisdictions?

  6. If the event described in this scenario happened in your community, how would you verify it? List the verification steps you would take.
Step 5. Prepare information and obtain approvals.

At 5 p.m., the governor declares a state of emergency and formally requests a Presidential declaration of a major disaster. Pending the President's decision on whether or not to declare a disaster, the governor asks for Section 403(C) of the Stafford Act. The White House is briefed on the incident. Federal officials are notified and agency regional representatives are directed to Galveston, Texas.

The two Houston airports will re-open in the morning, but many scheduled flights into the area during the next few days are cancelled. It is anticipated that the mall and the immediate vicinity will remain closed until it is declared safe for public use (at least one week).

 

Ask Yourself:

  1. What are your priorities at this point?

  2. With federal, state and local agencies involved, how will media inquiries be handled?

  3. What, if any, are the critical health communication messages that need to be released to the public?

  4. How would you develop these messages and get them cleared efficiently?

  5. Who in your organization is responsible for authoring media releases?

  6. What audience(s) group(s) would you target and what concerns would you address?

  7. How would your organization display empathy and caring to the public about this event?

  8. What questions would you anticipate the media to ask about this event?

  9. If the event described in this scenario happened in your community, how would you verify it? List the verification steps you would take.
Step 6. Release information to the public.

At 8 p.m., media groups interview emergency response experts. Some theorize that the level of sophistication in the attack is an indication of international assistance.

At 10 p.m., the President issues a major disaster declaration granting the FEMA authority to provide emergency response support to Houston and to conduct consequence management activities. The President, in a special statement carried on all networks, condemns the vile act of terrorism and vows to punish the culprits. The DFO, with its additional Federal resources, will not be fully operational for another 24 hours.

 

Ask Yourself:

  1. What are your priorities at this point?

  2. What types of training does your organization need to more effectively manage the communications response to situations of this type?

  3. List the policies and procedures included in the Emergency Operations Plan (EOP), standard operating procedures (SOP), and checklists that you think should be further reviewed, supplemented, or developed for your organization to handle the communication response to an event similar to this. Which are priorities?

  4. In what ways would your organization monitor an event such as this after the initial release of information?

  5. How would your organization determine when it would be appropriate to move into the "post-event" phase for an event similar to this?

  6. If the event described in this scenario happened in your community, how would you verify it? List the verification steps you would take.