Re: Dirty bomb article very popular

[Susan L Gawarecki <loc@icx.net>]

I had many requests for a copy of the article, so I'm sending it to the

RadSafe list.  The following is the message I sent out to my local

emergency responder list:



The following article appeared in the February 19, 2003, issue of "The

Liberty," a military newspaper in eastern North Carolina.  It is an

interview with health physicist Larry Grim regarding the facts about

"dirty bombs" and how to protect yourself.  This is an excellent

summary, and touches on other common-sense means of protection in the

case of a chemical release.  Please feel free to share this information

with your friends and colleagues.



--Susan Gawarecki





FORMER SAILOR SHARES INSIGHT ON PROTECTION AGAINST DIRTY BOMBS

Timmi Toler

Community Editor



With recent reports that radiation detectors are being tested in our

community, many residents are wondering how to be prepared or what to do

in the event that a radiological dispersion device (or “dirty bomb”) is

detonated. The Liberty turned to Larry Grimm for some answers. Grimm, a

former Navy Reservist who served as a corpsman with the 1st Marines,

Recon Battalion, Alpha Company, is now the senior health physicist for

the Radiation Safety Division at UCLA. He has 27 years experience

working with a wide variety of radioactive materials and their uses. He

offered his personal insights to the following questions to help equip

citizens with what he considers the most effective tool available in the

fight against terrorism – knowledge. 



Q: What is a radiological dispersion device?



A: It is a weapon designed to spread radioactive material over an area.

Radioactive materials can be spread via a conventional (“dirty”) bomb,

an aerosol device or through waterways. 



Q: What is the biggest concern from a radiological dispersion device? 



A: Two things: the irrational fear it can induce and the expense of

cleanup. The possibility of the radiation actually hurting anyone is

quite small. We fear what we do not understand,  sometimes irrationally.

The concepts of radiation are poorly taught in high school, and the only

other radiation information we get has been sensationalized by

Hollywood, politicians, and those looking to make a buck off of our lack

of education. You can beat the fear by learning how radiation works and

how to manage it safely (protection techniques). Fear and panic kill

people, as any good Marine knows. Radioactive materials are chemicals.

Sometimes it is easy to clean them up, sometimes hard. For example,

cleaning oil off concrete is hard, but picking up chunks of metal is

easy. Fortunately, it only takes a radiation detector to find the

radioactive material, so it is easier to find and clean up than a

non-radioactive chemical. Likely, the biggest problem will be economic

disruption while cleanup takes place. Radiation dispersion devices are

really disruption, not destruction, weapons. 



Q: How will I know if something is a radioactive device/bomb? 



A: You won’t know until someone checks and announces it. Most police and

fire vehicles carry radiation detectors these days and the announcement

is likely to be made quickly. If a bomb went off, I would presume the

worst and start practicing the protection techniques listed below. The

techniques are also applicable, to a certain ex- tent, if there is a

chemical or biological agent, however, there are a few important

differences. For example: if you suspect a chemical agent, do not seek

shelter in a low space (like a basement). Most chemicals are heavier

than air and will settle in low spaces. 



Q: What steps should I take if a radiological dirty bomb goes off in the

area? 



A: There are four simple protection techniques: Contamination control,

distance, shielding and time. Contamination control and distance are the

most useful techniques in a bomb situation. 



Also, remember to help others first. Radioactive materials are rarely

immediately life threatening. The worst-case terrorism scenarios

indicate that there would not be enough radioactive material to cause

immediate harm. Did you ever feel anything or see an effect from getting

an X-ray? In 99.999% of radiation exposures, no effect is felt or seen.

If I went towards the blast area to help someone, I would not fear the

radiation. However, I would be cautious and respectful of the radiation.

Therefore, I would use the following techniques – no matter if I was

escaping the area, trapped in the area, or going in to help. 



Contamination control: Keep the radioactive chemical off and out of your

body. Button up clothing and wear a mask (or anything to cover nose and

mouth.) A radioactive material is always a chemical, which behaves like

the chemical wants to behave. The distance technique is the best

protector in a dirty bomb scenario. If I need to be near the source, or

if I am down- wind of the blast, I will first practice contamination

control. If I suspect that I swallowed or inhaled the chemical, but do

not feel ill, I would later seek professional help. Radiation effects

take a long time to show up, and I wouldn’t want to add to the

congestion at the hospital. However, there could be a nasty chemical

associated with a radioactive bomb, so if I felt even slightly ill, I

would seek medical help in a hurry. 



Distance: In even the worst bomb scenario, you would be safe from the

radiation if you get just a couple blocks away and get upwind of

potential airborne material. Think of it as standing next to a campfire

- get too close and it could burn you, but if far enough away, you do

not get any heat. Exactly like a campfire, you do not want to be in the

smoke – so get

upwind. The most likely radioactive material in a dirty bomb would be

cobalt or Cesium. If the terrorist could somehow manage to get 10,000

Curies in the bomb, you only need to be about 300 yards (three football

fields) away to be safe from the radiation. If you are not down-wind or

near the dispersion area, you are safe. Do not “head for the hills”.

Leave the roadways open so emergency responders can get through. 



Shielding: Anything acts as a shield – a building, a car, a hill, et

cetera. Your major concern is gamma radiation. Imagine the gamma as a

radio wave. When don’t you get a radio signal? When you are in the

middle of a building, in a basement, behind a hill, et cetera. Whatever

shielding decreases a radio signal will decrease gamma rays. I handled

12 million curies of Cesium (a 1000 times more than a possible bomb)

with a mere 20 feet of water for shielding, and I got no dose! 



Time: The less you are around the radiation, the less dose you will get.

As most people would use distance, and get away in a hurry, they already

used the time technique by not hanging around the radiation. Emergency

responders may need to use this technique, and all across the US, they

are receiving training on how to use it. 



Q: If you suspect the chemical is on your clothes or body, what should

you do? 



A: First, simply remove the clothing. Take off the clothing, put it

somewhere distant, and you will get no exposure from what is on the

clothes. A common myth is that if radiation hits someone, they become

radioactive. The reality is the radioactive chemical that makes you

radioactive, not the radiation, so you want to keep the chemical off

yourself. 



Second, wash or shower. Most radioactive materials are easily washed

off. Another common myth is that you need to scrub hard to get

radioactive material off you. In actuality, you should wash lightly and

frequently. Scrubbing hard can abrade the skin and push the chemical

into the body. When I practiced Nuclear Medicine, almost every day I got

radioactive material on my index finger. With a light washing, it went

away every time. Twenty-five years later, my finger is just fine, and

still willing to point a Marine towards the vaccination line (a

corpsman’s pay back for being called “squidly”)! 



Q: If I am trapped in my house with my children and downwind of the

dispersion device, what do I do? 



A: How do you keep dust and cold air out of your house? Simple – make

sure things are shut tight. It’s the same with radioactive materials.

Stay put and hunker down. The downwind concern is that the radioactive

chemical is airborne. Keep the chemical out of your house and you will

be quite safe. Keep doors and windows closed. You might move to the

middle of the house or basement, which uses the distance and shielding

protection techniques, in case there are levels of radiation nearby. If

you must go out, use the time technique and do your task quickly. If the

radioactive chemical is heavy, or it is raining, the chemical will not

travel far by air, so if you are more than a mile away, there would

likely be no problem. In the likely scenarios which use Cobalt or

Cesium, they are heavy and do not travel too far in the air. Listen to

your radio, as emergency information services should soon tell you if it

is safe to go out. Boredom will be your biggest problem. 



Q: If I am outside and down- wind of the blast and cannot move quickly,

what do I do? 



A: Get into the nearest building and do what you would do in your house

– keep things shut and move to middle room or basement areas. Get in or

stay in your car with windows up and fresh air vents closed. You will

keep the chemical out, and the car provides some shielding. If it is hot

in the car, recirculating air conditioning is okay to use. If you can

move the car, drive a few blocks away. 



Q: Will my food become radioactive? 



A: Not if it is sealed or covered. Again, another myth about radiation

is that it causes other things to become radioactive. The truth is this

only happens if the chemical gets on it. I would keep bottled water and

a few canned goods for emergencies, but the way food is packaged these

days, the foods in your cupboards/refrigerator will be just fine. For

extra measure, you can rinse things off before you open/use them, but

most likely this is not necessary if you have kept the house closed up. 



Q: What should I get to prepare for a dirty bomb? 



A: Not much. Keep some bottled water on hand and a portable radio. Do

not buy a radiation meter. Do not buy special contamination suits. Do

not buy gas masks. Only trained professionals should have these things.

Untrained people have been hurt by these things. Can you imagine the

horror and grief of a child suffocating in a gas mask, especially if the

radiation was three miles away? The simple protection techniques are all

you need. They work. I know. I use them every day in my work. Use your

common sense when applying the techniques and you, and your children,

will be very safe. 



Q: What are the odds of a radiological dispersion device going off in my

area? 



A: Pretty slim. A radiological dispersion device is unlikely to kill

anyone, unless it is a bomb and the person is in the blast area.

Therefore, it is a poor “mass destruction” weapon. On the other hand, it

can disrupt things badly, particularly if we respond with fear and

panic. Although not hard to build a radiological dispersion device, it

is difficult to carry around the large quantity of radioactive material

necessary. 



Q: What if the radioactive material is put in our water supply? A: Being

a chemical, the radioactive material will dilute in the water. Without

going into technical reasons, suffice it to say that by the time it got

to your house, there wouldn’t be enough to pose a real risk. Smoking one

cigarette probably poses more risk than the amount of radioactive

material that you could ingest in this scenario. We ingest naturally

occurring radioactive materials every day of our lives. Likely by the

time it got to you, the terrorists’ material would be a pittance of what

you normally, naturally take in. Another common misconception is that

man-made radioactive materials are different and more dangerous than

natural materials. However, there really is no difference. Man-made and

natural radioactive material effects are the same. Our bodies are

adapted to handling the effects of low levels of radiation, which we

receive every moment of our lives. If it is suspected to be in the water

supply, and you are concerned, use bottled water. I would likely have no

fear of showering with the tap water.



Q: Any final thoughts? 



A: Please teach these simple things to others. As more people learn how

easy it is to protect themselves from a radiological dispersion device,

our collective fear levels decrease. 



Learn about radiation, and the fear of it will melt away. As a

youngster, I feared electricity, but I learned it can be handled safely.

I now respect it, but do not fear it. The same is true of radiation:

respect it, but do not fear it. Terrorists feed on fear. Fear is

bondage, knowledge is freedom. 

-- 

.....................................................

Susan L. Gawarecki, Ph.D., Executive Director

Oak Ridge Reservation Local Oversight Committee

102 Robertsville Road, Suite B, Oak Ridge, TN 37830

Toll free 888-770-3073 ~ www.local-oversight.org

.....................................................

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