16.3 Other Safety Considerations Relevant to a Radiological …
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• Secondary devices and/or unexploded primary devices might be encountered in
the area that was attacked and elsewhere in the city. These might be obvious (e.g. a
pipe with wires and batteries stuck to it) or they might be disguised or hidden. For
this reason, the bomb squad should clear all areas, including those within the Hot
Zone (with appropriate radiological support) as soon as possible. Until cleared by
bomb squad personnel, all containers, packages, dumpsters, trash cans, and even
piles of trash should be assumed to contain explosive devices that can be set off
remotely, via trip wires or other triggering devices, or through physical contact
(e.g. bumping, kicking, picking up, etc.).
• Unstable structure and streets, can pose a threat to responders working in the
area. An explosive device, for example, might weaken streets and sidewalks and
in a city with an extensive underground infrastructure, this can lead to the pavement collapsing into utility or train tunnels, endangering anybody entering these
areas. The blast can also weaken structures, making them dangerous to enter and
dangerous to work around. In addition, while members of the public should seek
shelter in the moments following any explosion, if they seek shelter in an unsafe or
unstable building, they will have to be told to evacuate to a safer building nearby.
This means that emergency responders might have to enter an unstable structure
in order to evacuate those inside to a safer location. Such entries must be made
carefully and deliberately, in accordance with whatever departmental procedures
and policies cover such work.
• Ruptured utility lines and other structures can pose significant risks and/or can
hamper response efforts:
– Electrocution (electrical lines)
– Fire or explosion (natural gas lines)
– Flooding, drowning, erosion and undermining pavement (water mains)
– Infection and disease (sewer)
– Loss of communications (telephone, cable, fiber-optic lines)
– Collapse of pavement and tunnels.
• Emergency response activities can also pose a risk to those working on the
response. Trucks, ambulances, and other vehicles pose a risk to emergency responders working in the area, as do other emergency response activities. People can be
injured or killed by the response efforts themselves; for this reason, it is essential
that everybody working in or transiting through the work zone remain aware of
their surroundings at all times. In particular, when it is time to evacuate members
of the public from the Hot Zone the Incident Commander must take into account
the work taking place; it might be advisable to stop work and vehicle movement
during the evacuation to minimize risks to the public and to the responders who
are guiding them from the Hot Zone.
187
• Secondary devices and/or unexploded primary devices might be encountered in
the area that was attacked and elsewhere in the city. These might be obvious (e.g. a
pipe with wires and batteries stuck to it) or they might be disguised or hidden. For
this reason, the bomb squad should clear all areas, including those within the Hot
Zone (with appropriate radiological support) as soon as possible. Until cleared by
bomb squad personnel, all containers, packages, dumpsters, trash cans, and even
piles of trash should be assumed to contain explosive devices that can be set off
remotely, via trip wires or other triggering devices, or through physical contact
(e.g. bumping, kicking, picking up, etc.).
• Unstable structure and streets, can pose a threat to responders working in the
area. An explosive device, for example, might weaken streets and sidewalks and
in a city with an extensive underground infrastructure, this can lead to the pavement collapsing into utility or train tunnels, endangering anybody entering these
areas. The blast can also weaken structures, making them dangerous to enter and
dangerous to work around. In addition, while members of the public should seek
shelter in the moments following any explosion, if they seek shelter in an unsafe or
unstable building, they will have to be told to evacuate to a safer building nearby.
This means that emergency responders might have to enter an unstable structure
in order to evacuate those inside to a safer location. Such entries must be made
carefully and deliberately, in accordance with whatever departmental procedures
and policies cover such work.
• Ruptured utility lines and other structures can pose significant risks and/or can
hamper response efforts:
– Electrocution (electrical lines)
– Fire or explosion (natural gas lines)
– Flooding, drowning, erosion and undermining pavement (water mains)
– Infection and disease (sewer)
– Loss of communications (telephone, cable, fiber-optic lines)
– Collapse of pavement and tunnels.
• Emergency response activities can also pose a risk to those working on the
response. Trucks, ambulances, and other vehicles pose a risk to emergency responders working in the area, as do other emergency response activities. People can be
injured or killed by the response efforts themselves; for this reason, it is essential
that everybody working in or transiting through the work zone remain aware of
their surroundings at all times. In particular, when it is time to evacuate members
of the public from the Hot Zone the Incident Commander must take into account
the work taking place; it might be advisable to stop work and vehicle movement
during the evacuation to minimize risks to the public and to the responders who
are guiding them from the Hot Zone.