Avian Flu Diary: #NatlPrep: Radiological Emergencies

Credit CDC PHE

Note: September is National Preparedness Month . Follow this year’s campaign on Twitter by searching for the #NatlPrep hash tag.

This month, I’ll be rerunning some edited and updated older preparedness essays, along with some new ones.

#13,536

Last January, in Upcoming CDC Grand Rounds: Public Health Response to a Nuclear Detonation, we looked at a scheduled presentation on nuclear preparedness. The opening paragraph to the CDC's announcement read:

While a nuclear detonation is unlikely, it would have devastating results and there would be limited time to take critical protection steps. Despite the fear surrounding such an event, planning and preparation can lessen deaths and illness. For instance, most people don’t realize that sheltering in place for at least 24 hours is crucial to saving lives and reducing exposure to radiation. While federal, state, and local agencies will lead the immediate response efforts, public health will play a key role in responding.

Somewhat abruptly, a week later, in CDC Grand Rounds: Nuke Detonation Postponed, Severe Flu Response Instead we learned this presentation would be `rescheduled'.

Admittedly, we were in the midst of a particularly severe flu season, which could reasonably have bumped this presentation. But I suspect one of the reasons behind the shelving (at least, for now) of this event was due to some of the negative responses on the internet and in the media during the previous 7 days.

Many pundits turned this into a political issue, not one of public safety and preparedness. Others seem to bristle at the idea that a limited nuclear strike (not all out global thermonuclear war) might be survivable for many.

And so sadly, a teachable moment was lost.

For many Americans, the notion that we might have to deal with a radiological emergency sounds like something out of the nightmarish Cold War era (1950s to the 1980s), when multiple Soviet warheads were targeted on every major U.S. city and nuclear annihilation seemed all but inevitable.

Today, while we’ve pulled back from that brink and have reduced our nuclear stockpiles by 80%, there still remain a variety of threats, including from terrorist organizations and rogue nations with limited nuclear capability.

Other radiological threats exist due to deliberate acts, accidents and natural disasters. One need look only as far as the Fukushima disaster of 2011 or Chernobyl in 1986 to see how quickly a radiological emergency can affect a large population.

This from the CDC’s PHE website:

A radiological or nuclear incidents occurring within the U.S. homeland or elsewhere could take a number of forms, including: contamination of food or water with radioactive material; placement of radiation sources in public locations; detonation of radiological dispersal devices that scatter radioactive material over a populated area; an attack on a nuclear power plant or a high-level nuclear waste storage facility; or an improvised nuclear device.

The CDC's Emergency Preparedness and Response website lists 6 different types of potential radiological emergencies.

Types of Radiation Emergencies

Radiation emergencies may be intentional (e.g., caused by terrorists) or unintentional. Below are some examples of different types of radiation emergencies. Click on the icons to find out what to do if a radiation emergency happens in your area.

Nuclear Emergencies

A nuclear emergency involves the explosion of a nuclear weapon or improvised nuclear device (IND).

The explosion produces an intense pulse of heat, light, air pressure, and radiation.

Nuclear explosions produce fallout (radioactive materials that can be carried long distances by the wind).

Dirty Bomb or Radiological Dispersal Device (RDD)

A dirty bomb (also known as a radiological dispersal device) is a mix of explosives such as dynamite, with radioactive powder or pellets.

A dirty bomb cannot create an atomic blast.

When the explosives are set off, the blast carries radioactive material into the surrounding area.

Radiological Exposure Device (RED)

A radiological exposure device (also called a hidden sealed source) is made of or contains radioactive material.

REDs are hidden from sight to expose people to radiation without their knowledge.

Nuclear Power Plant Accident

An accident at a nuclear power plant could release radiation over an area.

Nuclear power plants have many safety and security procedures in place and are closely monitored by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)

Transportation Accidents

It is very unlikely that a transportation accident involving radiation would result in any radiation-related injuries or illnesses.

Shipments involving significant amounts of radioactive material are required to have documentation, labels, and placards identifying their cargo as radioactive.

Occupational Accidents

Radiation sources are found in a wide range of settings such as health care facilities, research institutions, and manufacturing operations.

Accidents can occur if the radiation source is used improperly, or if safety controls fail.

The point of this blog is not to convince you that you should be preparing specifically for a radiological emergency - since being well prepared for far more common emergencies will cover most of your bases - but rather that you and your family should know what to do if a radiological release occurs.

The three basic tenants of radiation safety are:

Follow this link to review specifics on each of these topics, where you'll find a variety of information and helpful infographics - like the one below on decontamination - on what to do.

https://emergency.cdc.gov/radiation/pdf/infographic_decontamination.pdf

While a radiological hazard may be far down your list of `probable’ threats, being generally well prepared to shelter in place - and having a little bit of knowledge - can go a long way towards protecting you and your family, even during a radiation emergency.

For more on `all hazards’ preparedness, I’d invite you to visit: