TOPOFF Exercise Provides Early Lessons

Public health officials in Oregon have identified early lessons from the TOPOFF terrorism drill conducted last week in the state and two other locations, the Oregonian reported (see GSN, Oct. 19).

Authorities must streamline the supply chain of crucial materials to hospitals and better ensure that complicated health and safety information is relayed clearly to citizens, said state public health director Susan Allan.

“These are natural problems.  These are things that would happen in any state.  But we’re all new to this,” she said.  “It’s good that we’re doing this, because we have an opportunity to get it right before it may hurt somebody if we don’t get it right.”

The fourth iteration of the major terrorism drill simulated radiological “dirty bomb” strikes in Arizona, Guam and Oregon.

Hospitals in the Portland area were faced with roughly 380 patients who required decontamination after exposure to radiation, a wave of patients on an already stressed system. 

“We’re doing everything we can to cause as many failures as possible, so that next time, the failure point is further out,” said John Reid, who oversaw the medical portion of the exercise.

Patients received strong care, said Gary Oxman, health officer for Multnomah County.

Medical personnel also had to deal with 1,600 “worried well,” unharmed but fearful citizens who received radiation exposure checks and information and counseling at a local high school.

Officials at the city and state level might need months or years to fully determine the strengths and weaknesses displayed during the exercise, the Oregonian reported (Paige Parker, Oregonian, Oct. 20).

Authorities in Guam are also assessing the island’s challenges in dealing with a terrorist strike, the Pacific Daily News reported Friday.

“The distance, the lack of resources to respond to something to this nature, something that now we are quite aware of — this is certainly going to be part of formulating a template for a standard operating procedure moving forward,” said Governor Felix Camacho.

Support from Guam’s neighbors could help overcome those difficulties, said Homeland Security Adviser Dennis Santo Tomas (Stephanie Godlewski, Pacific Daily News, Oct. 19).

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