Duck and cover...

[WilliamPitt]

Study: U.S. States 'Poorly Prepared' For Radiation Emergency
Eric Lach | March 15, 2011, 1:22PM

As Japan struggles to bring its spiraling nuclear catastrophe under control, a new study in a journal published by the American Medical Association (AMA) finds that, from a public health standpoint, U.S. states are "poorly prepared" to respond to a major radiation emergency.

"(T)he nation remains poorly prepared to respond adequately to a major radiation emergency incident," the study, titled "State-Level Emergency Preparedness and Response Capabilities," says. "Capabilities are insufficient or inadequate throughout the functions assessing planning in state health departments, resources in the state health department and other state agencies, and relationships with federal and other partners. For some measures, as many as 85% of responding states reported insufficient capability to respond to a radiation incident."

38 state health departments participated in the survey, including 26 of the 31 states that have nuclear power plants. States with nuclear power plants were asked to consider their responses independent of plant-specific plans and resources.

The study found several gaps in states' radiation emergency preparedness. For one, the survey reports that 73% of states "reported having minimal (53%) or no (21%) plans to conduct population-based exposure monitoring." Meanwhile, only 13% of states surveyed reported having "any written or detailed operations plan for radiologic analyses of biological or clinical samples." And 42% of states reported little or no planning to test first responders for radiation contamination.

The rest: http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/03/study_us_states_poorly_prepared_for_radiation_emergency.php?ref=fpblg

[PA Democrat]

1. With states struggling to balance their budgets, I doubt this

will be a priority. :(

[BeFree]

2. Ok

You've covered your ass.
<Smirk.>

[LaurenG]

3. What about all the "duck" tape and plastic sheeting, I heard that makes us prepared!1!!1

We're in big trouble if an earthquake of that magnitude hits near our nuclear facilities.

[11 Bravo]

4. FYI, it's "duct" tape.

[LaurenG]

5. Right - but "duck" went with the absurdity better.

:P

[hifiguy]

9. There is actually a duct tape sold under the trade name of "Duck Tape" nt

[EFerrari]

11. That's awesome.

lol

[11 Bravo]

12. Cool. I wasn't trying to be a wise ass. I just remember how pissed ...

my wife was when I finally corrected her. She wanted to know, "Why the Hell did you let me say it wrong for so long!"
Ya can't win.

[LaurenG]

13. You were kind to let me know and you won this one - I should have

put quotation marks on it to start with. :thumbsup:

[nadinbrzezinski]

6. I will be blunt

I don't think they have the yellow ducky suits in sufficient quantities, or for that matter enough functioning geiger counters that have had a recent standards test.

Both of those cost a lot of money... and the suits need to be changed out every ten years since they do naturally degrade and they are NOT cheap.

That is what that translates to.

Oh and stockpiles of Iodine are probably bellow standards as well. Each pill is cheap as hell, but again you need to change them out every so often. It is the same thinking as earthquake preparedness. You need to have stockpiles of junk to deal with it... but it is so far off most departments have to fight to keep them stocked up and rotated to regular duty.

[CrossChris]

7. They will blame the affected population & local governments, like after Katrina. And it will work..

Just like after Katrina. An entire region will lie dead and flattened, and the rest of the country will be talking about how that area deserved what was coming to it. Republicans will use these talking points gleefully. Most Democrats will just parrot the Republicans because they lack the strength of their convictions. That's how everything works---you can whitewash entire city and state populations this way.

[pokerfan]

8. We're overdue for a big one here in the PNW

The http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cascadia_subduction_zone">Cascadia subduction zone can produce very large earthquakes ("megathrust earthquakes"), magnitude 9.0 or greater, if rupture occurs over its whole area. When the "locked" zone stores up energy for an earthquake, the "transition" zone, although somewhat plastic, can rupture. Great Subduction Zone earthquakes are the largest earthquakes in the world, and can exceed magnitude 9.0. Earthquake size is proportional to fault area, and the Cascadia Subduction Zone is a very long sloping fault that stretches from mid-Vancouver Island to Northern California.

The last known great earthquake in the northwest was in January 1700, the Cascadia Earthquake. Geological evidence indicates that great earthquakes may have occurred at least seven times in the last 3,500 years, suggesting a return time of 300 to 600 years. There is also evidence of accompanying tsunamis with every earthquake, and one line of evidence for these earthquakes is tsunami damage, and through Japanese records of tsunamis.

A future rupture of the Cascadia Subduction Zone would cause widespread destruction throughout the Pacific Northwest.

Other similar subduction zones in the world usually have such earthquakes every 100–200 years; the longer interval here may indicate unusually large stress buildup and subsequent unusually large earthquake slip.

[hlthe2b]

10. Given we are letting our vital infrastructure fall down all around us...

I guess this can be added to the "priority", but no way in hell will it be funded list. :shrug:

[damntexdem]

14. Another gap in nuclear preparedness: having nuclear power plants.

Major gap that outweighs all the others.

[Mojorabbit]

15. This should have long ago been incorporated

into the operating and emergency drill manuals at the plants.