Emergency topic of interest: Anthrax
Hypothetical location: A school in Florida
Why is this topic important?
This topic is of the utmost importance due to its previous use by bioterrorists and the severity of the symptoms that could result from it. The deliberate misuse of this agent could not only lead to mass casualties, but also have extremely negative effects on “the economy, critical infrastructure, or public confidence” (1). In 2001, right after the 9-11 attacks, anthrax spores were put into a letter for a senator. This act of bioterrorism led to 22 contaminations and 5 deaths. Therefore, it is crucial to be prepared for other potential attacks so that we can either prevent or minimize their devastating effects as much as possible.
Preparedness Plan:
Prevention:
Make sure the students and their parents know the importance in reporting any suspicious activity to the school administration.
Make sure students know how serious any perceived bioterrorist threat is and how pranks by the students about this topic will not be taken lightly.
Watch for letters containing “oily stains, envelopes without return addresses, and unexpected mail from foreign countries” (2).
Make sure to have an efficient and fast line of communication with the police department, fire department, and health officials.
In the case of a suspicious mail: (3)
Immediately quarantine the letter or package.
Activate school lockdown procedures.
Make sure any students and staff members close by migrate to distant parts of the school.
Identify all the people who either came into direct contact with the suspicious mail or with other people who did.
Alert the police and hazardous material response team as soon as possible in order to make sure what the next step of action should be.
Resources:
I reached out to Craig Ogletree, who is the manager of the Chipotle located on 1432 W. University Avenue, Gainesville, FL 32603. He informed me that all of their policies regarding outbreak prevention can be found online at http://chipotle.com/foodsafety. I summarized the key points found on the website here:
-Farms and kitchens that raise and prepare ingredients test those ingredients using high resolution methods.
-After being washed, diced, and rinsed, samples of tomatoes, beef, romaine lettuce, and bell peppers are tested for any possible contamination. If any fail this test, then the entire batch is rejected.
-Since raw meat can contain germs that could pass along to other ingredients, they are marinated only at night, after other ingredients have been prepped and put away.
-Lemons, limes, jalapeños, onions, and avocados are submerged in boiling water for 5 seconds in order to eliminate possible germs on the their skins.
-Restaurant is cleaned and sanitized at the end of each day.
-Restaurant is frequently inspected by Chipotle field leaders, Chipotle corporate food safety team, independent restaurant health experts, and local government heath officials.
-Paid sick leave program allows workers who are sick to stay home.