Exercise tests Pentagon response to attack

Nearly eight months after terrorists flew a hijacked passenger jet into the Pentagon, the nation's military headquarters was once again the scene of a terrorist attack. This time, though, the casualties were faked. About 300 people took part in a mock chemical attack in the Pentagon's center courtyard Wednesday, to test the capacity of multiple local, state and federal organizations to respond.

"We're trying to integrate our response capabilities with the Defense Protective Service's capabilities, which have increased since Sept. 11," said James Schwartz, the assistant chief of operations at the Arlington County Fire Department. The Defense Protective Service is the Pentagon's law enforcement arm.

Under the simulation, within a couple of minutes of a 9 a.m. "explosion," DPS personnel were in the courtyard, assisting victims of the blast and testing the environment for chemical or biological agents. At the same time, the Arlington emergency response center, where local 911 calls are taken, received a cell phone call alerting them to the attack. By the time Arlington County Fire Department personnel arrived on the scene a few minutes later, they knew a chemical weapon had been released.

While that information delayed their arrival--they had to suit up in protective gear in the Pentagon parking lot before entering the courtyard--it would have prevented casualties in the long run. "We do no good if we come in here and become victims ourselves," Schwartz said.

In the meantime, building personnel began taking steps to prevent chemical agents from contaminating the building and harming workers inside. The Pentagon is equipped with sensors that can detect the presence of a number of biological and chemical agents, helping building operators manage airflow and other vital systems.

"Our first priority is to protect the workforce," said Ralph Newton, deputy director of the Pentagon's Facilities and Real Estate Directorate. "Whenever there's an emergency there are a lot of things happening at once. You probably won't have all the information you need."

The point of the exercise was to see how effectively and quickly agencies and organizations could share information. With the involvement of personnel from the Defense Department, the FBI, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Virginia State Police, the Arlington and Alexandria, Va., fire and police departments, a local emergency medical response team, several local hospitals and the Pentagon's own health clinic, coordinating activity is tremendously complex.

"One of the hallmarks of success from the response to the Sept. 11 attack was the high degree of cooperation and integration we had," Schwartz said.

Such cooperation is only achieved through strong personnel ties that develop over years of conducting such exercises, officials said. "The relationships we had in place and the procedures we had established for command and control proved invaluable" on Sept. 11, DPS Chief John Jester said. "That trust has to be established before you find yourself in an emergency. You don't develop it on the spot."

The exercise was funded through the Justice Department's Domestic Preparedness Program and was planned prior to Sept. 11. Teams of evaluators roamed throughout the courtyard monitoring the responders' efforts in managing hazardous materials, decontaminating victims and communicating with other participants. It will probably be weeks before they produce a report detailing the strengths and weaknesses of the response.

"I think we're prepared," said Jester. "But we can always get better."