Never mind that an unknown number of suspects were still at large and that there was the possibility of hidden anthrax and ricin. The group elected to release what it knew.
Within moments, it knew a great deal more.
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Hypothetical Terrorists Put Regional Officials to the Test
Panel gets generally high marks in its response to a simulated biological attack on Greater L.A.
FIVE YEARS AFTER
For The Record
Los Angeles Times Wednesday September 06, 2006 Home Edition Main News Part A Page 2 National Desk 1 inches; 42 words Type of Material: Correction
Terror attack: An article in Monday's Section A about Los Angeles leaders discussing how they would respond to a terrorist attack referred to ricin and anthrax as chemicals. Ricin is a toxic protein, and anthrax is a disease spread by bacterial spores.
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\o7Richard Deppisch, director of emergency preparedness for the city's Animal Services Department, was handed a telegram. The U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, it read, "have learned of a cluster of animal deaths and several hospitalizations of individuals in Baja, California, suffering symptoms consistent with anthrax."
Rushing to investigate, American and Mexican officials took suspects into custody. Under questioning, they revealed they had been paid by Middle Eastern contacts, one known only as the "jefe," to manufacture chemicals. Authorities concluded that 4 pounds of ricin and 10 to 20 grams of anthrax were unaccounted for, as were four dispersal machines, resembling leaf blowers. How serious were these chemicals? Two workers at the ranch where they were being made became ill and died. "It appears," the group was warned, "that we have uncovered a major terrorist plot."
And that plot, it also appeared, was directed at Los Angeles.
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With that information, the scenario group moved from concern to conviction, and the full panoply of local and federal resources were called into play. Tidwell, at the FBI, said the news justified the deployment of federal law enforcement response teams and hazardous-materials units. Deputy Chief Mark Leap, the LAPD's counter-terrorism chief, said it was time to activate the JRIC -- one of a blizzard of initialisms unleashed during the simulation, this one standing for Joint Regional Intelligence Center -- and begin the grim task of identifying possible targets in and around Los Angeles. Once identified, those targets needed immediate "hardening," the imposition of safety measures to make them more difficult to attack.
Having already decided to alert the public in this crisis' most nascent stage, some members of the panel now appeared to harbor second thoughts. "If we do come up," Baca said cautiously, emphasizing the "if," "we come up with one voice."
No one disagreed. Clayton urged that the spokesperson not be a public information officer but a well-known public official -- L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, for instance. Maurice Suh, Villaraigosa's deputy mayor for homeland security, agreed that the need for alerting the public was strong and that the release should include specific advice on where and how to seek shelter.
