*
\o7By the 40th day of the crisis, the investigation had turned the corner. All of the suspects were in custody, including two believed to be responsible for poisoning the region's hospitals. One of those later died.
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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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The publicity courted by \f7\o7the scenario group may \f7\o7have helped protect citizens from harm -- early and consistent warnings might well have allowed more people to leave the region or to recognize the difference between innocent symptoms and actual exposure to deadly spores. Now, residents who had scattered wound their way home.
Moreover, the investigation, though largely successful, was not complete. The jefe, the man thought to be responsible for the manufacture of the anthrax and ricin, escaped.
\f7
Few regions in the country are more accustomed to disaster than Southern California. Practice from earthquakes and wildfires, as well as plans put in place over the last five years, have left Los Angeles city and county with a strong commitment to inter-agency cooperation, officials say. That structure, much on display during the scenario, could benefit Los Angeles should an act of terror ever actually occur.
"Counter-terrorism is not a matter of car chases," Jenkins, the scenario's designer, said later. "It's more like watching a construction project."
Watching this one, he concluded: "I, frankly, feel remarkably reassured."
And yet Jenkins cautioned against a clear declaration of victory. A simulation is, of course, merely a simulation, stripped of real-world angst and stress. As a result, some of the actions in last Tuesday's scenario are misleading.
Agency rivalries and anguished choices about how and when to inform the public about investigative developments were largely swept under the rug by a group conscious of being observed, committed to getting along and eager to build confidence in its readiness. It is, some of the panelists agreed afterward, hard to imagine that authorities, in the first several days of such an investigation, would inform the public of their suspicions that a terrorist cell was at work planning a chemical attack.
Reflecting on the simulation a few days later, Jenkins remained impressed by the emphasis the participants placed on working together and by their instincts for maintaining trust with the public. Yet, Jenkins added, those are easier instincts to follow in a simulation than in the real thing.
"It's easy," he said, "to be a vegetarian between meals."
