Post by crudo on Jan 30, 2006 21:22:34 GMT -5
Terrorism in the valley: What is there to be afraid of?
By TY PHILLIPS
BEE STAFF WRITER
Last Updated: January 29, 2006, 05:21:54 AM PST
After 9-11, counties in the northern San Joaquin Valley and foothills assessed threats and came to the same conclusion: a terrorist attack in our area is unlikely.
The studies deemed the most significant risk of being affected by terrorism would be through a mass influx of people after a nuclear, biological or chemical weapons attack in a metropolitan area such as San Francisco or Sacramento.
For example, after the sarin gas attacks on Japan's subways in 1995, some victims traveled as far as 500 miles searching for a hospital that could treat them.
"What if something significant happens in the Bay Area and the only way out of danger is east?" Modesto Fire Chief Jim Miguel said. "That's going to mean a large displacement of people coming our way, and we need to be prepared to take our share and care for them.…And if something were to happen here, we have to be able to respond. Oklahoma City didn't think it was a target, either."
The Oklahoma City bombing, which killed 169 people in 1995, was domestic terrorism. Though this area does not have high-profile targets that experts believe would interest international terrorists, there is no shortage of industries that could interest domestic terrorists.
"When people hear terrorism, they usually think al-Qaida," said Lt. Darrell Freitas, the Stanislaus County Sheriff's Department Director of Homeland Security. "But, in my personal opinion, we're much more a threat to domestic terrorism from groups like the Earth Liberation Front and the Animal Liberation Front. There are people who believe the way chickens are raised and slaughtered is inhumane, and we have a lot of that kind of industry in this area. So, we do have the potential to be targets."
Still, most local planners believe our greatest risk for a manmade disaster would be accidental, not intentional.
Every day, trains carrying all sorts of volatile chemicals in 15,000-gallon tankers move up and down the valley, as do tractor-trailer rigs running in heavy traffic along Interstate 5 and Highway 99.
There are countless potential hazards that could be touched off by an accident or vehicle collision.
On Friday, a tanker truck on Highway 99 carrying 4,000 gallons of a liquid acid crashed through a sound barrier and into the back yard of a house, forcing the evacuation of residents.
"One of the most dangerous vehicles we'll deal with is a shipping truck," Miguel said. "You can load anything into a mail package and start it up the highway. There is virtually no accountability."
All that said, the feeling of disaster planners is that the Northern San Joaquin Valley is among the safest places to live in California.
"Here in the valley, we're not at much risk of earthquakes and fires," said Gary Hinshaw, head of emergency services for Stanislaus County. "We don't have landslides. We're too far inland to be affected by tsunamis. We are vulnerable to flooding and we've seen what 100-year-events did in '97 and '98, but those are cyclical. For the most part, our emergency declarations have been related to severe weather events and related crop damage. Overall, we're pretty safe here."
Bee staff writer Ty Phillips can be reached at tphillips@modbee.com or 874-5716.
By TY PHILLIPS
BEE STAFF WRITER
Last Updated: January 29, 2006, 05:21:54 AM PST
After 9-11, counties in the northern San Joaquin Valley and foothills assessed threats and came to the same conclusion: a terrorist attack in our area is unlikely.
The studies deemed the most significant risk of being affected by terrorism would be through a mass influx of people after a nuclear, biological or chemical weapons attack in a metropolitan area such as San Francisco or Sacramento.
For example, after the sarin gas attacks on Japan's subways in 1995, some victims traveled as far as 500 miles searching for a hospital that could treat them.
"What if something significant happens in the Bay Area and the only way out of danger is east?" Modesto Fire Chief Jim Miguel said. "That's going to mean a large displacement of people coming our way, and we need to be prepared to take our share and care for them.…And if something were to happen here, we have to be able to respond. Oklahoma City didn't think it was a target, either."
The Oklahoma City bombing, which killed 169 people in 1995, was domestic terrorism. Though this area does not have high-profile targets that experts believe would interest international terrorists, there is no shortage of industries that could interest domestic terrorists.
"When people hear terrorism, they usually think al-Qaida," said Lt. Darrell Freitas, the Stanislaus County Sheriff's Department Director of Homeland Security. "But, in my personal opinion, we're much more a threat to domestic terrorism from groups like the Earth Liberation Front and the Animal Liberation Front. There are people who believe the way chickens are raised and slaughtered is inhumane, and we have a lot of that kind of industry in this area. So, we do have the potential to be targets."
Still, most local planners believe our greatest risk for a manmade disaster would be accidental, not intentional.
Every day, trains carrying all sorts of volatile chemicals in 15,000-gallon tankers move up and down the valley, as do tractor-trailer rigs running in heavy traffic along Interstate 5 and Highway 99.
There are countless potential hazards that could be touched off by an accident or vehicle collision.
On Friday, a tanker truck on Highway 99 carrying 4,000 gallons of a liquid acid crashed through a sound barrier and into the back yard of a house, forcing the evacuation of residents.
"One of the most dangerous vehicles we'll deal with is a shipping truck," Miguel said. "You can load anything into a mail package and start it up the highway. There is virtually no accountability."
All that said, the feeling of disaster planners is that the Northern San Joaquin Valley is among the safest places to live in California.
"Here in the valley, we're not at much risk of earthquakes and fires," said Gary Hinshaw, head of emergency services for Stanislaus County. "We don't have landslides. We're too far inland to be affected by tsunamis. We are vulnerable to flooding and we've seen what 100-year-events did in '97 and '98, but those are cyclical. For the most part, our emergency declarations have been related to severe weather events and related crop damage. Overall, we're pretty safe here."
Bee staff writer Ty Phillips can be reached at tphillips@modbee.com or 874-5716.