Dirty Bomb "Exercise" Topoff 4 Portland, Phoenix & Guam Oct 15 to 24, 2007.

The T4 FSE is based on National Planning Scenario 11 (NPS-11). The scenario begins as terrorists, who have been planning attacks in Oregon, Arizona, and the U.S. Territory of Guam, successfully bring radioactive material into the United States. The first of three coordinated attacks occurs in Guam, with the simulated detonation of a Radiological Dispersal Device (RDD), or "dirty bomb," causing casualties and wide-spread contamination in a populous area near a power plant. Similar attacks occur in the hours that follow in Portland and Phoenix. An RDD is not the same as a nuclear attack. It is a conventional explosive that, upon detonation, releases radioactive material into the surrounding area. Although it does not cause the type of catastrophic damage associated with a nuclear detonation, there are severe rescue, health, and long-term decontamination concerns associated with an RDD. Real weapons will not be used in the scenario, but the response will be mounted as if they had been.


Taking place October 15-24, 2007, the TOPOFF 4 Full-Scale Exercise (T4 FSE) will feature thousands of Federal, State, territorial, and local officials. These officials will engage in various activities as part of a robust, full-scale simulated response to a multi-faceted threat. The exercise will address policy and strategic issues that mobilize prevention and response systems, require participants to make difficult decisions, carry out essential functions, and challenge their ability to maintain a common operating picture during an incident of national significance. As in a real-world response, agencies and organizations will deploy staff into the field and will face realistic incident-specific challenges, including the allocation of limited response resources and exercise actions needed to effectively manage conditions as they emerge. Planning and preparation for the exercise will also help strengthen working relationships between departments and agencies that are critical to successful prevention and response in real emergencies.


http://portland.indymedia.org/en/2007/09/364566.shtml


This event is NOWHERE to be found on mainstream media! Have you heard about it on the evening news?!


:scared:

...have a look here


wp

:kick:

p.s. Why aren't people discussing this on DU?!

Gah!!

Unfortunately, when I wrote that article, I thought I had confirmed the rumors via their original source (a medical staffer at a local hospital who was told off-handedly that Cheney was coming to town). Not so, apparently. So now all I can be sure of is that Cheney is "rumored to be coming to Portland on October 16th."

Other hot rumors of the day: There will be more than one radioactive release simulation. The Steel Bridge is still a target, but there will also be one somewhere on the west side, perhaps along Hwy 26 somewhere. Also, the rumor mill has it that a few fake suicide bombers will be raising hell in shopping malls, office complexes and so forth.

The best rumor, however, is that now Chertoff, the avatar of the grim reaper, will be here. Maybe along with Cheney, maybe by himself, maybe none of the above.

Good rumors, though. Keeps the imagination working overtime.

wp

they are all insane....

:scared:

<snip>

Cheney goes nuk-u-lur?

All this and we recently learned that Caporegime Cheney may have just become the world's newest nuclear power as the result of a bizarre episode involving the unprecedented removal and transfer of six nuclear-tipped cruise missiles from Minot AB in North Dakota to Barksdale AB in Louisiana -- the main staging base for B-52s bound for the Middle East.

These aren't just normal nukes either, if such a thing as a normal nuke exists. The AGM-129 Advanced Cruise Missile only accepts a W80-3 variable-yield nuclear warhead that can be set to deliver blasts ranging from 5 kilotons to 150 kilotons. Just the ticket for turning an anti-terrorism drill involving detonation of a low-yield "suitcase nuke" into a real-life event.

Dial it down to minimum blast yield, explode it somewhere away from the main commercial areas, annihilate a few blocks of rustbelt-like industrial property, let local winds confine the radiation plume to a few areas where property values are low and the inhabitants aren't predominantly white and let the games begin.

Just to make things even more entertaining, one of these missiles seems to be missing. Reports from several sources say either five or six of them left Minot on August 30 on pylons attached to the B-52's wing hard-points -- or, to put it simply, in firing position (which is in itself an extremely grave violation of protocols regarding shipment of nuclear warheads).

Some reports say six arrived at Barksdale, other sources say only five. It's difficult to chase this point down because Google has apparently spent a good deal of time and effort eliminating links to web pages that put the missile count at five. Six is the official story, all warheads accounted for, everything under control, and Google is going to pitch in and purge URLs in the interests of national security.

In the Oregonian. I wonder how much flack they are taking for setting this up with Chertoff. And look at this sentence from the end of that press release quoted in the indy article:

"There will be minimal deployment of active duty forces and no cross-border deployments. We anticipate little to no direct impact on local communities."

So there will be some active duty forces deployed. I thought there was a Constitutional prohibition to this.

is a trauma nurse in the air force and does disaster related stuff. They rev up when there is a disaster in case they are asked by the state to come in and help by setting up field hospitals, etc. She was involved in assisting with the Rhode Island fire so maybe they are including them for this reason, ie that they may be called on to assist.

Thanks to the Defense Authorization Act of 2006 which, among other sins against decency and the Constitution, also overturned the Posse Comitatus Act of 1878, which had prohibited the use of federal troops within the US without congressional approval.

Since Bush is now a de facto dictator, the 2006 DoD budget bill recognized that happy fact by allowing him to authorize federal troops to operate in the country on the Commander Guy's say so alone.


wp

...occured on both 9/11 and 7/7. The exercises just happened to be identical to the attacks that took place.

Anyone overly cautious could do worse than take a weekend trip somewhere distant.

But I am laying in some bottled water and canned goods this weekend, FWIW.

... the port, Alberta St. neighborhood and so on. Pretty much avoid north Portland for the week. Here's a map of the blast zone and anticipated fallout plume.

This is from a report called "The Day After: Action Following a Nuclear Blast in a U.S. City" (which you can download as a pdf file) authored by a think tank at Harvard called the Belfer Center and released in May of this year.

Interestingly, the Portland map is unnamed; the city is only identifiable by street names and knowledge of local geography. Two similar blast area maps from the same report are clearly labeled "Washington, D.C." See pages 8, 9 and 10 for the maps.

In any case, put new batteries in your bullshit detectors and turn your paranoia level up a notch. My fondest desire is that this whole thing turns out to be exactly what they say it is and I get branded as a paranoid loon and discredited forever. There's no joy in being right about this one.


wp

I was trying to remember if any buildings still have that designation anymore.

They leak like sieves these days. The windows don't open or close properly, doors aren't a tight fit, skylights leak. Not the places I'd want to be if it's raining radioactivity.

The interesting thing about your point, though, is that there's been no attempt whatsoever -- at least that I'm aware of -- to educate and elicit the cooperation of the public on this whole scenario. You'd think that, if you were modeling a terrorist attack that generated radioactive fallout, you'd tell the public what to do if the situation were real and provide some guidance regarding shelters, places not to be, things not to touch, drink or eat -- just basic stuff like that.

I don't read or watch much local news, so I may well have missed those kinds of reports. But I would think I'd have heard about it if mass media was doing that kind of informational story. So far, not a peep.


wp

I live in between the Speedway and Alberta St Neighborhood. This area has also had a number of police killings of unarmed citizens in recent years. Why are they doing that shit here? Why don't they do this "exercise" in the Pearl district or Sellwood?

Fuckers. I wonder which neighborhood they picked in Phoenix.

Because many of the residents are of the disposable, non-white element of society. When they run this type of drill in the West Hills, we'll know we've actually become a non-racist, classless society. And when the cops start shooting people in Lake Oswego, that would be the clincher. I wouldn't hold my breath waiting on either of those, though.

wp

they were upset with indymedia because the officials thought indymedia was whacked to even think such a thing. I hope the officials are right.

but if I put on my :tinfoilhat: the nuke move of Lousiana, the saber rattling to invade Iran, the history of false flag ops in various nations throughout history makes me pray that the bush junta is too stupid to do something like that.

in any case, I was reading the pdf about the history of such plans and just for the sake of any disaster (earthquake, etc.) -- have three days worth of water and food because, if you're not in the hot spot, you'd get less radiation if you stayed in place for three days to let the radiation settle. if you're in the hot spot you take shelter immediately inside, inside as much steel, etc. as possible and as soon as the blast is over and, if you survive, get out immediately. but you need to have a place to go or you will be exposed to radiation outside. just like with a tornado, get to the basement, under heavy tables, put mattresses around to help block radiation... something is better than nothing.

water is the biggest deal. I use those little packages of vitamins/super C that dissolve in water when I travel to help avoid colds, etc. Those would be good to have to supplement. any food that is stored in packages that are not exposed (i.e. canned goods, etc.) are okay to eat but the outside should be rinsed off first.

I always think it's good to have basic "survival" things on hand because most of us live in a hurricane or tornado or earthquake zone. some places have lethal materials stored nearby, sometimes trains with hazardous material go off the tracks.

hopefully we will never have to use them for any reason and can donate them to food shelters (before an expiration date, of course).

sooner the media would forget it's only an exercise and the sheeple may get terrorized.

Since it's not been in any news I know of alot of people are in for a shock and this can lead to accidents and panic . This is what i don't like one bit . This is some sort of insane test with a who knows what it will be out come .

Certainly if there were a real attack people may not have a heads up even though if we were so very safe as we are constantly told people should be warned in advance but this is never the case .

What is this really , a test to see how easy or how difficult it will be to hold a city in a police state so they can adjust their tactics ?

Perhaps I am to un-trusting with good reason to be so .

In a real attack which should be known in advance people who evacuate the suspect area , wouldn't ya think ?