Transcript Weapons of Mass Destruction

Weapons of Mass Destruction
Weapons of Mass Destruction
• Definition: Any weapon, nuclear device,
biological agent, or chemical that can kill a
large number of people.
– Three types of delivery systems usually are
considered for WMD, ballistic missiles, cruise
missiles, and combat aircraft
Guided Rocket
• A guided rocket
powered delivery
vehicle for use against
ground targets. A large
portion of its flight is
in a ballistic trajectory.
It’s the optimum
delivery system for
WMD.
Cruise Missile
• A cruise missile is a
guided missile that
flies at a moderate
speed and at low
altitude, following the
terrain beneath it. The
Tomahawk is a cruise
missile
Common Biological Agents
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Anthrax
Botulism Toxin
Plague
Small pox
Tularemia
Viral Hemorrhagic fevers
Ricin
Anthrax
• Primarily a disease of large hoofed animals
• Gram positive bacillus spore
• Human contact
– Inhalation: pulmonary anthrax
– Ingestion: gastrointestinal anthrax
– Skin: cutaneous anthrax
Anthrax
• Signs and Symptoms
– Inhalation: common cold like symptoms, after
several days patient begins to have severe
difficulty breathing
– Cutaneous: Raised itchy bump, 1-2 days
painless ulcer with a black necrotic center
– Intestinal: Acute inflammation of the
gastrointestinal tract, N/V, fever, abdominal
pain, hemoptosis, severe diarrhea
Botulism
• Clostridium botulinum, gram positive
anaerobic bacillus which form endospores
• When spores enter an anaerobic
environment such as cans and jars it
germinates producing a nerve toxin
Botulism
• Signs and Symptoms
– Develop within hours to day of ingesting the
contaminated food
– Blurred vision, slurred speech, difficulty
swallowing and chewing, labored breathing
– Toxin affects the nerves by inhibiting the
neurotransmitter acetylcholine into the
junctions of nerve and muscle
– Ultimately causes respiratory paralysis
Plague
• Transmitted by fleas from infected rodents
to humans
– Bubonic
– Septicemic
– Pnuemonic (bioterrorism)
• Aerosol for dissemination
• After infection can be transmitted from infected
individual via cough or sneeze
Tularemia
• Non spore forming bacterium
• Contact with diseased rodents, rabbits,
ticks, mosquitoes, or deer flies
• Aerosol form of the bacterium most likely
administration by bioterrorists
Tularemia
• Signs and Symptoms
– Very non specific often patients are treated for
strep throat, rickettsail, lymphoid cancer or catscratch fever
Smallpox
• Extremely cantagious
disease.
• Person to person
transmission
• Contact with bodily
fluids
• Exposure through
aerosol
Smallpox
• Signs and Symptoms
– High fever and malaise
– Pink to red spots (macules) starting on face
then progressing to trunk of body
– Progress to looking like pink pimples (vesicles)
filled with fluid
– Finally progress to a deep pustule which emits
pus
Hemorrhagic Fever
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The hemorrhagic fever viruses (HFVs) are a diverse group of viruses capable of causing
a “viral hemorrhagic fever syndrome”. Each virus belongs to one of four distinct
families:
 Filoviridae: Ebola and Marburg viruses
 Arenaviridae: Lassa fever virus and New World arenaviruses
 Bunyaviridae: Crimean Congo hemorrhagic fever virus, Rift Valley
fever virus, and a group of related viruses referred to as “agents of
hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome”
 Flaviviridae: Dengue, Yellow fever, Omsk hemorrhagic fever, and
Kyasanur Forest disease virus
Hemorrhagic Fevers
• Depending on the specific virus, illness may develop within 2 to 21
days after exposure to a hemorrhagic fever virus; however, specific
disease manifestations may vary according to virus.
• The classic VHF syndrome is characterized by fever, fatigue, body
aches, rashes, malaise, nausea, abdominal pain, and headaches.
• Progression of disease results in hemorrhagic manifestations that may
include bleeding under the skin, in internal organs, or from body
orifices. In severe cases, death results 1 to 2 weeks after the onset of
symptoms, often caused by kidney failure, multiorgan system failure,
or shock. Not all patients develop the classic VHF syndrome
Ricin
• Ricin is a poison that can be made from the
waste left over from processing castor beans.
• It can be in the form of a powder, a mist, or a
pellet, or it can be dissolved in water or weak
acid.
• It is a stable substance. For example, it is not
affected much by extreme conditions such as
very hot or very cold temperatures
Ricin
• Ricin works by getting inside the cells of a
person’s body and preventing the cells from
making the proteins they need. Without the
proteins, cells die. Eventually this is harmful to
the whole body, and death may occur.
• Effects of ricin poisoning depend on whether
ricin was inhaled, ingested, or injected.
Ricin
• Signs and Symptoms
• Inhalation: Within a few hours of inhaling
significant amounts of ricin, the likely
symptoms would be respiratory distress
(difficulty breathing), fever, cough, nausea,
and tightness in the chest.
• Heavy sweating may follow as well as fluid
building up in the lungs (pulmonary edema).
Ricin
• Ingestion: Vomiting and diarrhea that may become bloody.
Severe dehydration may be the result, followed by low blood
pressure.
• Other signs or symptoms may include hallucinations, seizures,
and blood in the urine.
• Within several days, the person’s liver, spleen, and kidneys
might stop working, and the person could die.
• Skin and eye exposure: Ricin in the powder or mist form can
cause redness and pain of the skin and the eyes.
• Death from ricin poisoning could take place within 36 to 72
hours of exposure, depending on the route of exposure
(inhalation, ingestion, or injection) and the dose received. If
death has not occurred in 3 to 5 days, the victim usually
recovers.
Treatment of Biologicals
• In general the prehospital treatment for any
of these biological agents will include
supportive measures for ABC’s
• Because of the potential for infection
appropriate protective equipment should be
used
Chemical Agents
• Multiple forms of chemical and or nerve
agents that could be used for a WMD
• Classified by the symptoms they cause
– Blistering agents
– Blood agents
– Nerve agents
Blistering Agents
• Mustard Gas
• Mustard Lewisite
• Nitrogen Mustard
– Burning and blistering of the eyes and skin
– Coughing and respiratory distress
Blood Agents
• Cyanogens chloride
• Hydrogen chloride
– Seizures
– Respiratory Arrest / Cardiac Arrest
Choking Agents
• Chlorine
• Diphosgene
• Phosgene
– Cause eye and airway irritation
– Respiratory irritation; coughing, hoarseness,
dyspnea, chest tightness, and pulmonary edema
Nerve Agents
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Tabun
Sarin
Soman
VX
– These agents act on all parts of the nervous
system
– Pinpointed pupils, runny noses ,difficulty
breathing, seizures, and convulsions
Blistering Agents
• Treatment
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Protective clothing / gas mask
Avoid vapor clouds
Begin the decontamination process
Support the patients ABC’s
Dress large blisters
Blood Agents
• Treatment
– Protective suits / masks
– Decontamination procedures
– Support patients ABC’s
• Cyanide Antidote Kits-- not approved for EMS
Choking Agents
• Treatment
– Protective clothing
– Immediate evacuation
– Support patients ABC’s
Nerve Agents
• Treatment
– Protective suits / gas masks
– Mark I Antidote Kit (2 Pam)
• Two auto injectors
– Atropine 2 mgs
– Pralidoxime Chloride 600 mg
Additional Weapons
• Nuclear Weapons
• Incendiary Devices
• Dirty Bombs
– A small incendiary device used to disperse
radioactive material
Nuclear Attack
• Evacuation of residents around the targeted
area
• If a nuclear blast occurs, seek cover
preferably underground. You can take cover
behind anything, lie flat on the ground and
cover head.
• Fallout will take 15-20 minutes to arrive
Nuclear Attack
• Signs and Symptoms
– Blast type injuries and burns
– Radiation exposure
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Vomiting
Headache
Fatigue
Weakness
Thermal burn like effects
Secondary infections
Bleeding and hair loss
Nuclear Attack
• Treatment
– Protective equipment
– Radioactive decontamination procedures
– Support patients ABC’s
Conventional Incendiary Devices
• Terrorist organizations are prone to wipe
out the rescuers through secondary blast
devices
• Scene safety should be of paramount
concern
– Burns and blast injuries
– Utilize standard MCI protocols