ERRI MORNING NEWS SUMMARY

NEW YORK CITY (EmergencyNet News) - Despite an enormous federal effort to prepare for a biological terrorist attack, a pretend germ warfare attack last month reportedly showed the government is unprepared to deal with such a crisis. The New York Times reported Sunday that the secret drill simulated a small pox hybrid virus that was dropped along the Mexican- American border. Officials who participated in the drill soon found themselves arguing as they were overwhelmed by a panicked population, short of the right antibiotics and vaccines, hampered by antiquated quarantine laws and unable to get trained, immunized medical staff to the area.

***

LEAD FOCUS

NEW YORK CITY (EmergencyNet News) - The New York Times was reporting on Sunday that despite an enormous federal effort to prepare for a biological terrorist attack, a biological warfare attack exercise in March showed the government is unprepared to deal with such a crisis. The newspaper said that the secret exercise simulated a small pox hybrid virus that was dropped along the Mexican-American border. Officials who participated in the drill soon found themselves arguing as they were overwhelmed by a panicked population, short of the right antibiotics and vaccines, hampered by antiquated quarantine laws and unable to get trained, immunized medical staff to the area.

As was reported in this publication, President Clinton on 10 April met with a panel of experts he had convened to brief him on biological weapons. At the time, it was reported that the meeting concerned the general issue of terrorism. The Times reported on Sunday that the president, at that meeting, asked the panel to prepare a report suggesting ways the government could be better prepared to detect and deter a biological attack.

The report is expected to be submitted this week and will suggest the stockpiling of antidotes, vaccines and antibiotics and setting up ways to make large quantities fast. The experts will, according to the Times, also recommend strengthening the public health sector and streamlining the government processes for detecting and managing a biological crises.

According to the Times, experts widely disagreed on the likelihood of such a biological attack. This week, POTUS is expected to sign two new directives that provide a sweeping plan for dealing with chemical, biological or computer-related weapons.

The Times said the directives have created a fight in the government with the Defense and Justice Departments objecting to the creation a powerful anti-terrorist government agency. The current directives create a "national coordinator" with limited staff and no direct budget but the wide-ranging powers to handle government disputes and initiate action.