Common Chemicals as Precursors of Improvised Explosive Devices : The Challenges of Defeating Domestic Terrorism
http://www.terrorisminfo.mipt.org/pdf/NPS-Thesis-Common-Chemicals-Precursors.pdf
This thesis, by James I. Rostberg, discusses "various options, policies and procedures to ascertain which would be most appropriate to defeat explosives manufactured from common chemicals. Options include removing, restricting, and tracking certain chemicals available to the public as well as increasing awareness to emergency responders and the public. State and federal legislation pertaining to methamphetamine laboratories is analyzed to identify potential crossover legislation to counter explosives manufacture. Intelligence gathering and information sharing technologies and procedures are assessed for effectiveness as law enforcement tools."
James I. Rostberg, September 2005.
(Last checked 04/20/07)

The "Dirty Bomb" Scenario
http://hps.org/documents/RDD_report.pdf
After Jose Padilla was arrested in 2002 for allegedly planning a "dirty bomb" attack, Attorney General John Ashcroft described such a device—conventional explosives wrapped around radioactive contaminants—as an instrument of "mass death and injury." A team at the National Defense University has spent the past year assessing the real nature of the threat, and its findings are disturbing: a successful dirty-bomb attack might contaminate an area the size of the Washington Mall, and the "maximum credible events" envisioned by the report could kill dozens or hundreds, sicken thousands, and ruin a metropolis (contaminated buildings would probably have to be razed and the debris carted off, along with a meter of topsoil, in what experts call "muck and truck"). Worse, terrorists might achieve the "dirty" results without the bomb, by quietly releasing radiation through smoke or an aerosol, so that the damage would be done before the attack was even noticed. To explore the consequences of such an attack, researchers looked at a real-life disaster that occurred in the city of Goiânia, Brazil, in 1987. Junk-metal pirates salvaged cesium from an abandoned radiation lab and passed the "glowing blue material" to family and friends. The cesium eventually spread through buses, ambulances, animal fur, bars, and restaurants, until 112,000 Brazilians were tested for radiation in an Olympic-size soccer stadium; 249 people were determined to have been contaminated, forty-nine were hospitalized, and five died. (Goiânia, bitter from the ensuing economic isolation and stigma, added the universal insignia for radioactivity to its flag.) Source: "Dirty Bombs: The Threat Revisited," Peter D. Zimmerman with Cheryl Loeb, National Defense University, cited in The Atlantic Monthly; April 2004; Primary Sources; Volume 293, No. 3; 42-44.
(Last checked 04/20/07)

Dirty Bombs (Fox News)
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,76873,00.html
What is it? How is it spread? What Are the Symptoms of Exposure? How Is It Treated? Who Has It/Where Can It Be Found? Courtesy of Fox News.
(Last checked 04/20/07)

Dirty Bombs (Nova)
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/dirtybomb/
Prying the toxic lid off the glowing can of worms made famous by alleged terrorist sympathizer Jose Padilla, Nova examines the facts and fallacies surrounding the hypothetical "dirty bomb." This companion site reviews past nuclear incidents, and examines sources of radiation found in our everyday environment.
(Last checked 04/20/07)

Dirty Bombs: Reference Center
http://www.bioterrorism.slu.edu/dirty.htm
A compilation of quick reference materials, news articles, and various other internet resources related to dirty bombs. Courtesy of the St. Louis University Center for the Study of Bioterrorism and Emerging Infectious Diseases.
(Last checked 04/20/07)

Emergency Preparedness : Bomb Threats
http://www.uwm.edu/Dept/EHSRM/EMERGENCY/bomb.html
Advisory from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Department of Environmental Health, Safety, and Risk Management.
(Last checked 04/20/07)

Explosions
http://www.ready.gov/america/beinformed/explosions.html
What to do if there is an explosion, fire, or debris. Courtesy of the Department of Homeland Security's Ready.gov web page.
(Last checked 04/20/07)

The Four Faces of Nuclear Terrorism (Bomb)
A new book from the Center for Nonproliferation Studies (CNS) warns that substandard security at nuclear facilities in Europe, Central Asia, Russia, and Pakistan increases the risk of terrorists seizing highly enriched uranium to make crude, but devastating, nuclear explosives. Led by CNS Director William Potter and CNS Scientist-in-Residence Charles Ferguson, a team of researchers, including Leonard Spector, Amy Sands, and Fred Wehling, conducted a two-year study of the motivations and capabilities of terrorist organizations to carry out attacks using stolen nuclear weapons, to construct and detonate crude nuclear weapons known as improvised nuclear devices (INDs), to strike nuclear power plants and other nuclear facilities, and to build and use radiological weapons or 'dirty bombs.'"
(Last checked 04/20/07)

Global Security’s Collection of GAO Reports on Nuclear/Chemical/Biological Terrorism
http://www.globalsecurity.org/security/library/report/gao/index.html#nuke-chem-bio
(Last checked 04/20/07)

A Guide for Explosion and Bombing Scene Investigation
http://www.ncjrs.org/pdffiles1/nij/181869.pdf
http://www.securitymanagement.com/library/nij_181869.pdf
Outlines the tasks that should be considered at every explosion scene, focusing on those related to the identification, collection, and preservation of evidence. Consistent collection of quality evidence in bombing cases will result in more successful investigations and prosecutions. This Research Report—designed to apply to highly complex and visible cases as well as those that attract less attention and fewer resources but may be just as complex for the investigator—discusses procuring equipment and tools, prioritizing initial response efforts, evaluating the scene, documenting the scene, processing evidence at the scene, and completing and recording the scene investigation. NCJ181869. June 2000.
(Last checked 04/20/07)

Loose Nukes
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,76881,00.html
What is it? How is it spread? What Are the Symptoms of Exposure? How Is It Treated? Who Has It/Where Can It Be Found? Courtesy of Fox News.
(Last checked 04/20/07)

Michigan Department of Community Health
Office of Public Emergency Preparedness
Radiological Emergencies Web page
http://www.michigan.gov/mdch/0,1607,7-132-2945_21919_22007-46264--,00.html
(Last checked 04/20/07)

National Homeland Security Knowledgebase
Hazardous Devices, Bombs, and Explosive Ordnance Emergencies
http://www.twotigersonline.com/resources.html#Bombs-1
Includes:

National Homeland Security Knowledgebase
Nuclear and Radiological Emergencies
http://www.twotigersonline.com/resources.html
Includes:

Nuclear Attack
http://www.nae.edu/NAE/pubundcom.nsf/weblinks/CGOZ-6DZLNU/$file/nuclear%20attack%2006.pdf
What is radioactive fallout, and how is it dangerous? What are the short term and long term effects of radiation exposure? What is the likely size of a nuclear explosion from an attack by terrorists? A fact sheet on one of four types of possible terrorist attacks. Designed primarily for reporters as part of the project News and Terrorism: Communicating in a Crisis, though they will be helpful to anyone looking for a clear explanation of the fundamentals of science, engineering, and health related to such attacks. From the National Academies and the Department of Homeland Security. National Research Council Division on Earth and Life Studies.
(Last checked 04/20/07)

Nuclear Threat
http://www.ready.gov/america/beinformed/nuclear.html
A nuclear blast is an explosion with intense light and heat, a damaging pressure wave and widespread radioactive material that can contaminate the air, water and ground surfaces for miles around. While experts may predict at this time that a nuclear attack is less likely than other types, terrorism by its nature is unpredictable. Courtesy of the Department of Homeland Security's Ready.gov web page.
(Last checked 04/20/07)

Package Bomb Indicators
http://www.emergency.com/pkgbomb.htm
Document courtesy of the U.S. Postal Inspector's Office. From EmergencyNet News Archives, 1994.
(Last checked 04/20/07)

Pascal's New Wager: The Dirty Bomb Threat Heightens
http://www.cdi.org/program/issue/document.cfm?DocumentID=
435&IssueID=59&StartRow=1&ListRows=10&appendURL=&Orderby=
DateLastUpdated&ProgramID=39&issueID=59
A Jan. 30 report from the British Broadcasting Corp. (BBC) claims al Qaeda's attempts to manufacture a 'dirty bomb' are much more advanced than was previously known. The report was based on previously undisclosed evidence released to the BBC by the U.K. authorities, including intelligence reports from British agents who had infiltrated al Qaeda training camps in Afghanistan. Al Qaeda training manuals detailing how to best use dirty bombs were also uncovered — as was a quantity of radioactive materials. According to the BBC, officials at the Porton Down defense research center in Wiltshire, England, where these materials were analyzed, concluded "al Qaeda had a small dirty bomb but probably not a full blown nuclear device." Center for Defense Information.
(Last checked 04/20/07)

Planning for Bomb Threats
http://web.archive.org/web/20030724220256/
http://www.iapsc.org/directory/publications/kennish8.html
Potential bombing incidents constitute a serious threat to employees, customers, assets, operations and facilities whether the motive is found in extortion, assault or an act of terror. Still available thanks to the Internet Archive.
(Last checked 04/20/07)

Pocket Guide for Emergency Responders to Ionizing Radiation Terrorism
http://www.afrri.usuhs.mil/www/outreach/pocketguide.htm
A free, downloadable pocket guide concerns terrorism with ionizing radiation and provides information such as diagnosis, treatment considerations, decontamination procedures, and public health reporting procedures. In the event of an emergency, it can be consulted quickly for assistance in assessing and controlling the situation. Courtesy of the Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute.
(Last checked 04/20/07)

Potential Threat to Homeland Using Heavy Transport Vehicles
http://agr.wa.gov/FoodSecurity/docs/ThreatBulletin.pdf
July 30, 2004 warning from the DHS and FBI about truck bombs. 7pp.
(Last checked 04/12/06)

Radiation Threat
http://www.ready.gov/america/beinformed/radiation.html
A radiation threat or "Dirty Bomb" is the use of common explosives to spread radioactive materials over a targeted area. It is not a nuclear blast. The force of the explosion and radioactive contamination will be more localized. While the blast will be immediately obvious, the presence of radiation will not be clearly defined until trained personnel with specialized equipment are on the scene. As with any radiation, you want to try to limit exposure. Courtesy of the Department of Homeland Security's Ready.gov web page.
(Last checked 04/20/07)

Radiological Attack : Dirty Bombs and Other Devices
http://www.nae.edu/NAE/pubundcom.nsf/weblinks/CGOZ-646NVG/$file/radiological%20attack%2006.pdf
What are radiological dispersal devices, a.k.a. "dirty bombs"? How are they different from nuclear bombs? What are their physical and psychological health effects? First in a series of factsheets on one of four types of possible terrorist attacks. Designed primarily for reporters as part of the project News and Terrorism: Communicating in a Crisis, though they will be helpful to anyone looking for a clear explanation of the fundamentals of science, engineering, and health related to such attacks. From the National Academies and the Department of Homeland Security. National Research Council Division on Earth and Life Studies.

(Last checked 07/13/06)

Suitcase Bomb
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,76990,00.html
What is it? How is it spread? What Are the Symptoms of Exposure? How Is It Treated? Who Has It/Where Can It Be Found? Courtesy of Fox News.
(Last checked 04/20/07)

Radiological Links
http://www.dshs.state.tx.us/preparedness/radiological/
Resources provided by the Texas Department of State Health Services.
(Last checked 04/20/07)

Tools for Nuclear Emergencies:
Potassium Iodide, Radiation Detectors, Fallout Shelters, Information Resources
http://www.twotigersonline.com/
Comprehensive information resources and products for preparation and reaction for preparation for and reaction to nuclear, biological and chemical disasters.
(Last checked 04/20/07)

U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
Dirty Bombs Fact Sheet
http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/fact-sheets/dirty-bombs.html
A "dirty bomb" or radiological dispersal device (RDD) is a conventional explosive or bomb containing radioactive material. The conventional bomb is used as a means to spread radioactive contamination. It is not a nuclear bomb and does not involve a nuclear explosion. Any type of radioactive material could be used in a dirty bomb, but in general these devices would be unlikely to cause serious health effects beyond those caused by the detonation of conventional explosives.
(Last checked 04/20/07)

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