The recent incidents across the nation, including the Anthrax scare at a Catholic church in Cheektowaga, NY have once again reminded us that Terrorism is alive and thriving right here in our own country. No longer do we think of a terrorist act as only a car bomb or a building being blown up. The threat as we enter a new century is nuclear, biological and chemical. As 8 of our citizens found out on a rainy day in a church rectory, the threat can be a simple envelope delivered by the U.S. Postal Service. It may turn out to be a hoax or the real thing, but in either case, each incident must and has to be treated as the real thing. The response to a biological incident involves the same emergency responders as any other chemical incident. The problem is that this threat very often is an unknown agent and must be responded to accordingly. In the past the responsibility of a Hazardous Materials Response Team was to respond to the release or spill and remove the danger and if necessary perform decontamination.

Also in the past the need to respond to a biological incident was an extremely rare occurrence if it even occurred at all. The advent of terrorism has changed all of that. Twelve incidents took place across the country over the span of a week and a half. Three threatening letters were delivered on the same day, one to Cheektowaga, one to Indiana and a third to Chicago. In each case a full scale response was required. Fortunately for all involved, the incidents all turned out to be a hoax. For ten years, the Erie County Hazardous Materials Organization known as ECHO has responded to spills and releases all over the county. . ECHO is an all volunteer organization, sponsored and supported by Erie County with members from all areas of expertise.

The team also assists the City of Buffalo and other hazmat teams in the county with the ECHO Decontamination Unit, a 40 foot trailer with on board decon showers for decontamination of victims and responders. On that night in November the ECHO team responded to the new threat, the Anthrax scare and decontaminated the 8 victims confined to the church rectory. ECHO and the other emergency personnel directed by on scene Disaster Coordinator Earl Loder and with assistance from the ECMC Smart Team of doctors performed an admirable job. The future we know will bring more and more challenges to ECHO and all responders in the county.