|
CLEAN AIR
Many potential terrorist attacks could send
tiny microscopic "junk" into the air. For example, an explosion
may release very fine debris that can cause lung damage. A
biological attack may release germs that can make you sick if
inhaled or absorbed through open cuts. Many of these agents can
only hurt you if they get into your body, so think about
creating a barrier between yourself and any
contamination.
Nose and Mouth Protection
Face masks or dense-weave cotton material,
that snugly covers your nose and mouth and is
specifically fit for each member of the family. Do whatever you
can to make the best fit possible for children.
Be prepared to improvise with what you have on hand to protect
your nose, mouth, eyes and cuts in your skin. Anything that fits
snugly over your nose and mouth, including any dense-weave
cotton material, can help filter contaminants in an emergency.
It is very important that most of the air you breathe comes
through the mask or cloth, not around it. Do whatever you can to
make the best fit possible for children. There are also a
variety of face masks readily available in hardware stores that
are rated based on how small a particle they can filter in an
industrial setting.
Given the different types of attacks that could occur, there is
not one solution for masking. For instance, simple cloth face
masks can filter some of the airborne "junk" or germs you might
breathe into your body, but will probably not protect you from
chemical gases. Still, something over your nose and
mouth in an emergency is better than nothing. Limiting
how much "junk" gets into your body may impact whether or not
you get sick or develop disease.
Other Barriers
There are circumstances when staying put and
creating a barrier between yourself and potentially contaminated
air outside, a process known as
"shelter-in-place,"
is a matter of survival. You can use these things to tape up
windows, doors and air vents if you need to seal off a room from
outside contamination. Consider precutting and labeling these
materials. Anything you can do in advance will save time when it
counts.
Use available information to assess the situation.
If you see large amounts of debris in the air, or if local
authorities say the air is badly contaminated, you can use these
things to tape up windows, doors and air vents if you need to
seal off a room.
HEPA (High Efficiency Particulate Air
Filtration) Filter Fans
Once you have sealed a room with plastic
sheeting and duct tape you may have created a better barrier
between you and any contaminants that may be outside. However,
no seal is perfect and some leakage is likely. In addition to
which, you may find yourself in a space that is already
contaminated to some degree.
Consider a portable air
purifier, with a
HEPA filter, to help remove contaminants from
the room where you are sheltering. These highly efficient
filters have small sieves that can capture very tiny particles,
including some biological agents. Once trapped within a HEPA
filter contaminants cannot get into your body and make you sick.
While these filters are excellent at filtering dander, dust,
molds, smoke, biological agents and other contaminants, they
will not stop chemical gases.
Some people, particularly those with severe allergies and
asthma, use HEPA filters in masks, portable air purifiers as
well as in larger home or industrial models to continuously
filter the air.
|
