Bioterrorism is one of the greatest threats to U.S. national security. Dr. Greg Evans, director of the Center for the Study of Bioterrorism and Emerging Infections at Saint Louis University School of Public Health, is available to discuss this threat.
Evans says the risk of bioterrorism is increasing for several reasons, including what he calls a "biotechnology renaissance."
"Rapid advances in our understanding of biology are making it easier for countries, groups or individuals to develop bioweapons," Evans said. "We're also seeing greater access to equipment that can be used to develop these weapons, such as secondhand microbrewery equipment, and more readily available information in books and on the Internet."
"Terrorists are not interested in developing the perfect weapon. All they need is a crude weapon that can kill."
Evans said these weapons are capable of inflicting mass casualties.
"Historically, terrorists relied on acts that resulted in few casualties but high visibility. They wanted to make a political point," Evans says. "Today, terrorists have moved toward the belief that the only way they are going to get attention is to have mass casualties. Therefore, the more people they kill, the better they satisfy their terrorist goals."
Dr. Evans emphasizes that even though the United States has gained expertise in responding to natural disasters or terrorist attacks, it isn't necessarily prepared to handle a bioterrorist attack. "A majority of physicians have never seen a case of plague or anthrax, which means an attack could go unrecognized for days," he said. "Any bioterrorism attack will be managed locally until federal aid arrives, and that probably won't happen for 24 to 72 hours. We have to be ready to move immediately to contain and limit exposure."
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