Don't Panic

If you lose your head, you're going to lose your life. There are several common sense things that you can do to survive a chemical or biological attack.

What can I do?

The first thing that you need to do is leave the affected area if you're still walking. If the agent is persistent or the attack is ongoing, you want to limit your exposure. You don't want to be down wind of the attack.

You should seek shelter. Think of these agents like rain or fog. Things that would protect you from that should be helpful in protecting you. You may not have a military chemical protective suit, but you might have a rain jacket. That will protect you exposed skin*. Go inside, but shut off the ventilation. Get in your car, but raise the windows, and shut the vents. If you have air conditioning, turn it on Max AC. That will create a slight overpressure in the vehicle.

Once you're away from the scene of the attack, you need to decontaminate yourself. If you're still ambulatory, take your clothes off and put them in a plastic bag. That will remove most of the contamination from you. Then wash yourself. Soap and water is an effective decon for most agents. Be careful about washing your hair. You want to protect your eyes; they're extremely vulnerable to chemical agents. You do not want to wash agent from your hair into your eyes!

Pay attention to the news. They should be able to advise you of which chemical agent you were exposed to in short order. They may have advice for you to follow. Some agents take hours to take affect. With other agents, if you survive the initial attack and decon, if you're still alive, you'll be fine.

Military Response

The military initially made these weapons, and modern armies are equipped to operate in contaminated areas. Against a modern army, chemical weapons merely degrade the performance of troops in the field because of the protective that they have to take. The use of chemical weapons to kill or injure the enemy is not likely to be successful.

Military forces have a huge advantage over civilians in that they are trained and equipped to operate in contaminated environments. No one wants to, and some pains will be taken to avoid them, however, soldiers are equipped to protect, decontaminate, and to a limited extent, treat themselves. Units will have equipment to detect chemical agents in the air or condensed in puddles. They will also have equipment to decon vehicles and equipment.

Soldiers are issued protective masks that protect the eyes and respiratory system of the soldier. These are two of the most easily affected parts of the body. They are also issued suits that protect the skin from the agents.

The military uses many common sense methods of preventing harm to their forces by biological agents including hygiene, fitness, and inoculation. Biological agents are diseases that have been transformed into weapons. Many of the things we do to prevent disease in the home will aide the military in the field. Soldiers are urged to keep clean. Sanitary conditions in camps are maintained. Soldiers maintain a high level of fitness so that they can fight off infection. Before deployment, soldiers are immunized against common disease for the theatre of operations. Sometimes, inoculations for things like Anthrax, are available, and soldiers receive them *.