London 2012 Olympics At Risk Of Chemical Attack Says Medical Response Chief

Online, February 28, 2011 (Newswire.com) - The former Commandant of Olympic Hospital CBRN (Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear) Response Unit at the Athens 2004 Olympics has chastised the planners of London 2012 for not properly reaching out to the international community to assess the security strategy and has stated that the general assessment by the government that a CBRN terrorist attack on the Capital as being an unlikely possibility is "deadly wrong".

In an interview with Defence IQ, Brigadier General (Ret'd) Galatas Ioannis related that his first-hand experience in dealing with UK CBRN agencies and response leaders had demonstrated a distinct lack of proper planning.

"If somebody is deeply involved in planning for this specific area, it is difficult for that person to identify any gaps or deficiencies [than] if you allow an outsider to have a fresh look at the plan. That was the reality with the international advisory security team at Athens.

"Whenever I am in a conference in which British officials are presenting, they distribute a feeling that everything is perfect and ready so that they can do the Olympics tomorrow. Then when someone from the audience starts to ask specific questions, you can see long faces, and they get offended because they think we are trying to embarrass them in public. This is not the purpose.

"We have done the Games - you have not done the Games yet. So why not use our knowledge of the subject for the benefit of your guests? If a big terrorist event like a CBRN event happened, I think the UK will go back in time for many, many years. This is a chance that is not acceptable."

Other industry specialists have supported the perception of unpreparedness inherent to government agencies and local authorities, accusing them of holding an "elitist philosophy" and relying solely on the abilities of inadequately trained emergency services.

Galatas and others were speaking ahead of the 2011 CBRN Resilience conference taking place in London. The event, which will be held at the Mayfair Conference Centre from March 29-30, will bring together senior global specialists, responders and military to discuss improved operability and training.

The original podcast of this interview and event booking forms can all be found by visiting www.cbrnresilience.com, by emailing [email protected], or by phoning +44 (0)20 7368 9300.

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