Emergency responders put nerves to the test
Drill aims to reproduce the unpredictable feel of a terrorist attack
BY JENNIFER AMATO
Staff Writer

PHOTOSBY SCOTT PILLING staff Above, North Brunswick Police Sgt. Anthony Falcone radios in for assistance after evaluating the scene of a chemical attack on the former Johnson & Johnson property on Route 1 on Saturday. The simulated drill was an exercise evaluating the emergency response services of all organizations involved with the Department of Public Safety. At left, a "victim" lies on the floor awaiting rescue.

Editor's note: The following account occurred as a training exercise coordinated by the North Brunswick Township Department of Public Safety. Although the incident happened as described, the events were simulated and no one was injured.

The North Brunswick Police Department received a phone call Saturday morning from a man claiming there were explosive devices located in a building at the former Johnson & Johnson property on Route 1. He said that a group angered by possible animal testing had planted chemicals in the building, prompting the department to immediately dispatch officers to the site.

When first responders Patrolman Wayne DeGaetano and Sgt. Anthony Falcone arrived on scene, they tended to a victim who had run out of the building. The man was coughing, holding his eyes and rolling on the ground, yelling that he couldn't breathe or see. As a call was made to the command post, who in turn notified the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Homeland Security Joint Terrorism Task Force and the Middlesex County HAZMAT and hostage rescue team, a woman emerged from the building, coughing and holding herself, saying there was smoke throughout the building.

At that point, a third responding officer, Cory Harris, arrived wearing a gas mask and moved into the building, helping a woman who was on her knees. Falcone then entered, seeing a man lying near a barrel believed to be filled with the chemical substance. At this time, Falcone became contaminated and was removed from the scene. As a result, Harris was forced to take control of the subsequent operations as a secondary explosive device was triggered.

Simultaneous to the police response, members of the fire department arrived to conduct a search and rescue operation. Three teams of firemen went room by room searching for victims. People were found behind copy machines, in bathrooms trying to wash out their eyes, hiding in cabinets and banging on windows.

Concurrent to the rescue operation, Capt. Joe Anderson of the first aid squad assumed the position of EMS branch director and began coordinating a response. He contacted resources in Kendall Park, Monmouth Junction, Milltown, Monroe, Old Bridge, Edison, Metuchen, Rutgers University, Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital and the University of Medicine and Dentistry.

He also dispatched EMS Capt. Gregory Hales directly to the incident site to coordinate a triage, treatment and transportation center. As the firemen pulled out each of the 32 victims, they were brought to a decontamination area, with three-fourths of them needing to be hosed down with water to remove the chemicals. They were marked with a tag stating their personal information, injuries and severity of their condition. Most were treated at the scene for respiratory complaints, and there were no fatalities.

At the same time, the chemical cloud began to travel southeast toward about 2,000 homes in the Renaissance development. There was a family who was told they needed to be evacuated but refused to leave their home. They resisted police but were eventually brought to a temporary shelter set up at the high school by the Office of Emergency Management, where other residents were waiting.

The investigation

An investigation was begun immediately by the North Brunswick Detective Bureau. The most common description provided by witnesses was a 6-foot-2-inch blond, blue-eyed woman wearing all black and a 5-foot-8-inch man wearing an orange sweatshirt, a green shirt and red shorts, escaping from the building while carrying guns.

Detective Lt. Jim Curry said that all victims were evaluated as potential witnesses or suspects. A man wearing a green and red ensemble was located in the treatment area and was handcuffed as he tried to flee the scene. Although Jerry Rooth tried explaining to police that his uncle is a member of the first aid squad in town, which is why he was visiting North Brunswick, the first aid captain denied knowing anyone by the name of Rooth when he was called. Detective Michael McGinn said that during a 15-minute interrogation, Rooth's story was not consistent, and several victims had identified him as a suspect. Rooth was taken into investigative detention, where it was determined that he was responsible for the attack.

Lessons learned from drill

Rooth was literally handcuffed and interrogated but was merely acting in the drill and did not suffer any injuries. He said he was treated well, but the men acted as true detectives do.

"It was kind of in fun, but it was part of what they needed to do, so they took it seriously," he said. "The questions were pretty aggressive … and I was surprised they put me in handcuffs, which I didn't think they would do, but it was so real I appreciate the process of what they go through."

Realistic nature aside, general concerns did exist with the exercise, including delays in action, prolonged response times and traffic over the radios. The public safety organizations in town will now conduct a mass critique of the exercise, evaluating what happened correctly and what needs to be improved, which was the purpose of the drill.

"We learned the critical need for manning the command post and following the protocols of the incident command system, because in such a situation, you are overwhelmed and it is good for the supervisors to see how quickly the demands of a situation really exceed your capacity," said acting Police Capt. Michael Misurell, who coordinated the drill with First Aid Squad Chief Jeff Steinman.

Misurell cited other challenges such as officers having to perform rescue operations with gas masks on, which hinders communication; the necessity of documenting information accurately; and the critical need for communication between all agencies.

"If we were in a real response, we wouldn't know where [victims were] in this building. Today we closed off a certain section, but it would've been a much longer search because we wouldn't know where to stop," firefighter Tim Morley said.

The interoperability of the new emergency services radio system was also put to a test, with communication going smoothly for the most part.

"When you do a drill like this, you learn a lot. Could it be better? Of course it could … but the purpose is to learn a lot," said Anderson. "It was a good coordinated effort. There was a unified command system … with communication face to face … [to] cut down on chatter."

Overall, EMS personnel believe that North Brunswick is prepared in the event of such an attack in town. Yet they will continue to improve their methods in order to assure the 38,000 residents who trust in them that they will provide the safest response possible.

"I think it's important in this day and age that we test our services and continually practice to see how we can improve. That's why my goal is to do this on an annual basis so that the services we provide to our residents are the best they can be," said Police Director Kenneth McCormick.

For the training exercise, High Grade Beverage and the North Brunswick Pub provided refreshments. John Taikina, of property owner TOD Associates, allowed the township the use of the site.