Keep this booklet in a convenient place where your entire family can find it. More important, discuss the emergency information in this booklet with family members and friends. This booklet tells you what to do if there is a chemical accident at the Bluegrass Army Depot.

This is information is provided by Clark County Emergency Management and Clark County CSEPP with the help of Kentucky Emergency Management and the Department of the Army. This information can protect you in an emergency.

Information on the Web

Alert and Notification	3
Ready Set Act	4
Evacuation Information	5
Evacuation Kit	6
Shelter in Place Information	7
Shelter in Place Kit	8
Nerve Agents	9
Blister Agents	10
CSEPP Map	11
Evacuation Instructions	12
Family Disaster Supply Kit	13
Family Disaster Plan	14
Kids Come First	15
CSEPP Kid’s Corner	16
Important Telephone Number	19

In 1985, Congress directed the Army to destroy its entire stockpile of chemical weapons in the safest manner possible. Many of these weapons are 40 years old or older and were built to deter other countries from using chemical weapons of their own against the United States. While the risk of an accident or incident involving the stored chemical is very small, the increasing age of the weapons increases the risk.

The Chemical Stockpile Emergency Preparedness Program (CSEPP) is an outstanding example of partnership among the Department of the Army, FEMA, States, Tribal Nations and local jurisdictions. The common goal among these government agencies is to develop and enhance the emergency preparedness capabilities of the in the unlikely event of a chemical accident at the Blue Grass Army Depot.

Ten States, 41 counties, and one Tribal Nation surrounding the eight U.S. Army stockpile sites participate in CSEPP. The eight States hosting installations with chemical stockpiles are: Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Oregon, and Utah. Two additional States, Illinois and Washington, also participate in the program because of their borders’ proximity to the stockpiles in Indiana and Oregon, respectively. The Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Reservation in Oregon also actively participate in the program. Thirteen (13) counties are in Immediate Response Zones, the areas closest to where the chemical agents are stored and generally within approximately a ten-mile radius. Twenty-five counties are in Protective Action Zones, beginning at the outer edge of the Immediate Response Zones and extending to a distance of between six and 31 miles. The remaining three counties are designated as host counties, which lie outside the Immediate Response Zones and Protective Action Zones.

In Kentucky, Madison County is classified as an Immediate Response Zone (IRZ), Clark, Estill, Garrard, Jackson, Powell and Rockcastle are classified as Protective Action Zones (PAZ), and Fayette, Jessamine and Laurel are classified as Host counties.

CSEPP is administered through the States. Funds are distributed to the States under Cooperative Agreements, based upon a negotiated work plan between the States and FEMA Regional Offices. Under the agreements, each State identifies needs, develops proposed projects to meet those needs, requests funds, and disburses those funds at the State level and to local governments. CSEPP focuses on providing the personnel, equipment, and training necessary to establish a response infrastructure that enables emergency managers to quickly alert the public, manage the response, and communicate with the public, the media, and emergency responders. Equally important is public awareness of what to do in the event of an incident.

Since the beginning of the program, CSEPP communities have made significant progress and our communities are included amongst those best prepared in the nation.

The Blue Grass Chemical Activity, which is located on the Blue Grass Army Depot, near Richmond, Kentucky, has the responsibility for the storage, monitoring and eventual destruction of all chemical munitions stored there.

The three types of chemical agents stored at Blue Grass Chemical Activity include a blister agent, known as “mustard”, which began arriving in the 1940’s, and two nerve agents, GB and VX that began arriving in the 1960’s. The “mustard” blister agent is designed to incapacitate personnel while GB and VX, which are nerve agents, are designed to cause death.

All chemical munitions are stored in concrete bunkers covered with several feet of earth and called igloo’s. These “igloos” are in a high security area behind multiple razor wired fences with an around – the – clock armed security force authorized to use deadly force. The three liquid chemical agents are stored in different types of munitions. The agents are primarily contained in 155mm and 8” projectiles as well as M55 115mm rockets. The rockets contain either GB or VX agent and are fully assembled with agent, bursting charges, rocket propellant, rocket motors and igniters.

The chemical stockpile are monitored daily. Each day, emergency response plans are relayed to the Madison Co. Emergency Management Agency and the Emergency Operations Center. The plan factors in the location work, type of munitions and the local weather conditions.

Each Igloo containing M55 rockets is monitored once a week by the atmosphere of the igloo. The sample must be free of any trace of agent before the doors can be opened. On a rotating basis, more thorough sampling takes place as an air sample is drawn from a storage tube of individual rockets. Chemical detection plays an extremely important part in monitoring of the chemical stockpile and the sophisticated equipment used can detect samples well bellow the hazardous level.

Should alarms sound or personnel at the chemical activity report a positive reading, an emergency response team is immediately activated. Workers leave the igloo, which is sealed and an air filtration system designed to remove agent is started. Most leaks of chemicals are detected at a level that is less than the amount that would come from a short burst of bug spray dispersed evenly inside a 2,000 square foot home.

All chemical activity employees and equipment are available for responding to a chemical emergency. Emergency response procedures are tested often and unannounced full-scale tests are conducted at different times to evaluate the ability to respond.

If there is an accident at the Blue Grass Army Depot, you will be notified in the same ways that you are notified during other emergencies such as severe weather.

Tune into a local Emergency Alert System (EAS), formerly known as the Emergency Broadcast System. Through EAS, designated radio and television stations provide important emergency information. EAS is a direct link between you and public safety officials. You will be told what to do, day or night.

WVLK	93.0 Lexington
WKQQ	100.1 Lexington
WYAH	93.7 Winchester

WVLK	590		WLAP	630
			WQBK398 (Winchester Traveler Information)	1610

WLEX

WKYT

WTVQ

FOX

The Bluegrass Army Depot, located in east central Kentucky, near the city of Richmond is one of eight locations in the nation where chemical weapons are stockpiled. Other sites are located in Anniston, Alabama; Pine Bluff, Arkansas; Pueblo, Colorado; Newport, Indiana; Edgewood, Maryland; Umatilla, Oregon; and Deseret, Utah.

The Depot stores liquid nerve agents that could hurt you if you are exposed during a chemical stockpile accident. Nerve agents were created as a military weapon to kill. They interfere with what the nerves tell the body to do and can cause you to stop breathing and die.

A portion of Clark County has been designated as a "protective action zone" or PAZ. In the unlikely event of a chemical accident occurring at BGAD, persons living downwind of the accident could be at risk. Depending on the type of accident and weather conditions, persons in the Clark County PAZ may be told to shelter in place or evacuate. Only persons within the PAZ would be required to take protective actions. To find out if your home, office or school is located in the PAZ, check the CSEPP PAZ map on page 13.

Your town and county emergency plans won’t work unless you do your part. You and your family, co-workers and neighbors need to be Ready and Set to Act quickly – whether at home, at work or at another location in your community – if there is a chemical stockpile accident at the Bluegrass Army Depot or even more likely a hazardous material release.

Know how you will hear about an emergency. Emergency officials use outdoor warning sirens, radio and television. Some communities use additional systems, such as electronic message boards on highways. Learn which Emergency Alert System (EAS) radio and TV stations broadcast emergency messages for your community. Know what to do to be safe – shelter-in-place, evacuate or remain indoors and monitor an EAS station if no other protective action is recommended. Unless you are told to evacuate, stay off the roads so that those who have been instructed to leave and emergency responders are not hampered by unnecessary traffic. Know your community’s emergency zones and evacuation routes. Know whether home, work and other places you visit (park, friend’s home, doctor’s office, shopping center, etc.) may be in a danger area. Know the plans your child’s school and day care or recreation center has developed to keep them safe.

Set means, “Get it together.” Gather items to keep with you or in your car, home and workplace, and make:

A Shelter-In-Place Kit and an Evacuation Kit for any type of emergency that may occur. You will also need a list of important phone numbers, including an out-of-town contact that family members can call after the emergency to say they are safe. Keep a copy of the list with you at all times and in your emergency kits. You will need a plan for home and work. After learning about your community’s emergency plans, decide exactly what you, family members and co-workers will do and how you are going to do it if you are told to evacuate or shelter-in-place. Consider what you will do when you are at home, at work, at a friend’s home, at a shopping center, at a doctor’s office, at a sports stadium or park, etc. Assign tasks and determine who will care for minors or people with special needs. Practice your shelter-in-place and evacuation plans often.

Act means, “Do it.” If a chemical stockpile accident or hazardous material release happens:

Do what emergency officials recommend -- shelter-in-place, evacuate or stay where you are and monitor an EAS station for updates on the situation. Act immediately. Seconds matter. Don’t waste time looking for information or items not readily at hand.

Pets: Most American Red Cross shelters will not accept pets. Find out whether your community has special plans for pet care. Do you need to make your own pet care plan? Don’t delay departure or divert from the most direct designated evacuation route to look for or board your pet. Your family’s safety is more important. Always leave your pet with enough food and water for a few days. Pick an out-of-town “family contact” for family members to call if you are separated. Put the contact’s phone number on your list of important phone numbers and have everyone memorize the number. Learn about emergency plans for your child’s school or daycare, for the nursing home or other facility where loved ones with special needs stay. Do not call 9-1-1 or use the phone during an emergency unless there is a life-threatening situation, such as a heart attack. If you might need or can offer a ride to someone without transportation in an evacuation, arrange this now.

Evacuation means to leave where you are and go to a safe place. Clark County emergency officials may ask residents of the PAZ or Protective Action Zone to evacuate temporarily because of a chemical agent accident at the Bluegrass Army Depot or during a hazardous material release any where in the county. They will tell you what areas to evacuate, what roads to take, which way to go and when it’s safe to return. Evacuations are carefully planned to get people out of an area safely and quickly. Clark County emergency officials already have evacuation plans for your community. To stay safe, leave immediately if advised to do so.

· Listen to emergency messages on local radio and television to find out if you are in an area that needs to evacuate. Write down the roads you should take and where you should go or use the map on Page 11.

· If you don’t know which stations are your Emergency Alert System (EAS) stations, find out now. Ask Winchester/Clark County Emergency Management or CSEPP Office (859)745-7415 where to find the stations on your AM and FM dials and programs an EAS station on your car radio.

· Take essentials for your health and safety, such as medications and eyeglasses. Don’t take time to gather anything else.

· Keep car windows and air vents closed as you travel away from the danger area. Turn off the car’s air conditioner or heater.

· Do not call 9-1-1 unless you have a life-threatening situation such as a heart attack.

· If you need a ride, try to get a ride with a neighbor. If you can offer transportation to a close-by neighbor, co-worker or unattended child without transportation, who can leave immediately, do so.

· If you can’t evacuate for any reason, take shelter inside a building immediately. (See Shelter-in-Place fact sheet for more information on making your shelter as airtight as possible.) Listen to your EAS station(s) for further instructions and information.

· The schools will protect your children by evacuating or sheltering them. Don’t go to your child’s school unless told to do so by emergency or school officials. Listen to an EAS station to hear where and when to pick up your children.

· If you don’t know what areas in your community may be at risk, call Winchester/Clark County Emergency Management or CSEPP Office now, so you will have the information if you need it. Find out whether the places you live, work and visit (such as church, shopping centers and doctor’s office) are within the area that may be at risk.

· Contact Winchester/Clark County Emergency Management now to see if you should take pets with you. If not, bring them indoors (if you can find them quickly) and leave food and water for them.

· Talk with your family (or business associates) now about your plans for evacuating. Assign each person a job so that you can leave quickly. Establish a place to meet your family (outside of the affected area) if you are not together when told to evacuate.

Be prepared to evacuate immediately for an emergency such as a chemical agent accident at the Bluegrass Army Depot or hazardous material release. Make your Evacuation Kit now so that you can leave quickly from home, work, shopping or elsewhere if your local officials instruct you to Evacuate. Always keep with you: a list of important phone numbers and prescriptions, driver’s license, identification, insurance and credit cards, check book and a 24-hour supply of prescription medications. Keep in your car at all times: a radio, evacuation maps (Page 11), flashlight with extra batteries, a blanket and one-quarter tank of fuel.

Evacuation Kit items you may need: Store them in your car so that you can leave quickly.

ü A change of clothes for each person in your family (Remember to swap out the clothes each season. For example, store shorts in the summer, jackets and sweaters in the winter.)

ü Phone list with important work, school and medical numbers (Include the number for an out-of-town relative or friend whom each person in your family can call to say he or she is safe. If your family is not together when you need to evacuate, this is a good way to account for everyone.)

The last-minute additions: Make a list of the items and put the list in a prominent place so you can find it and the items quickly before evacuating. If you can’t find these items quickly, leave without them.

ü Health and safety items you can’t keep with you or store in advance but would need if you had to evacuate

ü Pets (Put your pet in a cage. Check with your local Emergency Management Agency now to see if there are special arrangements for pets. Most American Red Cross shelters will not allow pets.)

Be Ready. Know what to do if you are instructed to evacuate. Be confident that you, your family members and co-workers have prepared and practiced your evacuation plans so that everyone will be safe, even when the family is apart. Have your Evacuation Kit Set to go out the door or keep it in your car. Keep essentials with you or in your car at all times. Act immediately if instructed to evacuate. Listen carefully to Emergency Alert System (EAS) messages on EAS radio stations for the safest route out of your area -- and to learn when it’s safe to return home.

Shelter-in-Place is an effective way to protect you from harmful chemicals that may be in the air. Emergency officials may tell you to Shelter-in-Place if an accident the Bluegrass Army Depot sends nerve or blister agent into the air or a hazardous material release occurs. It is important to take shelter immediately, and to end shelter immediately when told to do so.

Shelter-in-Place is a short-term protection. It requires you to stay inside a sealed room for no more than a few hours until the outside air is again safe to breathe. Harmful vapors can work their way into a closed building and even a sealed room. Therefore, you must leave your shelter when experts decide the outside air is cleaner than what may be inside. Depending on the situation, you may be told to ventilate the shelter and building, go outside or leave the area.

Shelter-in-Place means that you go inside your home or the nearest accessible building without delay. Close and lock all windows and doors. Turn off heating, air conditioning and fans (any ventilation system). Shut air vents (heating, cooling, circulation and fireplace or wood-stove dampers). Quickly shut yourself in a room you can seal off from outside air. Select a room with as few exterior windows or other openings as possible so that you can quickly seal it. Block all openings to the room where outside air can leak in. If possible, use pre-cut plastic sheeting and duct tape to seal cracks and openings that may allow outside air to come into that room.

Take a radio into your shelter so that you can monitor an Emergency Alert System (EAS) station for further instructions. If you don’t know which stations are your EAS stations, call Winchester/Clark County Emergency Management or CSEPP Office now to find out (859-745-7415). If the shelter room you selected has no phone, take a cordless or cellular phone with you if you have one.

· Do not call 9-1-1 unless there is a life-threatening situation such as a heart attack.

· The schools will protect your children by evacuating or sheltering them. Tune to a local radio or TV station to learn where and when to pick up your children.

· Go to a small room with few vents, windows and doors. A bathroom may be a good choice if you can seal all openings that might allow outside air into the room.

· Bring a radio with spare batteries, medicine, food or liquids that you might need over the next several hours. If you have a tone-alert radio (indoor warning system) that will work in the shelter room, take it with you.

Follow instructions immediately when told to end shelter. In order to bring fresh, clean air inside for you to breathe, you may be told to let outside air into the shelter and building as quickly as possible. Open windows and doors and turn on all air circulation systems and equipment. Thorough and quick ventilation, once local officials tell you to do so, is crucial so that you breathe fresh air as soon as possible.

You may be told to remain indoors in a well-ventilated location, to go outside or to leave the area and go to a specific location for medical screening and to ensure that everyone leaving the area is accounted for. If you cannot leave the area, you will be given special instructions to keep you safe where you are.

If you know you will not be able to follow shelter or end shelter instructions quickly and effectively without help, ask a neighbor or nearby relative about assistance or call Winchester/Clark County Emergency Management now to assist you with your personal or family emergency plan.