S. Korea holds first 'dirty bomb' attack exercise

By Lee Joon-seung
SEOUL, Nov. 17 (Yonhap) -- South Korea will hold its first "dirty bomb" attack
exercise to assess the preparedness of its emergency response system, the
government said Monday.

The exercise, planned for Tuesday at Jeju harbor on the country's largest island,
will involve the suppression of terrorists who have hijacked a ship, the
simulated detonation of a radiological dispersal device (RDD), or dirty bomb, and
emergency evacuation and decontamination efforts, the Ministry of Education,
Science and technology said.
RDDs do not cause catastrophic damage like conventional nuclear weapons, but are
designed to release radioactive material into the immediate vicinity and can pose
fatal health threats and destroy the environment.
Once the simulated attack has occurred, emergency teams will be sent in to
determine the extent of the damage, set up a no-entry perimeter, evacuate the
local population and start decontamination, according to the ministry.
Over 200 officials from the central and regional governments, the Coast Guard,
fire department and Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety will take part in the
exercise along with local hospitals and schools.
"It should give authorities a chance to check their action plan in case of an
attack and help raise public awareness about terrorism," said Lee Ki-sung, head
of the ministry's nuclear division.
The United States conducted a similar exercise called Top Officials Exercise-4 in
Guam in 2007.
yonngong@yna.co.kr
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