Tuesday, March 6, 2012

D-tect Systems Counters Newly Discovered ‘Dirty Bomb’ Threats

Draper, Utah, February 3, 2011 – D-tect Systems, a leader provider of radiological and chemical security products, is a long time participant in the war against terrorism.  The silent technology battles of security vs. terrorists have remained, for the most part, out of sight and out of mind for most Americans.  A shift, however, is underway that may bring this battle much closer. 

An article entitled “WikiLeaks: al-Qaeda ‘is planning a dirty bomb’”1 was released yesterday by The Telegraph news organization.  According to the article, leaked diplomatic documents published by WikiLeaks portray much greater advances in terrorist technologies than previously thought, especially in the field of radiological warfare, such as ‘dirty bombs.’  These bombs, though lacking the raw power of nuclear weapons, have the potential to produce devastating effects because they disperse radiation-emitting substances over a large area.  Exposure to various types of radiation has serious medical implications: burns, loss of sight, long-term diseases such as cancer, and even death.  The materials for making these bombs are much easier to gather than nuclear weapons-grade material: the article cites examples of increased radioactive material trafficking in various parts of the world. 

Although the new information published by WikiLeaks is shocking, the US government has known about the threat of ‘dirty bombs’ for years.  In fact, the US Department of Health included this in a 2007 handbook for response for radiation emergencies: “government authorities and other experts believe a real probability exists that a radiological or nuclear device could be used in a terrorism attack in the future.”  The fact is that response to these concerns has been slow.  Precious few gamma or neutron radiation systems are in place in the United States.  Less than 25% of American hospitals, a logical target of terrorist organizations, have the equipment and training capabilities to deal with the event of a dirty bomb. 

Morgan Taylor, president of D-tect Systems, discusses the magnitude of newly-discovered threats.  “Preparation is key.  To effectively combat threats such as these, the technology to find and contain radiation has to already be in place.  It’s too late once it happens.”

D-tect Systems has long known of the threats facing the American people and provides a line of radiation and chemical detectors, used globally as well as by the Department of Homeland Security, to counter this danger.  D-tect Systems products include the MiniRad-D, a small, pager sized radiation detector containing a sensitive radiation detection system, has been used by police and military forces for years, and the handheld Rad-ID device which can not only detect radiation, but can also identify 110 different radioactive istopes, giving emergency response personnel the lifesaving edge to control and contain dangerous materials. 

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