What to do if there is a biological attack

Official updatesLU-Alert · RTL, 100.7 · 112

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Move away from the substance or the area at once. If you are at home and the alert names your area, stay inside unless the authorities tell you to leave.
Cover your nose and mouth with several layers of fabric, such as a folded scarf or T-shirt, until you are away from the area.
Take off your outer clothes and shoes as soon as you can. Put them in a plastic bag, close it, and keep it away from other people.
Wash your hands, face and hair with soap and plenty of water, then put on clean clothes.
Call Status: Verified if you were close to the release or anyone feels ill, and say what happened and where.
Switch on the radio, Status: Verified, and watch for LU-Alert messages. The health authorities say who may have been exposed and where to get checked or treated.
If you are told to stay inside, close the windows and doors and switch off the ventilation, as for a chemical leak.

Under Luxembourg’s CBRN plan, the government announces protective measures through LU-Alert, the radio and infocrise. See Alerts and sirens.
In a Loss of power in your street or part of town, usually for a few hours.Loss of power in your street or part of town, usually for a few hours.Power cuts and blackouts or when networks are overloaded, the radio comes first: Status: Verified. Keep a battery or wind-up radio in the emergency kit.

Strong plastic bags that close, for clothes you take off.
Soap, hand gel and a spare set of clothes and shoes for each person.
Scarves or cotton cloths you can fold into layers to cover your nose and mouth.
Your medicines for at least Status: Verified, in case you are told to stay at home.

Learn now how to switch off the ventilation or air conditioning at home and at work.
If your home has a ventilation system with filters, ask a heating or ventilation technician whether it can take a high-efficiency (HEPA) filter. The US guidance recommends one.

Follow the advice of the health authorities on who needs to be checked or treated, and where to go.
Keep the bag of clothes closed until the authorities say how to get rid of it.
Share only what official channels confirm. Do not spread rumours about the cause or how it is spreading.
Feeling anxious after an attack is a normal reaction. Talk about it with the people around you, and see Coping with a crisis if it does not ease.
If the authorities announce an outbreak that spreads from person to person, follow Epidemic.

Help them take off their outer clothes and wash, and explain in plain words that this washes the germs away.
Do not drive to the school or crèche unless the authorities say so. Schools follow the same official instructions.

If you need help to undress or wash, ask someone you trust and tell them what happened, so they can protect themselves too.
Keep your medicines and any equipment you depend on within reach in case you have to stay at home.

Keep them indoors while the alert lasts, and follow official advice before you let them out again.

If a letter or parcel leaks powder or liquid, put it down gently, leave the room and keep others out. Wash your hands and follow Suspicious package.