Effort Aims to Improve Response to Attacks

The Virginia National Guard will create a task force to enhance the state's response to a terrorist or military attack, officials said yesterday.

The effort is part of a program to help Guard units nationwide coordinate their emergency response with state and local governments, especially when faced with a chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear attack or a major explosion.

"The idea is to help in any kind of weapons-of-mass-destruction kind of attack," said Jack Harrison, a spokesman for the National Guard.

About 500 soldiers and airmen with different expertise -- such as medical triage, chemical decontamination and explosives detection -- would be tapped for the program and assigned to 18 months of training, said Lt. Col. Chester C. Carter III, a spokesman for the Virginia National Guard.

Although those guardsmen would stay in their positions, they would be called up for special duty if an attack were to occur, Carter said.

"We would support the first responder," such as a local fire chief or police chief who would be responsible for coordinating the response, he said. "What we would do is bring to the table an additional tool in such an event."

Neither Carter nor Harrison was immediately aware yesterday of how much money was made available under the program. But it would cover training and new equipment, Carter said.

Virginia is one of 17 states selected by the National Guard for the program, which was conceived in the Defense Department, Harrison said. Twelve states have received training certification and are "mission-ready," Harrison said.

Virginia, among five states added this year, was a high priority because of its proximity to Washington and its concentration of military installations, Carter said.