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Tonya Papanikolas ReportingThe International Society of First Responders says emergency personnel lack the proper safety equipment to respond to a terrorist attack. The situation is worse here in Utah because the state is getting less Homeland Security money than before.
It's used for equipment like protective suits. They are very restrictive, crews have to be trained just to operate in them. They run about 16-hundred dollars a piece. Once they're used for an incident, they have to be thrown away. The crews say they can always use more money than they have.
Local hazardous materials teams are trained to respond to chemical and biological attacks.
Captain Karl Lieb, Special Operations, Salt Lake Fire Department: "If the incident occurs in our jurisdiction, we're going to be one of the first ones on the scene."
But to do that, it takes money. Every year the Department of Homeland Security dishes out millions of dollars to cities for equipment and training. In 2003, Utah received 25.3 million dollars, the next year 27-million, and in 2005, just over 20-million dollars.
But this year, that number is expected to drop significantly. Instead of giving each state equal chunks of the money or basing the distribution on population, the federal government has changed the criteria.
Derek Jensen, Utah Dept. of Public Safety: "This year they've changed it so that they're looking basically at risks and needs to determine how that money will be given out. So it's a little more a competitive grant basis."
Certain cities have been identified as more at-risk for attacks and Utah cities were not included. So are first responders scared they won't be properly equipped in a disaster?
Cpt. Karl Lieb: "It doesn't concern me on the outset because we're going to perform our jobs regardless. We will work with the equipment that we have."
The employees at the fire station we visited say more funds could really improve their capabilities.
