Bioterrorism

Bioterrorism is the deliberate release of viruses, bacteria, toxins, or fungi with the goal of causing panic, mass casualties, or severe economic disruption. 

Six bioagents are commonly classified as class A agents, meaning that they could cause sufficient morbidity and mortality to seriously compromise the function of a city or other large area. These are anthrax, smallpox, plague, botulinum toxin, tularaemia and viral haemorrhagic fever. Aerosol release is the most likely route. It is hard to get enough of a bioagent into the water or food supply to paralyze a city or other large area.

Whilst preparedness for a bioterrorist attack is improved in certain places, notably the USA, most cities do not have even basic responses, such as round-the-clock call for public health and emergency workers to respond immediately to reports or questions of suspicious cases in emergency rooms or elsewhere; interconnection of hospitals, public health systems and laboratories to facilitate rapid detection and management; appropriate training of detection staff; emergency medical committees for for conjoint planning at the local and regional levels; capabilities for mass vaccination or distribution of antibiotics or respirators within a few days.

33 terrorist attacks involving biological agents were recorded between 1970 and 2019, registering 9 deaths and 806 injuries. 21 events occurred in the United States, 3 in Kenya, 2 each in both the United Kingdom and Pakistan, and a single event in Japan, Columbia, Israel, Russia and Tunisia.