theday that change our live

7/31/2019 Theday That Change Our Live

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The day that changed our lives

When we began planning this tribute to the victims of Sept. 11, 2001, and tothe spirit of our area's citizens, it was with respect for the solemnity of thisfirst anniversary and for our responsibility to chronicle the occasion.

After our reporters talked to our residents, they came away extremelyimpressed with the scope of erudite public opinion about Sept. 11.

As much as this is about ground zero, this is a section about our corner ofAmerica. There are no wire service stories in this section. Associated Pressphotos and one fact box are the only things not produced by our writers andphotographers.

This section was coordinated by Weekends and Sections Editor Denielle

Ziemba. Our cover design was by Sports Editor Dean Russin, with a photoillustration of the twin towers by Sarah Pollak. Copy Editor Bryan Chambaladesigned our pages of letters and poems from readers, which were typed byDeb McCaffery, Johnna Nesteruk and Amanda Geisler. Local photos weretaken by Anita Briggs and Julie Lewis, with the design of our photo pagesfrom Sept. 11 done by Lewis.

Managing Editor Cary Brunswick assigned stories and coordinated the finework of reporters Tom Grace, Carolyn Norton, Jill Fahy, Laura Alys Ward,Mark Boshnack and Patricia Breakey. Sports' Editor Dean Russin, RobCentorani and Jim Hamilton also ably contributed stories to this section.

Our copy desk's Denise Richardson, Chambala and Matt Schauf helped editthe stories along with Ziemba.

We're proud of this section, and we hope it's something you might want tokeep and show your grandchildren someday.

Sam Pollak

Wednesday, September 11, 2002

Attacks do little to boost enlistments

By Mark Boshnack

Tri-Towns Bureau

For recent Sidney High School graduate Dave Wakeman, the events of 9/11provided the push he needed to join the U.S. Navy.

Like many others that day, he watched television coverage of the events.

"I was sitting in my (high school) class watching the planes crash into thebuilding, and I thought I might as well join the service," he said.

For fellow Sidney High School graduate Michael Barber, the terrorist attacksconfirmed the correctness of his decision to join the Navy. Enlisting wassomething he had been thinking about for a while.

"I've always wanted to go into the military," said Barber. "I want to servemy country." Both men enlisted with Navy recruiter Petty Officer 1st Class


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Gene Schoeck at the Oneonta recruiting station. He said his recruits sharethe patriotism of many of those joining. But overall, he said, there has notbeen a marked change in attitudes since Sept. 11. Wakeman and Barber

plan on leaving for their tour of duty today.

Navy Cmdr. Steve Lowry, with Public Affairs for Navy Recruiting inMillington, Tenn., said there was an upsurge in people inquiring aboutenlisting after the attacks, but "all that did not translate into numbers ofpeople wanting to enlist," he said. "Recruiters are still hard at work trying tofind qualified applicants."

Similarly, Judy Poland, the Albany battalion public affairs officer, said, "Wehave not seen any substantial difference" in the numbers enlisting comparedto last year.

She said the number of recruits nationwide was almost the same as lastyear.

But the war on terrorism, the economic downturn and an advertisingcampaign were recently cited by Army officials for helping it meet itsrecruiting goals early this year.

In a ceremony in the Pentagon courtyard in mid-August, officers swore inthe Army's 79,500th new active-duty soldier meeting its recruiting goalfor the year ending Sept. 30.

After a recruiting slump in the late 1990s that affected all of the military

services, the Army ditched its "Be All You Can Be" slogan last year in favorof its advertising motto: "An Army of One."

Officers said the new slogan is meant to show potential recruits that theArmy will value their individual contributions and not just treat them likeanother number.

The economic slump had an effect, said Lt. Gen. Dennis Cavin, who overseesArmy recruiting. The Army estimates that about 3,000 of its recruits joinedbecause of the economy, he said.

Some school guidance counselors said they have not seen a surge in

students enlisting because of the terrorist attacks.

But in Cooperstown, there has been a spike in students entering the service.This year's class of graduates included six students who will be entering thearmed services. This is twice the number the enlisted from the previousyear's senior class.

"I can't say it is a direct result of 9/11," said guidance counselor Eric Carr,who works with half of the 98 graduates.

Former Downsville Central School guidance counselor Chris Towsley saidthere were four students from a class of 34 who were entering the armedservices, which is an average number.

"I don't think it (9/11) had any impact" on students' decisions about joiningthe armed services, he said.


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Wakeman and Barber say they joined the Navy because of the specialopportunities it provides.

Wakeman will be studying nuclear power on a submarine or an aircraftcarrier. Barber said he joined the Seabees because of his interest in buildingand mechanical work.

"I can't wait to leave," Barber said. "I want to explore the world."

Although, he noted, "it will be a little weird actually leaving on Sept. 11."

Mark Boshnack can be reached at (607) 563-1493 [email protected].


War on terror tough, families say

By Tom Grace

Cooperstown News Bureau

NEW BERLIN - What has the past year been like for the parents of Americansoldiers and sailors?

"It's been hell for me," said Elizabeth Allen of New Berlin, mother of RyanEdwards, a 22-year-old sailor aboard the aircraft carrier, USS Carl Vinson.

Her only son has been in the Navy for three years. She said usually theycorrespond several times a week by e-mail and occasionally talk to eachother on the telephone.

After the attack on the World Trade Center last September, "I heard fromhim for a little while, but after they decided what we were going to do, Ididn't hear any more," Allen said.

She kept sending out her e-mails, keeping her son abreast of family andcommunity news, but he was unable to respond.

"I thought he was safe on the aircraft carrier, but you never know, with thekind of people we were fighting," Allen said.

"After the attack, I started paying much more attention to news on theInternet," she said. "I tried to keep track of all the news about his ship."

The USS Carl Vinson was sent to the Arabian Sea, and Edwards, anelectronics technician, was charged with keeping communications flowingsmoothly between the Vinson and its pilots, who pounded targets in

Afghanistan.

Since the "war on terrorism" began last year, Allen has worried constantlyabout her son's safety. The Vinson is now in port near Tacoma, Wash., butmay be sent back to the Middle East, should tensions in that part of theworld increase.


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Despite the hardships of battle, Edwards is leaning toward staying in theNavy and becoming an officer, Allen said.

"He's very patriotic and he's always wanted a job helping other people," shesaid. "By going over there when he's needed, he knows he's helping to keepus safe."

Her worries are blended with pride as she tracks her son's career throughthis difficult era, she said.

"I am very proud of him, and next week I'm going to fly out to Washingtonand see this ship," Allen said.

Jonathan Alvarez graduated from Oneonta High School in 2001. He wasaccepted by Hartwick and Ithaca colleges and was planning to play Division

III football, but in August 2001, he opted to join the Army, according to hisfather, John Alvarez of Oneonta.

About a month later, airliners crashed into buildings in the United States.

"I had mixed feelings when he joined the Army, because he had otheropportunities," said John Alvarez. But after the Sept. 11 attack, he said, heno longer had mixed feelings.

"I was just very proud that our country has such patriotic young people toprotect us," he said.

And his son has thrived in the Army, becoming a Ranger, Alvarez said. Hecompleted a three-week airborne training course and was one of the few towithstand the Ranger Indoctrination Program, or RIP, Alvarez said.

Jonathan Alvarez is stationed at Fort Benning, Ga.

Alvarez said, like any parent, he worries about his son's safety but supportshis decision to serve his county.

"I think he's getting along very well and likes what he does," he said.

In the last year, John Briggs of Hartwick often tuned in the news on hisshortwave radio, while his son, Christopher Briggs, a Navy reservist, wasserving with the Seabees.

"We didn't hear from him for a long while, and it was scary," John Briggssaid.

"I think sometimes you get a little more accurate news when you listen towhat other countries are saying, so I used the shortwave," Briggs said.

However, for several months he had no idea where his son was, thenlearned, to his relief, that his son was in Guam, he said.

Briggs said he's proud of his son, who has two more years to serve in thereserves, and hopes the United States will line up international supportbefore committing to any further campaign in the Middle East.

Tom Grace can be reached at [email protected] or (607) 547-2431.


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"It was a major shock to me. It still seems like yesterday that it happened,"said Coulter, 24, a self-employed day-care worker.

For the first time in seven years, Meag Foy's extended family gathered forThanksgiving last year.

"It felt like it was time to get together," said Foy, 13, a freshman at OHS. "Itwas just a need to be close."

The family repeated the gathering for Christmas and held a reunion inAugust, she said.

Since Sept. 11, "I've thought more about what I want to do in life," Foy said,"because you never know when your time will come."

But other families said they haven't changed their ways.

"We were really a very close-knit family before," said 37-year-old LesleyBidwell, who lives in Oneonta with her husband, Phil, and their son, 11-year-old Ian.

Besides, "I think we are fairly removed from it here," she said. "We were notdirectly affected at all."

Phil, 37, said he grew up in Northern Ireland and knew families killed interrorist attacks.

"(Sept. 11) wasn't an earth-shattering event in my life," said Phil, thewebmaster at the State University College at Oneonta. "My attitude wasalways very pragmatic."

Considering the car-accident death toll, "a Sept. 11 happens every three orfour weeks," Phil said.

Bidwell family members said they weren't afraid to attend a New York Citybaseball game on Sept. 29.

"We're hoping that people will be moving on, maybe after this anniversary

has passed," said Lesley, who works in telecommunications at SUCO.

"I hope people can take the positive things (such as being more appreciativeof each other)," she said, "and leave the negative."

Laura Alys Ward can be reached at (607) 441-7213 [email protected].
mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]


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Life back to normal somewhat local kids say

By Carolyn Norton

Staff Writer

In the days following the Sept. 11 attacks, local children were confused,amazed and just a little scared, according to social workers and others.

But then their parents talked to them. And their grandparents talked tothem. And their teachers talked to them.

And little by little, the confusion, fear and amazement subsided.

And now, a year after terrorists flew planes into the twin towers, Pentagonand a field in Pennsylvania, local children say they rarely think about whathappened on Sept. 11.

"I remember what happened," said 9-year-old Jessica Grover of Laurens."But I really don't think about it or talk about it anymore."

Local experts echoed Grover's account.

In the weeks following the attacks, they said, children tended to be scared

and were full of questions.

But as time went on, they said, the initial fear wore off, and Sept. 11 fell outof thought as regular activities resumed.

Much of how children responded shadowed how the adults in their livesacted, said Bill Hayes, a clinical social worker at Bassett Healthcare whospecializes in pediatrics, obstetrics and psychology.

"In general, kids reacted in a sense to how their parents and adults reacted,"Hayes said. "Kids look to parents, particularly in a traumatic circumstance,to see how scary something is."

Hayes said children were inundated with media coverage.

"I think the young kids are more susceptible to the notion that if they see iton television, it's real," he said, noting that a child who has seen footage ofa plane crashing into a tower over and over may think it was actuallyhappening over and over.

"Parents need to keep that in perspective when media comes up again,"Hayes said.

For Sidney resident Sue Safford, protecting her 12-year-old granddaughter,

Amberlea Ward, meant turning off the media coverage.

"We just stopped watching it," she said. "I couldn't keep watching it overand over."


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The scariest part of Sept. 11 was having an uncle who worked a block awayfrom the towers, Amberlea said.

The fear subsided when she found out he was OK.

"It was still really sad," Amberlea said. Class discussions helped herunderstand, she said.

"We talked about how it would affect our lives," she said. "How it would havebeen to be there."

Jessica's father, Mike Grover, went through a letter sent home from LaurensCentral School with his children.

"We talked about it," Grover said. "They really had covered it a lot in

school."

Educators mainly tried to assure local children they were safe here, saidSallye Sadlocha, a guidance counselor at Valleyview Elementary School.

"We wanted to make sure the kids knew that we would do everything in ourpower to keep them safe," she said. "But we couldn't make them hollowpromises we couldn't tell them what we didn't know."

Sadlocha said while teachers of younger grades let parents explain theattacks to their children the first day, later in the week they talked about it.

"They talked to the kids about the news," she said. "They talked about therelative safety of Oneonta."

She agreed that the children reacted the way their parents did.

"I think one of the biggest lessons our kids learned is that when disasterhappens, adults help," she said.

Now, a year later, kids may forget the images of the fiery buildings, shesaid, but they remember the adults in the community who went to New Yorkto clean up.

Several of Amberlea's aunts and uncles went to New York to help.

"I remember that," she said. "I was scared."

Carolyn Norton can be reached at: [email protected] or (607) 441-7218.


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Muslims wary after strikes

By Carolyn Norton

Staff Writer

"Reasonable precautions."

That's what Oneonta resident Fida Mohammad started taking after Sept. 11.

Mohammad and his family didn't want to hide, they just wanted to stay safe.

"There are some bad people out there," the State University College atOneonta professor said. "Nobody personally bothered me, but we tookreasonable precautions."

Immediately after Sept. 11, scattered incidents of violence against Muslimswere reported nationally. All Muslims were being blamed by some people forthe terrorist attacks.

Although the initial effects may have worn off, Mohammad said he still feelschanges to his life every day.

While area Muslims reported virtually no local violence or hostility, some

were still afraid to talk about the effects of Sept. 11 a year later.

One local Muslim man, said he didn't want to stand as an example of allpeople within the faith.

"I just want to live my life," he said.

Several other area Muslims didn't want to comment, saying they'd ratherkeep a low profile.

Mohammad said while there are other Muslims in the area, they have triedto keep out of the limelight since Sept. 11.

The effects of the attacks still live on in Mohammad's life.

Although he is happy in Oneonta, he said, he is afraid to move his family tohis dream home in the country.

"Oneonta is a college town with different types of people," he said. "In asmaller town, in the countryside, we would stand out. I would be afraid."

Zahir Ahmed, the director of international education at SUCO, said about fiveinternational Muslim students left the college after Sept. 11

"It's hard to tell whether they left out of fear for their safety or because theysimply wanted to study in more-ethnically diverse populations where theyhad mosques and other services," Ahmed said.

Ahmed said the few Muslim students avoided the press after Sept. 11 out offear.


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"Shortly after 9/11, there was some concern about anger and violence, butthis too did not materialize," he said.

Ghazi Abdallah, who lives in Cherry Valley with his wife and seven children,said although his family may be the only Muslim one in his town, he hasnever felt at risk.

"They know we are good citizens," he said. "They know we were affectedjust like another Americans."

But for Mohammad, who lives in Oneonta with his wife and two children, theeffects were subtle, but noticeable.

"I am a Muslim it is visible," he said. "I can see some people havechanged. The attitude is not as friendly as it used to be."

Mohammad said in the days following the attacks, he stopped taking six-milewalks every night.

"I am walker, but in those days I stopped walking," he said. "I am fullyaware of the realities that surround me."

Mohammad also found himself explaining that he had nothing to do with theattacks.

"All Muslims do not think the same way," he said. "I am not responsible forOsama bin Laden I am doing a lot of explaining because of him."

Throughout it all, however, Mohammad said college officials remained verysupportive of him, his classes and his heritage.

In recent days, Mohammad, who teaches criminology courses in SUCO'sphilosophy department, hasn't had to explain as much.

"Time is the biggest healer," he said. "Some people were very rude in thebeginning. There was a lot of anxiety."

Abdallah said he struggled with the perception that all Muslims felt the same

way the terrorists did.

"We are good people, too," he said. "We felt what happened."

Abdallah said he believes the killing was wrong.

"If anyone thinks killing innocent people is acceptable, they will have to facethe Lord," he said. "It was a criminal act."

Carolyn Norton can be reached at: [email protected] or (607) 441-

7218.


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September 11,2002

Muslims in U.S.

Some facts about Muslims living in the United States:

NUMBERS: Estimates of the numbers of Muslims in the United Statesvary dramatically, from 2 million to 6 million.

ETHNICITY: About 33 percent are South Asian, 30 percent U.S.-bornblacks and 25 percent Arab. European immigrants, Africans, U.S.-born whites and others make up the rest, according to "The Mosquein America," a 2001 report commissioned by U.S. Muslim leaders.

GROWTH: The largest influx of Muslims began after 1965, when

President Lyndon Johnson abolished an immigration quota systemthat disproportionately benefited Europeans. Large Muslimcommunities have formed in Los Angeles, Detroit, Chicago and NewYork.

MOSQUES: Nearly all of the nation's estimated 1,200 mosques werefounded in the last 30 years, many with money from governments ofpredominantly Muslim countries.

The Associated Press


Clergy tend to their flocks

By Laura Alys Ward

Staff Writer

ONEONTA Many area houses of worship reported a boost in attendanceafter the twin towers fell, but numbers steadied in the weeks following, localclergy said.

Requests for religious counseling increased at several houses of worship.Some religious leaders reported increased depression in their congregations,while others said their flock appeared unaffected.

"Overall, I think people have re-evaluated their relationship with God," saidthe Rev. Paul Messner, "as people always do in the wake of tragedy."

Messner leads the Zion St. John's Lutheran Church in Seward and SharonSprings and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Hartwick Seminary.

Attendance spiked immediately following Sept. 11 at churches, including theFirst Presbyterian Church in Oneonta, St. John's Episcopal Church in Delhi,

St. Peter's in Hobart, the Atonement Lutheran Church in Oneonta and St.Matthew's Lutheran Church in Laurens.

Temple Beth El in Oneonta, a 100-family Jewish congregation, drew a fewmore worshipers. The Unitarian Universalist Church in Oneonta and St.Mary's Catholic churches in Oneonta and Cooperstown also got a boost,pastors reported. Many clergy cited an increase of about 20 percent.


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At Zion St. John's, attendance increased by about 10 people after Sept. 11,and at the Evangelical Lutheran Church, attendance became moreconsistent, Messner said. Zion St. John's normally draws 50 to 60, while the

Evangelical Lutheran Church averages 30 to 35, he said.

At Laurens Presbyterian Church, "It stayed pretty steady," said the Rev.Harry G. Myers. The church draws about 40 to 50 people per service.

"In a small community, you don't get the fluctuation of a larger church," hesaid.

At Temple Beth El, attendance increased slightly after 9/11, but quicklyreturned to normal, said Rabbi Donald Neil Roberts. An average servicefluctuates, usually drawing 15 to 50 people, he said.

Myers and the Rev. Stephen Fournier of the Milford Center Community BibleChurch said their parishioners didn't seem to be suffering emotionally in thewake of 9/11.

"People like to put 'bad' things out of their minds and move on with life,"Fournier said. "I believe that most people do not begin to think about deathand God and those types of things until (tragedy) hits them in a personalway."

Average attendance at the Community Bible Church has stayed just above70 the past two years.

"Unfortunately, 9/11 will become like 12/7 (Pearl Harbor bombing)

adistant tragedy that we will think has no impact on our lives," Fournier said.

The Rev. John Rosson of St. Mary's Catholic Church in Cooperstown said hehas noticed the opposite.

"Counseling sessions often made reference to the events of Sept. 11: Is lifemeaningful? Why do bad things happen to good people?

"Depression increased among some who came seeking help," he continued."Parishioners definitely seem more aware of world events."

Combined, about 2,000 people filled the Catholic churches in Oneonta andCooperstown the week following the terrorist attacks, priests said.

At overcrowded Cooperstown services in the days after 9/11, people sat inthe aisles, and once the house of worship ran out of Eucharist, Rosson said.

Many people in Temple Beth El's congregation seem more introspective,Roberts said. Some seem anxious, depressed, angry and confused, headded.

However, "People want to go on with their lives," Roberts said, and they

don't go to the temple to commiserate.

"A synagogue is like a resting station," he said, "where people come torecharge their batteries."

About 100 people attended a special service at Temple Beth El the day afterthe tragedy, Roberts said.


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As President Bush has said, people shouldn't let terrorists win by succumbingto fear, Roberts said.

However, Roberts, who grew up in New York City and watched constructionof the World Trade Center, said he has felt more "touchy" since 9/11.

Roberts travels to the city about twice a month. "When you drive over theHudson River and you don't see those towers, it's very, very scary," he said.

The Rev. Robert Haskell of St. James' Episcopal Church on Main Street inOneonta reported no changes in attendance, and said the congregationdidn't seem overly concerned about terrorism.

"I haven't had anybody bring up 9/11 with me in a long time," Haskell said."Maybe Oneonta seems far away from New York City."

Sunday service attendance fluctuates with the season, but averages 123people, he said. About 15 to 25 Episcopal church parishioners attended dailyprayer services the week following the tragedy, Haskell said.

Myers said he also hasn't recently had discussions about last year's tragedy.

"The concern may still be there, but it's not spoken of as much," he said."But it is something people still carry at the back of their heads."

At the Unitarian Universalist Church in Oneonta, "We have maintained aslight increase since (Sept. 11)," said the Rev. Judith Quarles. "One persontold me she was prompted to join because of 9/11."

Messner and Rosson said they've noticed increased interest in world religionsamong parishioners.

The week following Sept. 11, many local clergy led additional prayersessions and delivered sermons dealing with the tragedy.

Most religious leaders interviewed since said the topics of their sermonshaven't changed.

However, Rosson said, "The problem of evil became more a concern in allreflections this past year. Questions about the possibility for redemption andretribution often came to the surface.

"The need for alertness, a new sense of community and sharing all becamepart of sermons over the past 12 months," he said.

Messner said his sermons haven't changed but have dealt with sin and eviland how God can overcome evil with love.

"There really is evil is the world," Messner said. "This really brought ithome."

Laura Alys Ward can be reached at (607) 441-7213 [email protected].


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Terror puts preparation at forefront

By Patricia Breakey

Delhi News Bureau

The terrorists who attacked the United States on Sept. 11 struck anunsuspecting target, but since then things have changed.

We began using unfamiliar words in our daily vocabulary terrorism,anthrax, smallpox and bioterrorism.

New agencies and positions were formed and funding was designated for

initiatives to prepare for the worst, should an attack ever happen again.

"We were caught napping, and we awoke to a nightmare. We are makingsure that will never happen again," said Investigator Robert Fernandez, headof Counter Terrorism Investigation at Troop C in Sidney.

Fernandez said that after Sept. 11, it became clear that governmentagencies, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Immigration andNaturalization Service and U.S. Customs Service, needed more coordination.

It was also apparent that police agencies and emergency services providersneeded to be coordinated within the state, Fernandez said.

In October, Gov. George Pataki created the Office of Public Security. TheNew York State Police immediately set up Counter Terrorism IntelligenceZones throughout the state. Fernandez heads up Counter TerrorismIntelligence Zone 6, which encompasses Chenango, Cortland, Delaware,Otsego, Broome, Tioga and Tompkins counties.

Fernandez said there are 60 police agencies in Zone 6, which are nowworking together to gather intelligence, share information and make surethat information is funneled through the Office of Public Security to thefederal Homeland Security Agency.

"Every police agency has its own regime and they each answer to a localauthority, but now we can pool our resources, work together and help eachother so there is no duplication of effort," Fernandez said.

An intelligence officer was appointed in each county to meet with the localpolice agencies, gather information and make contacts.

"We are getting everybody on the same page. We have set up a goodstructure and we have added to the camaraderie that already existedbetween all the agencies," Fernandez said.

Police are now on a higher alert. The Department of Criminal Justice Serviceshas been holding training sessions about what to look for and what to do toprevent something from happening. However, it still needs help from thecommunity to monitor things that might be cause for concern.

"In this day and age, a knapsack abandoned outside a building is probablynothing, but it might be something. If people see things that make them


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stop and wonder, they should contact someone. The whole purpose is to bealert for things that don't seem quite right," Fernandez said.

Ultimately, the anti-terrorism efforts have resulted in a crackdown on crime.Fernandez said the information-sharing system that was developed to beused in case of a terrorist attack works equally well in tracking crimethroughout the region.

"A lot of crime is being stopped because of heightened inquiries. We nowhave a public that is much more willing to protect themselves. They remainvigilant," Fernandez said.

In the long run, the police may never know whether they foiled a terroristattempt.

"Stuff has been stopped. Stuff you will never hear about, but this system hasalready worked," Fernandez said.

The Counter Terrorism Units have a two-pronged attack. The first goal is tostop terrorism, the second is to respond if it happens.

"Hopefully, nothing will happen again, but vigilance will make us a toughertarget for both terrorists and criminals," Fernandez said.

In October, with the shock of the terrorist attacks still ever-present inpeople's minds, the specter of anthrax contamination loomed large.

Delaware County's Hazardous Materials Team began to be called out to dealwith suspicious white substances that all turned out to be false alarms, butthe new scare made Nelson Delameter, Delaware County EmergencyServices director, aware that the team desperately needed some newequipment to deal with new threats.

"Basically our hazardous materials team is designed for chemicals,"Delameter said. "When we had the anthrax scare we had no way of verifyingwhat we were dealing with. If you could field test instead of waiting days forlab results, it would relieve a lot of anxiety."

Delameter said Delaware County's Hazmat Team responded to severalsuspected anthrax incidents and were limited in their ability to deal with thesituation.

"We would have an incident, like the white substance in the tissue box (inOneonta on Oct. 15), and we were stuck dealing with it the best we could,"he said. "We would make calls to try to get tests done, but it was reallydifficult. We tried to calm people down, but we really need detection on thelocal level."

In April, Delaware County was named as one of 26 counties statewide toreceive equipment that will help firefighters and emergency service workersrespond to terrorist incidents. Pataki announced that the state had secured$10 million from the Department of Justice for the Weapons of MassDestruction Initiative to purchase equipment for responding to terroristincidents involving biological, chemical, nuclear, incendiary and explosivematerials.


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Delameter said the program was proposed in 1999, but the money wasnever expended. However, the Sept. 11 attack followed by the anthraxscares highlighted the need for the new equipment.

Delameter said the county received $30,000 worth of equipment in the firstphase of this initiative. The equipment will be used for detection, verificationand decontamination at the site of a hazardous incident.

Delameter said that for years, Delaware County's HazMat team had beenresponsible for Otsego County and the lower part of Schoharie County, butsince Sept. 11 that changed, too.

"A lot of things have happened in the wake of Sept. 11. It was the catalystthat began to move things along at breakneck speed," Delameter said.

Delaware County formed a Terrorism Task Force, with representation fromthe Sheriff's Department, Public Health and Emergency Services to develop acomprehensive emergency plan.

"The emergency plan was needed. If you never use it, that's great, but if anopportunity arises where you do need it, it's there. If there is ever a seriousincident, outside resources and outside help are going to be a long timecoming. We need to be ready to handle things ourselves," Delameter said.

Otsego County was also rapidly moving on disaster preparedness. The threatof chemical and biological terrorism, coupled with the ever-present risk ofrailway and tractor-trailer spills, prompted formation of an 86-member

HazMat team in December. By the end of July, Otsego County's hazardousmaterials team was trained and ready to respond.

"We can be confronted by virtually anything," said Otsego CountyEmergency Services Coordinator Lyle "Butch" Jones. "That's what we'replanning and preparing for."

Jones said Otsego's HazMat team secured $150,000 in federal equipmentfunds this year, awarded by the state Department of Justice's Weapons ofMass Destruction task force. The HazMat team divided into eastern andwestern divisions received an additional $1,000 in county funds.

Local counties also received word in June that federal funding to help equipand train local officials would soon be forthcoming.

Through the New York state bioterror plan, $60 million in federal fundingwas earmarked for counties across the state to update equipment and dealwith threats.

Locally, Otsego and Chenango counties will receive $85,000 each, whileSchoharie and Delaware counties will each be awarded $75,000.

Bonnie Hamilton, director of Delaware County Public Health, said federal andstate governments want the county agency to improve infectious-diseasesurveillance and communication ability.

Hamilton said Delaware County plans to spend about $25,000 of the granton equipment, including a radio repeater to be installed on one of thecounty's radio towers and high-band radios for public health vehicles.


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Hamilton said the radios would help Public Health workers stay in contactwith law enforcement, emergency services and hospitals in the event of abioterrorism attack. The new communications equipment will also improve

day-to-day communication for the rural agency that can't use cell phonesbecause of the mountainous terrain.

He said funding would also enable the county to improve infectious diseasesurveillance.

Officials agree that almost all of the funding generated by the Sept. 11attack has also served to procure better equipment and prepare the localcounties to be ready for incidents and deal with situations, in addition toterrorist attacks.

Patricia Breakey can be reached at (607) 746-2894 or at

[email protected].

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