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Foot and Mouth Disease
  
News Advisory
RI Department of Environmental Management
235 Promenade Street, Providence, RI 02908
(401) 222-2771 TDD/(401) 222-4462
FOR AP AND METRO NEWS DAYBOOKS:
Date: Thursday, October 10

Time:

 4 p.m. (*Opportunities for B Roll footage will be available at 3 p.m. See below.)
Location: RI Emergency Management Agency
645 New London Avenue, Cranston
Event: Press Conference Following Training Exercise on Containing Mock Outbreak of Highly Contagious Animal Disease

For Release:

 October 9, 2002
Contact: Gail Mastrati 222-4700 ext. 2402
Stephanie Powell 222-4700 ext. 4418

DEM, EMA TO HOLD TABLETOP TRAINING EXERCISE ON CONTAINING MOCK OUTBREAK OF HIGHLY CONTAGIOUS ANIMAL DISEASE

PROVIDENCE - The Department of Environmental Management and the RI Emergency Management Agency will hold a joint tabletop training exercise on Thursday, October 10, as part of a New England-wide exercise dealing with a mock outbreak of a highly contagious animal disease. The New England-wide exercise will test state plans for dealing with such an outbreak.

(*Although, as usual, the drill itself will be closed to the media, opportunities for B Roll footage of the exercise will be available at 3 p.m. Upon completion of the drill, officials will hold a press conference to discuss the plan and the drill, and answer questions. It will be held at 4 p.m. on Thursday, at EMA Headquarters on New London Avenue in Cranston. Opportunities for interviews will be available at that time.)

The specific disease that will be the subject of Thursday's exercise will not be revealed to attendees until the exercise begins. One of the most well-known diseases is Foot and Mouth Disease, a severe, highly contagious viral disease of cattle and swine. Sheep, goats, deer and other cloven-hoofed animals can also be affected. It is not a threat to human health; however, humans can be carriers.

DEM has been educating Rhode Island farmers and other livestock owners about preventing Foot and Mouth Disease, since the costly outbreak of that disease last year in Great Britain. Although Foot and Mouth Disease has not occurred in the United States since 1929, an outbreak in the United States would be devastating to livestock owners and to the economy.

The state protocol that would be put into effect to deal with Foot and Mouth Disease or other contagious animal disease follows closely the protocol of the US Department of Agriculture. It will set in motion a strict state and federal response program designed to limit an outbreak and eliminate it as quickly as possible. Containment is the first priority, through the use of quarantine, movement control zones, and euthanization. A number of state and federal agencies would be involved.

Agencies participating in Thursday's drill will also include the state Department of Health, Rhode Island Department of Transportation, Rhode Island State Police, the Governor's Office, the Rhode Island National Guard and the US Department of Agriculture.

Lead officials will reconvene on Friday morning to evaluate the success of the drill and make adjustments as necessary.

Information on Foot and Mouth Disease can be found on DEM's website at www.dem.ri.gov by clicking on Agriculture on the Programs page.

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