Cool Doomer stuff

-- Anonymous, October 17, 2002

Answers

Store Offers Terror Attack Supplies

By SARA KUGLER Associated Press Writer

NEW YORK (AP) -- Biohazard suit? Check. Potassium iodide pills? Check. Parachute for jumping from a burning high-rise building? Check.

Worried New Yorkers will be able to do all of their emergency-preparedness shopping at one store when Safer America opens Thursday in Manhattan.

At the shop a few blocks from the World Trade Center site, the staff of five employees will help customers test radiation detectors and choose from survival kits that range in price from $60 to $300. They'll patiently explain the differences among the many gas masks perched on plastic heads with blank faces.

The employees know why this mask costs more than that one (purely comfort, not filtering ability) and why one is blue while most are black (some people prefer colored masks because they don't look as menacing).

That customer service is one of the main reasons the store's founders believe it will be a success. Many of the items they offer are generally only available online or through catalogues, says company president Harvey Kushner, a renowned terrorism expert.

At Safer America, Kushner said, customers aren't ordering from a "survivalist catalogue where you get pepper spray and a badge and a camouflage suit and a video on how to be a sniper. You're buying from someplace legitimate, and we stand by what we sell."

The shop was born when co-founder Frederic Samama wanted to purchase a gas mask last spring to keep at his Upper West Side apartment.

"I couldn't find a reliable source - it's good to speak to someone, to ask how it works and to get training," said Samama, who left his job as a bond trader to start the store. "The idea came to me that retail stores of this kind should exist."

Following the Sept. 11, 2001, attack on the trade center, which killed nearly 2,800 people, gas mask distributors said demand multiplied because of terrorism fears. One major Texas distributor of military surplus items reported sales of 39,000 masks in the month after Sept. 11, compared with 250 during the same period the year before.

Samama and Kushner say they plan to open two additional Manhattan stores. They also hope to keep adding to the inventory.

Kushner, a Long Island University professor and author of numerous books on terrorism, said the safety-conscious shopper just starting out should begin with the basics - a flashlight and radio.

After that, he recommends stocking up on potassium iodide pills, which can be taken in the event of radiation exposure to block the thyroid gland's absorption of radioactive iodine, reducing the risk of thyroid cancer. A bottle of 56 pills sells for $11.

Kushner also says everyone should keep an escape hood by the bed. (He has six at his Long Island home.) The plastic hood with a filter is designed for one-time use to escape from an area where the air is not safe to breathe because of smoke or another airborne hazard.

The shop sells hoods from $40 to $195.

In addition to selecting items separately, shoppers can purchase packages such as the High Rise Kit, which sells at $945 and includes a biohazard suit, potassium iodide pills, rubber gloves and booties, a flashlight, duct tape and a parachute.

Samama said the high-rise parachutes will open from anywhere above 10 stories but should be considered a last resort for escaping. They start at $845.

Samama and Kushner say shopping for protection against bioterror attacks and other emergencies is empowering and practical. Both say it's no different from keeping fire extinguishers in the home.

"It used to be about paranoia, and now it's about being prepared," Samama said. "Paranoia is when you imagine the threat - unfortunately, now the threat is real."

-- Anonymous, October 17, 2002

I suppose training classes at night school are on the upswing as well.

-- Anonymous, October 17, 2002

Sounds cool! Wish we had one around here. The closest is Cousin's Army Surplus -- all sorts of toys there.

-- Anonymous, October 17, 2002