title: Consequence assessment of indoor dispersion of sarin--a hypothetical scenario.
abstract: The objective of this study is to provide a hypothetical scenario of indoor dispersion of the highly toxic nerve agent sarin in a large building, which can be used as a starting point for discussion, planning, training and exercises for emergency services and responsible authorities. The indoor dispersion has been simulated using a Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) approach. Possible consequences have been calculated based on concentration and dose profiles. Mild intoxication effects appear within minutes, while serious injuries and fatalities occur approximately 20 min after release. Anticipated key emergency response challenges are: (i) the time factor due to rapid onset of symptoms, (ii) the large number of casualties, and (iii) the contaminated hazard scene.
authors.affiliation: Norwegian Defence Research Establishment (FFI), NO-2027 Kjeller, Norway. Monica.Endregard@ffi.no
authors.forename: Monica
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Endregard
authors.forename: B Anders
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Pettersson Reif
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Vik
authors.forename: Odd
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Busmundrud
mesh_terms: D016902:Air Pollution, Indoor; D002619:Chemical Warfare Agents / Q000633:toxicity*; D002800:Cholinesterase Inhibitors; D003198:Computer Simulation; D004189:Disaster Planning; D004630:Emergencies; D006801:Humans; D007700:Kinetics; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012524:Sarin / Q000633:toxicity*
chemical_list: D002619:Chemical Warfare Agents; D002800:Cholinesterase Inhibitors; D012524:Sarin