LEPC has bomb-resource presentation
Mary Margaret Moorhead - Staff Writer

Ripley County LEPC (Local Emergency Planning Committee) members had a special presentation at their Tuesday, July 12, meeting at the Osgood Grub Company explaining the process when dangerous chemicals and explosives are found in an area.

"It can happen around here," said Dan Goris of the Indiana State Police, who is one of the 11 licensed bomb squad technicians in the state.

According to Goris, each of the 11 techs has his own equipped vehicle and has been trained and licensed at Huntsville, Alabama. They are not only trained in bomb detection, but also in detecting meth labs, a major problem at this time.

Of the State Police specialty teams, including SWAT and SCUBA, Goris says the Bomb Squad is the busiest.

Presently there are 13 certified bomb squads in Indiana, all of which have to be accredited through the FBI and re-certified every three years.

These groups also work closely with the State Fire Marshal, according to Goris.

Using a power-point presentation,
Goris described a three-day operation in May that involved a vacant house near Springville in Lawrence County, where dangerous chemicals and handgrenades had been discovered.

It was well organized with the agencies working together like clockwork," said Goris, who noted that the $1.5 million response vehicle became the central command center and the State Fire Marshal the person in control..

Photos showed the center of operations, the participants, and all the equipment used to go into the basement of the house and into a small barn to retrieve the vials of dangerous chemicals collected in those areas.

A question/answer period followed Goris' presentation, which preceded the LEPC business session. Chairperson Pat Thomas and members in attendance discussed past training sessions as well as upcoming opportunities for training.

Reports from the National Incident Management System (NIMS) Workshop described a "Walk Through IS700 NIMS" course on July 6 at the Margaret Mary Rehab Center with a power point presentation of the online course and test.

MARY MARGARET MOORHEAD PHOTO

Sgt. Dan Goris of the Indiana State Police Bomb Squad, gave a presentation at the LEPC meeting.