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re- Connecticut and nerve gas post
" Some County Officials Question Need for Nerve Gas Antidote Kits
By: Asa Fitch
06/09/2005
"As state homeland security officials contemplate a campaign to equip police officers, firefighters and ambulance crews in Connecticut with nerve agent antidote kits for use in a terrorist attack, the plan is getting a mixed response in the rural Northwest Corner of the state. At least a couple of officials here are wondering whether the kits are really necessary.
This amazes me.
See, there is no such thing! Atropine is not an antidote but rather it serves to treat the symptoms of nerve agent until a hospital can be reached. The automatic injectors are designed to be used by individual soldiers and can be used up to three within 15 minutes. Each soldier is only issued one. Why? Well in the case of a real chemical attack there will be plenty of folks around who won't ever need their injector.... If you can identify the symptoms in yourself (tightness in chest, profuse drooling and postnasal drip and dimness of vision--these three positively ID nerve agent poisoning) well the odds are that you're already dead.