Sample Solution

LAS to reflect the additional demands placed on it as the provider of services to the capital city of London. This has undoubtedly been helped by the fact that all the emergency services now use Airwave. It has also been proposed for there to be four dedicated 24/7 Hazardous Area Response Teams in London and a similar number of Mass Casualty Vehicles, and should be strategically located around London for easy and quick access should a major incident occur again. The number of CBRN-trained LAS staff should be reviewed with a view that it should return to the higher levels previously seen in London over the past few years. The Home Office should also review the provision of CBRN-equipped response vehicles operated by the London Fire Brigade to ensure their numbers are sufficient. Personal radiation monitors, who should be available to fire, ambulance and police personnel, should routinely be used, as this is a sensible precaution and it ensures personnel that those going in to rescue people are not exposed to an unnecessarily high risk.

Response

In terms of the response times on the day of the attack, there was a reported delay of 52 minutes in getting ambulances to Tavistock Square, where 13 people died at the scene of the bus explosion. Crews were only sent to the bus attack after reports of a second blast at 1040 after a controlled explosion of a suspicious package. The first paramedic to reach Tavistock Square, had in fact been despatched to Russell Square and alerted control at 0957 BST, performed a quick reconnaissance, and called again at 1005 demanding back up. The delays at Tavistock Square followed a separate half-hour delay in sending teams to Russell Square underground station, where 26 people died, the greatest loss of life at the four sites. The first paramedic into the tunnel at Edgware Road called for eight more ambulances, but reported frustration to learn that crews from two stations nearby were not despatched. Overall, only half of the 201 ava