They don’t expect trouble, but they are ready if it occurs, representatives from Douglas County emergency service agencies said Wednesday.

President Bush has warned the nation it may face terrorist attacks — including the use of biological or chemical weapons — if the United States goes to war with Iraq.

Lawrence Police Chief Ron Olin said the chance of an attack in the Lawrence area was very low.

“I don’t believe we are a primary target,” said Olin, who has taught college classes about terrorism and served on national police boards on the subject. “I do not have any credible, reliable information saying that we are a target.”

Nevertheless, since 9-11, local and state officials have been working together to come up with plans for addressing a terrorist attack here, they said.

Local and state agencies have had training sessions that included role-playing for handling a catastrophe. New and improved protective gear was purchased primarily for firefighters and police officers. After 9-11, $50,000 worth of federal grant money was received to buy the gear and another $75,000 has been allocated for more purchases, said Paula Phillips, director of Douglas County Emergency Management.

Health officials have been training to detect and receive information about biological and chemical attacks and how to respond, they said.

“We have made a number of changes, improving our existing procedures and equipment,” said Robert Trepinski, vice president at Lawrence Memorial Hospital.

The Lawrence-Douglas County Health Department has been working with the Kansas Department of Health and Environment as well as federal health agencies, said Charlotte Marthaler, the health department’s director of planning and policy.

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“We continue to make changes and adjustments,” Marthaler said.

Mass casualties from any type of terrorist attack would tax health care personnel and facilities, officials said.

“I think any system can get overwhelmed,” Trepinski said. “That’s why we all have back-up systems and inter-agency agreements.”

Olin said his department was not doing anything significantly different in response to the terrorism alert. He said additional officers could be called out if necessary.

More Douglas County Sheriff’s officers, however, have been assigned to patrol duties and some shifts are being extended beyond eight hours, Sheriff Rick Trapp said. He declined to say how many additional officers or how long the shifts were extended.

“The primary reason we’re doing this is not because we had any intelligence of any problems that have developed, but rather to see how it works,” Trapp said.

March 2003: Paula Phillips, Douglas County Emergency Preparedness director, talks with Lawrence Police Chief Ron Olin before a meeting with local officials at the Judicial and Law Enforcement Center. Officials met to talk over what precautions to take in the event of war with Iraq.