Saudis Get Tips on Chemical Raids
DHAHRAN, Saudi Arabia — Turn off the air-conditioning, don gas masks, seal homes, sit in a bathtub of water and don’t panic.
This was how Saudis were told to react to chemical warfare in booklets issued by civil defense authorities, Saudi newspapers reported today.
Saudi Arabia has bought millions of gas masks and given crash courses in protection against chemical warfare to hundreds of civil defense volunteers since Iraq invaded Kuwait on Aug. 2.
Civil defense officers said chemical bombs could be distinguished from conventional shells by low noise blasts, thick smoke, fewer fragments and the presence of oil-like stains and dead insects in the vicinity.
It said the first precautions were to seal homes from the inside with wet cloths, put gas masks or wet handkerchiefs over the mouth and nose and wear raincoats or waterproof garments.
The next moves were to throw away polluted clothes, wash eyes and limbs and stay in a bath without swallowing any water.
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