Lab class teaches how to identify bombs

A standard-issue sheet metal desk is obliterated by a half-pound of C-4 high explosive during a detonation demonstration at the Hazardous Devices Team firing site Monday at Technical Area 49. The detonation was part of a quarterly Bomb Threat Preparation and Response course given by HDT personnel to Laboratory employees. The course is designed to make employees aware of the destructive power of criminal or terrorist explosive devices and to give them the tools needed to identify suspect devices and to properly respond. HDT is part of Emergency Management and Response (S-8).

A disruptor is fired at a standard metal briefcase in a demonstration of Hazardous Devices Team tactics at the TA-49 firing site. The disruptor fires a pinpoint, accurate high-pressure jet of liquid into the briefcase containing a simulated suspect device in order to rapidly disassemble the electronics, preventing either an intentional or accidental detonation. Photos by Kevin N. Roark, Public Affairs

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