PANDORA 2006 to begin in Tallinn Prison

Press release no. 151

The Pandora 2006 crisis regulation complex exercises organised by the Ministry of the Interior are set to begin this Monday 2 October in the Tallinn Prison, where the emergency situation resolution plan of the Ministry of Justice will be put to the test as well as the actions and reactions of the prison's crisis team and medical personnel in critical situations.

According to the scenario, four detainees have recently been brought into Estonia from an Asian country which has been listed by the public health organisation of the United Nations as at risk from highly transmissible avian influenza. On first inspection the detainees appear to have presented none of the symptoms of the illness. However, the medical condition of the prisoners brought in from Asia then quickly deteriorates. As the detainees arrived from a country which is at risk from avian influenza, greater attention is paid to this turn of events. The situation within the prison leads to panic and unrest among the other inmates and their visitors out of fear of contracting the so-called bird flu.

The training exercise is designed for officers from the agencies involved the experience and skills they need to handle emergency situations. During the day training assessors will be looking at prison procedures for notification of emergency situations and the cooperation that takes place between different agencies and companies.

Taking part in the emergency resolution exercises will be representatives from the Ministry of Justice, Tallinn Prison, the Health Protection Inspectorate, the Alarm Centre, Tallinn Emergency Medical Services, the Police, Western Tallinn Central Hospital and Harju County Government.
On Tuesday 3 October Pandora 2006 training will continue at Tallinn Airport.

In this scenario, Estonian peace-keeping officers are returning home from a central Asian country which has seen a recent sharp increase in the number of people in the location population succumbing to the H5N8 virus. During the flight the state of health of a number of the Defence Forces troops deteriorates. The captain on the flight makes contact with Tallinn air traffic control and informs them that there are passengers on board the plane returning from a high-risk region who are presenting symptoms of influenza. An epidemic control plan is launched.

As the scenario develops further, the army officers who have been released from the airport with no obvious symptoms are involved in a traffic accident with a bus. Several of the troops are injured and emergency units are dispatched to the scene.

Attention journalists!

We would like to invite you to follow the course of the training exercises taking place at the Tallinn Airport. We will be gathering in the foyer of the airport's administrative building (located at Lennujaama tee 2) at 8.40 am on Tuesday 3 October. Once checks of documentation related to the security regulations of the airport are complete, a bus will depart from the administrative building to the area of the airport where the training is to take place.

In accordance with the airport's security regulations, please inform of your attendance by Monday 2 October by phoning 612 5033 or e-mailing kristina dot leer at siseministeerium dot ee.

Due to the security restrictions of the Tallinn Prison, it will unfortunately not be possible for journalists to follow the events to be held there.

Interviews regarding and summaries of the 2 October training session will be made available at around 4.00 pm.

Should you have a request for an interview, please agree this in advance by phoning 612 50 33 or (mobile) 51 27 089.